Noughties TV show Fat Friends is leaving Netflix this month
Find out where else you can watch the show!
Last updated 4th Mar 2026
If you cast your minds back to the early noughties, you'll no doubt remember Kay Mellor's genius TV drama Fat Friends, which focuses on a factual slimming club in Headingley, Leeds.
With a star-studded cast including James Corden, Lisa Riley, Ruth Jones, Gaynor Faye, Alison Steadman, Janet Dibley and Jonathan Ryland, the show was made up of four series, airing between 2000-2005.
How to watch Fat Friends?
All four series landed on Netflix in March 2024, with viewers loving the nostalgic vibes. However, it's now been revealed the show will leave the platform on Thursday 12th March, meaning users don't have much longer to watch the series.
It's not all bad news, as Fat Friends is still available to watch for free on ITVX and STV Player, as well as on Prime Video for subscribers.
Actress Lisa Riley, who plays the role of Rebecca Patterson in the show, thanked fans for their love of the show when it landed on Netflix in 2024. She wrote: '💛👏🏼💛Thank you, thank you, for all your GORGEOUS messages, regarding “Fat Friends” going to @netflixuk @netflix and it’s riding very very high in the charts, as it’s gone straight in at number 2.
'Which proves you are all watching it and binging away!!! It’s the series that everyone needs, you feel good, you relate to the characters, you see real life struggles, and you have the most wonderful group of loyal friends to pick you up. All the ingredients that #kaymellor @rollemprodco poured into this fantastic series. Keep enjoying it. Me and James @j_corden sat here TWENTY TWO BLOODY YEARS AGO!!! getting old!!! 😳😳😳 #fatfriends #lisariley #netflix #netflixseries #bingewatching #charts #tv #recommended #thankyou'. (sic)
Fans were quick to comment on the page, with many expressing their love for the series.
One wrote: 'Absolutely brilliant, best programme ever 👏', with another commenting: 'I’m binging it as I loved it the first time round ❤️'. A third wrote: 'Absolutely loved watching it and glad it’s back on tv To watch again'. (sic)
Another the wrote: 'I've only just heard this.. found my weekend binge fest, I loved fat friends!', with a fifth adding: 'I started watching it last night - I remember it from years back , but great to watch again'. (sic)
Fat Friends was written by the late Kay Mellor, alongside her daughter Gaynor Faye, Debbie Oats and Jayne Daniels.
Actress Janet Dibley played the lead role of slimming club leader Carol, who runs the class to help members of the group lose weight by following the super slimmer's diet. All episodes throughout the four series focused on one particular character.
After four series and 24 episodes, the last episode of Fat Friends aired in March 2005, leaving viewers gutted.
In 2017, the show was adapted into a stage musical, with Jodie Prenger playing the main role.
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