The Simpsons: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Ned Flanders

There are a handful of characters from The Simpsons that just about everyone in the world would be able to name. Ned Flanders, the friendly neighbourino of the titular family, is one of those characters. Christian, kind, twice widowed, and repressing a whole host of memories, Ned has lived a very interesting life as a prominent figure on the finest TV show in history.

Despite this, there are a lot of things about the mustachioed man that even the biggest fans of the show might have forgotten or never knew in the first place. We’ve listed ten of them below.

10 His Religion Wasn’t A Major Plot Point At First

Season one of The Simpsons provided us with a show that was very much finding its feet. It didn’t quite know what made its characters tick, voices hadn’t become definitive, and the animation style needed a major overhaul, which it fortunately received in season two.

One of the important things that would change pretty early on was the driving force behind Ned Flanders. He was always religious, but his over-the-top attitude wasn’t revealed until season two. He was actually pretty normal early on.

9 He Is A Volunteer Fire Fighter

There are a few characters in The Simpsons that have such a long list of side hustles that we have no idea how they get anything done. Ned Flanders is one of those characters, filling some of his time—though we don’t see it very often—with his work in the volunteer fire department alongside the likes of Carl, Apu, Moe and Skinner.

8 He’s Related To An English Lord

It took us a long time to find out much about the Flanders Clan beyond Ned, Maud, and their two children. However, in the episode “Lisa The Vegetarian,” we meet quite a few of Ned’s more distant relatives.

One of those is Lord Thistlewick Flanders, Ned’s cousin. He doesn’t seem to have the innate ability to add diddlys and doodlys to the end of every sentence, making the original Flanders’ mannerisms all the more perplexing.

7 His Vegas Wife Lived With Him For A While

Arguably the most out of character thing Ned Flanders ever did was go on a Vegas bender with Homer and end up with a fake wife. As with many of the important moments in The Simpsons, we assumed that, after the episode, this would fizzle out into nothing. However, Ginger eventually looked for Ned and ended up moving in with him and the boys for a while.

6 He Is Compared To Job From The Bible

This is never said outright on the show, but many fans have made the connection between Ned and Job from the bible. The two are devout Christians but are often tested by God and manage to keep their faith. For example, Ned’s house was burned to the ground and he is twice widowed.

5 He Had His Own Short

At the end of the season four episode “The Front,” we see a short called “The Adventures Of Ned Flanders,” complete with its own title them, “Everybody Loves Ned Flanders/”

This was first made to fill the time gap the writers had left at the end of the episode, and they have expressed a desire to bring the short back one day, but we haven’t seen anything yet. It’s been 27 years, so don’t hold your breath.

4 His Age Doesn’t Make Much Sense

Ned looks rather young, and we were all impressed when he revealed his immaculately crafted physique. However, the episode “Viva Ned Flanders” revealed that he was actually sixty years old. Despite this important reveal, there are many episodes that show Ned to be a child at the same time as Homer and Marge, who aren’t even forty.

3 His Upbringing Was… Interesting

After a long period of mystery, we were finally told about Ned’s early life and the impact it would have on his future. His parents were artistic beatniks who didn’t put rules in place or care for their child particularly well. They pretty much couldn’t be further from the truth of Ned himself.

While his parents didn’t want to create rules to restrict Ned, he is known for being possibly the most overprotective father in the history of Earth.

2 And It Had A Direct Impact On His Speech

It was their strange upbringing that caused his unique speech pattern, and, as we would eventually find out, his repressed rage. Aside from his intense religious devotion, the one thing most people know about Ned Flanders is his crazed diddlys and doodlys that appear in just about every sentence. What many don’t know is that these have their origin in the repressed rage created by Ned’s complex upbringing.

1 He Has Many Futures

As with all Simpsons future episodes, Ned’s various future lives aren’t canonical. In fact, despite his importance in the show, he isn’t featured in very many flash-forwards. Some elements of his potential later life include his eyes falling out after getting laser eye surgery and the reveal that Homer killed Edna—just like he killed Maud—and that he has remarried Maude’s ghost.