Two-hander

A Two-Hander is a play, film or television programme in which only two characters appear. While they can sometimes be in a form of conflict, they can also be in a position of harmony and the script explores the nuances of the relationship between the two.

Within serials, the form has been most utilised by EastEnders which, for the purposes of filming several episodes simultaneously, produced an episode in October 1986 which featured just the characters of Den and Angie Watts (plus a non-speaking window cleaner) and which garnered critical acclaim. Up to 2010 the programme has produced eighteen such episodes, several episodes with just three or four speaking parts and even an episode with a single character, Dot Cotton, in January 2008.

Emmerdale has only had one two-hander episode in the history of the show - Episode 2754 (28th September 2000). This episode featured Paddy Kirk and Mandy Dingle before she leaves for Southampton.