NBC · 1994–2004
Six prints on the table. Pick one up.
Six friends, one café, an apartment with a purple door. The building was a corner in the West Village; everything inside it was made on a studio lot in Burbank, three thousand miles away. The prints are the six as themselves, most of them from the years the show was on air.
Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer played Rachel Green, Monica Geller, Phoebe Buffay, Chandler Bing, Joey Tribbiani and Ross Geller; the first episode aired on 22 September 1994.
Hello!: Friends turns 30, the cast then and now (Beatriz Colon, 22 September 2024)
NBC; 62 Emmy nominations and six wins between 1995 and 2004, including outstanding comedy series in 2002.
The show was not filmed in New York; 90 Bedford Street served as the outside of the friends’ building.
NYC Tourism + Conventions: Friends-ish New York City (Jonathan Zeller, 11 May 2017)
Episode guide
Nobody gave a Friends episode a clever title. David Crane said they named each one the way you would talk about it the next day, which started as a shortcut and became the fun of it. So write one. Pick a friend and a place; the title leads somewhere you can stand.
David Crane said the titles described episodes the way people would mention them the next day; it was mostly expedient, then it became fun. The first episode is listed as “The One Where it All Began”, the last as “The Last One”.
Deseret News: It’s the one about titles on “Friends” (Scott D. Pierce, 6 May 2004)
Who
Where
The One Where Rachel Gets Lost at the Abbey
Pick who and where, then write the title.
This one happens at
For Ross and Emily’s wedding the cast film in London, outside Westminster Abbey.
Ross and Emily’s wedding episode was filmed in London in March 1998, with scenes outside Westminster Abbey.
Sightseeing from 9.30am (9am on Saturdays), last entry 3.30pm (3pm on Saturdays). Sundays are for services.
The West Village · Bedford & Grove
The West Village building at 90 Bedford Street is the one the show used as the outside of Monica, Rachel, Chandler and Joey’s building. The show was not filmed in New York; the corner is still where fans come to photograph it, with the Little Owl restaurant at its base.
View only. Private apartments: look from the pavement across the street and leave the residents in peace. The Little Owl downstairs is open to everyone.
Joey Campanaro is the chef, and the restaurant has been in Greenwich Village for almost two decades. Dinner is served every day from 5pm to 10pm; OpenTable reservations take up to six guests.
90 Bedford Street, New York · Dinner daily 5–10pm · book through OpenTable, up to six
Joey Campanaro’s corner restaurant on the ground floor of 90 Bedford Street. The only way inside the Friends building.
Book a tableMidtown East to the Upper West Side
Three stops north of the corner. One of them is famous for something it never did.
Third Avenue at 59th Street
Rachel works at Bloomingdale’s as an assistant buyer.
The store is at 1000 Third Avenue in Midtown East.
A working department store: walk in during store hours.
Grand Army Plaza
Fans come to Grand Army Plaza looking for the credits fountain; it was filmed in Los Angeles.
Joseph Pulitzer’s estate paid for it; on top stands a bronze Pomona, the Roman goddess of abundance.
Free, in the open, at the south-east corner of Central Park.
Central Park West at 79th Street
Ross works at the “Museum of Prehistoric History”, clearly modelled on the museum on Central Park West.
It stands on Central Park West at West 79th Street.
Open daily; book timed tickets on the museum’s site.
The stairwell, East 23rd Street
The couch is at the bottom of the stairs. Somebody has to shout.
The Friends Experience rebuilds the stairwell couch scene, the purple door with its yellow peephole frame, Monica’s living room and Joey and Chandler’s apartment.
130 East 23rd Street · Gramercy
Its Central Perk café is a working replica, open to ticket holders and to anyone passing.
Monday and Wednesday to Sunday, 10am–8pm (last entry 7pm); closed Tuesdays. Timed tickets online.
130 East 23rd Street, New York · Mon, Wed–Sun 10am–8pm · last entry 7pm · closed Tuesdays
Two floors of rebuilt sets in Gramercy: the purple door, Monica’s living room, Joey and Chandler’s apartment, the stairwell couch and real props and costumes, with a working Central Perk.
Timed tickets
20 Times Square · since December 2025
It is not a copy of the set, but there is an orange couch to sit on. The art is by Burton Morris, and some of the drinks came over from the Boston Central Perk.
A coffeehouse at 701 Seventh Avenue: walk in, Monday to Friday 6.30am–6pm, weekends 8am–5pm.
Burbank, California · 3,939 km from Bedford Street
Which fountain opens every episode?
The cast shot at the fountain only twice, yet it is in the opening of every episode. Stage 48: Script to Screen, the self-guided end of the tour, holds the real Central Perk set; visitors can sit on the couch for a photo.
The Central Perk Café recreates Central Perk, Chandler and Joey’s apartment and Monica’s; the Friends Boutique, inside Stage 48, is open only to tour guests.
Daily 8.30am–3.30pm. About three hours, guided then self-guided, from $79. The fountain’s availability can change by the day.
3400 Warner Boulevard, Burbank · Daily 8.30am–3.30pm · about 3 hours · from $79
The lot where Friends was made: a guided ride, then Stage 48 with the real Central Perk set, the credits fountain when it is out, the Central Perk Café and the Friends Boutique.
Book the tourLondon · March 1998 · 4 km from the Abbey to the Tower
For Ross and Emily’s wedding the cast film in London, outside Westminster Abbey. Joey and Chandler go sightseeing with a map they cannot fold. Unfold it a panel at a time.
1 · Grosvenor Square
The London shoot also used the London Marriott just off Grosvenor Square, where Joey and Chandler try to get into the map.
A hotel today; rooms below in Stay.
2 · Westminster
Ross and Emily’s wedding episode was filmed in London in March 1998, with scenes outside Westminster Abbey.
Sightseeing from 9.30am (9am on Saturdays), last entry 3.30pm (3pm on Saturdays). Sundays are for services.
3 · Tower Hill
The March 1998 London filming also took place outside the Tower of London and Harrods.
Open daily; book timed tickets with Historic Royal Palaces.
Still folded. Unfold the first panel.
Westminster, London · From 9.30am (9am Saturdays) · last entry 3.30pm (3pm Saturdays)
Where the 1998 London shoot began. Sightseeing six days a week; Sundays are for services.
Plan a visitThe six, as themselves
Jennifer Aniston
Rachel Green
Rachel, who works at Bloomingdale’s as an assistant buyer. Aniston won the Emmy for lead actress in a comedy in 2002.
Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer played Rachel Green, Monica Geller, Phoebe Buffay, Chandler Bing, Joey Tribbiani and Ross Geller.
Hello!: Friends turns 30, the cast then and now (Beatriz Colon, 22 September 2024)
Jennifer Aniston won the Emmy for lead actress in a comedy series in 2002; Lisa Kudrow won for supporting actress in 1998.
Matthew Perry died on 28 October 2023, aged 54. The foundation in his name supports people struggling with addiction; he wanted to be remembered for helping others, not only for the show.
Tube station staff wrote tributes to Perry on the boards on the way down to the platforms.
The Boston Central Perk opened on 14 November 2023 with a Chandler cup sleeve; Perry was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts.
The Last One
11 places you can visit, in New York, Burbank and London. 90 Bedford Street is private apartments, so it is named, not pinned: the Little Owl on its ground floor carries the pin. Stage 24 is inside the studio gates.
Pins mark public places; private homes are named but not pinned.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: building · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. Dinner every day 5–10pm; lunch on weekdays and brunch at weekends. Book through OpenTable for up to six.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: building · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A working Off-Broadway house: see what is playing on the theatre’s site.
90 Bedford Street, on the corner of Grove Street
The Little Owl is at 90 Bedford Street, on the corner of Grove Street, the ground floor of the Friends building.
Dinner every day 5–10pm; lunch on weekdays and brunch at weekends. Book through OpenTable for up to six.
121 Christopher Street, West Village
In the show, Joey acts at the Lucille Lortel, in productions including Boxing Day and Freud!, the musical.
A working Off-Broadway house: see what is playing on the theatre’s site.
Stay
The London hotel from the 1998 episodes.
Grosvenor Square, Mayfair, London
The hotel just off Grosvenor Square used in the 1998 London episodes, where Joey and Chandler try to get into the map. A short walk from Bond Street station.
Check roomsGo there
The Studio Tour, the Friends Experience, Central Perk, the Little Owl and the Abbey.
3400 Warner Boulevard, Burbank · Daily 8.30am–3.30pm · about 3 hours · from $79
The lot where Friends was made: a guided ride, then Stage 48 with the real Central Perk set, the credits fountain when it is out, the Central Perk Café and the Friends Boutique.
Book the tour130 East 23rd Street, New York · Mon, Wed–Sun 10am–8pm · last entry 7pm · closed Tuesdays
Two floors of rebuilt sets in Gramercy: the purple door, Monica’s living room, Joey and Chandler’s apartment, the stairwell couch and real props and costumes, with a working Central Perk.
Timed tickets20 Times Square, New York · Mon–Fri 6.30am–6pm · Sat–Sun 8am–5pm
A coffeehouse, not a copy of the set: an orange couch, Burton Morris art and drinks named for the show, on Seventh Avenue at 47th Street.
Times Square listing90 Bedford Street, New York · Dinner daily 5–10pm · book through OpenTable, up to six
Joey Campanaro’s corner restaurant on the ground floor of 90 Bedford Street. The only way inside the Friends building.
Book a tableWestminster, London · From 9.30am (9am Saturdays) · last entry 3.30pm (3pm Saturdays)
Where the 1998 London shoot began. Sightseeing six days a week; Sundays are for services.
Plan a visitNew York
Live marketplace results for guided walks past the Bedford Street corner and other Friends places. Check each itinerary for the stops you want.
Live marketplace results · itineraries change
Compare toursLondon
Live marketplace results for entry and guided visits to the Tower, one of the 1998 London backdrops.
Live marketplace results · prices change
Compare ticketsWhat’s on
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No current dated events are listed. Check providers for the latest programme.
Take it home
The Rembrandts’ single, the 1995 album and Matthew Perry’s own book.
Matthew Perry
Perry’s memoir, published by Flatiron Books in 2022.
Find the bookThe Rembrandts · CD single, 1995
The theme, as a UK CD single released on 7 August 1995.
Live marketplace search · listings and condition change
Find a copyVarious artists · CD, 1995
Reprise’s 1995 album, opening with the TV version of the theme, then Hootie & the Blowfish, Toad the Wet Sprocket and Lou Reed.
Live marketplace search · listings and condition change
Find a copyDates, prices, rooms and stock change: confirm with the provider before you travel or buy. A stay or tour is described as a filming location only where the card says so.
The Rembrandts’ “I’ll Be There for You”, released as a UK CD single on 7 August 1995.
MusicBrainz: I’ll Be There for You, The Rembrandts, CD single, 7 August 1995
Reprise’s 1995 album from the series opens with the TV version of the theme.
MusicBrainz: Friends (music from the TV series), Reprise Records, 1995
The London Marriott just off Grosvenor Square was used in the 1998 London episodes.
Every place and moment behind this page, with sources.
12 of 12 places · 13 of 13 Moments
90 Bedford Street at Grove Street, West Village
The corner of Bedford and Grove is the outside of the friends’ building; every interior was a set in Burbank.
90 Bedford Street, on the corner of Grove Street
121 Christopher Street, West Village
Joey acts at the Lucille Lortel, in productions including Boxing Day and Freud!, the musical.
The Lucille Lortel stages The End of Longing, a play by Matthew Perry.
130 East 23rd Street, at Lexington Avenue, Gramercy
The stairwell couch scene is rebuilt in the Friends Experience, beside the purple door with its yellow peephole frame.
20 Times Square, Seventh Avenue at 47th Street
A Central Perk coffeehouse opens at 20 Times Square, with an orange couch to sit on.
1000 Third Avenue, at 59th Street
Rachel works at Bloomingdale’s as an assistant buyer.
Grand Army Plaza, Fifth Avenue at 59th Street
Fans come to Grand Army Plaza looking for the credits fountain; it was filmed in Los Angeles.
Central Park West at West 79th Street
Ross works at the “Museum of Prehistoric History”, clearly modelled on the museum on Central Park West.
3400 Warner Boulevard, Burbank
The cast shoot at the fountain on the Warner Bros. Ranch only twice, yet it opens every episode. It now stands on the Studio Tour.
The real Central Perk set stands on Stage 48, and visitors sit on the couch.
Inside the Warner Bros. lot, Burbank
The reunion special is announced to film on Stage 24, the comedy’s original soundstage.
20 Dean’s Yard, Westminster
For Ross and Emily’s wedding the cast film in London, outside Westminster Abbey.
Tower Hill
The London shoot also films outside the Tower of London.
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