Bernie and even more over the top in their behaviour, cause havoc when they come over from Ireland to visit her during her shift at the hospital. It was also discovered that Bernie shuns medical terms for intimate bodily parts because she confuses them with the names of another sister and brother, Virginia and Clint. Bernie appeared in a Christmas special in a sketch featuring George Michael. Paul and Sam The Essex couple. They are happily married yet slightly simple, and find everyday situations surprisingly hilarious. Paul (played by Lee Ross) and Sam often excitedly tell each other stories, which they find highly amusing and interesting, but which are in fact everyday situations (for example: forgetting the keys for the car and only noticing after getting in the car). The stories build up and when completed, Paul and Sam would both produce an exaggerated and completely silent laugh. Tate revealed in an interview that these characters are based on people that she knows, but that they are not aware of this despite enjoying the sketch. Occasionally, their relations are featured, with humour derived from their similarities to the couple. In episode five of series two, audiences were introduced to Sam's parents, played by guests Paul Whitehouse and Geraldine McNulty, who are depicted as sharing their daughter's verbosity and idiosyncratic sense of humour. In the 2005 Christmas special, it was revealed that they have two children, who look like them and who behave in a similar manner. Paul and Sam made only two appearances in series three, featuring in the last episode and still very excitable over the slightest thing. It is usual for Paul to ask a question to which Sam would reply "I dunno!", again followed by an exaggerated and totally silent laugh. In series two, episode six, after Sam excitedly tells the story and follows her usual pattern, Paul, instead of saying 'What are you like?' or, doing a silent laugh, he simply states 'yeah well, it's an easy mistake to make, Sam steps back, bewildered, tries to tell him another story in an attempt to make him laugh, but yet again he simply states 'yeah well, picked up the wrong one, it can happen', Sam, again bewildered, starts to leave, but it turns out Paul was joking. Paul and Sam appear in the 2007 Christmas Special where three of Sam's friends from work go around to her