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The Best Episodes of Shameless

Every episode of Shameless ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Shameless!

The story of a young group of siblings pretty much abandoned by their parents, surviving by their wits - and humor - on a rough...
Genres:ComedyDrama
Network:Channel 4

Best Episodes Summary

"Episode 16" is the best rated episode of "Shameless". It scored 8.4/10 based on 112 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 5/12/2009. This episode scored 0.2 points higher than the second highest rated, "Episode 15".

  • Episode 16
    8.4/10112 votes
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    #1 - Episode 16

    Season 6 Episode 16 - Aired 5/12/2009

    Patrick continues to lose his grip on his marriage and his family.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 15
    8.2/1090 votes
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    #2 - Episode 15

    Season 6 Episode 15 - Aired 5/5/2009

    After Debbie throws him out for the night, Frank ends up in a confessional booth where he hears a neighbour's shocking confession. Frank finds himself drawn into what is going on.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 7
    8.1/10257 votes
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    #3 - Episode 7

    Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 2/24/2004

    The balifs and Mr Wilson are still after Frank. And Frank seems to be more interested in spending time with his ex-wife, Monica, than dealing with his spiraling debts. However, much to Frank's annoyance Norma, Monica's lesbian partner, gives Frank a good idea, to fake his own death! Meanwhile Maggie realises that Frank isn't as interested in her as she hoped. When Anthony comes around to talk about Fiona she accidentally gets Chilli in her eyes and staggers out into the Garden! The first time she has been out in five years! Tony has finally found the perfect way to get rid of Steve and get with Fiona for he has stumbled across Steve's car stealing scam. The balifs aren't so convinced that Frank is dead until one of them attacks Frank in his coffin, in front of the family! When Frank doesn't stir the balif finally realises that Frank is really dead, and how sick his violent outburst/attack seemed. At Frank's wake Frank bursts out of the coffin and a party starts. Maggie turns up to ever

    Director: Dearbhla Walsh

    Writer: Paul Abbott

  • Episode 4
    8.1/10204 votes
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    #4 - Episode 4

    Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 1/25/2005

    Plans are afoot for Steve and Fiona's upcoming wedding. They pay a visit to the local vicar who eventually agrees to let them marry in the church but only after Steve agrees to pay a lot of money. Then disaster strikes when his car is stolen outside the church. Steve begins to panic and calls Tony. However, unknown to Steve Tony has actually stolen it for a joke but decides to look inside the car and finds a lot of money and drugs. Veronica becomes convinces her mother is going crazy when she continues to talk to her dog. Marty packs her off on a mystery cruise and then takes the dog to have an operation to loose its voice! Steve persaudes Tony to hand over the car. Steve drops the car off with some drug dealers but Tony and Stan turn up. Things turn nasty when a gun is pulled and then fired. One of the drug dealers is killed and the other one escapes but is quickly captured. A warrant is issued for Steve's arrest and he has to flee the estate.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 5
    8.1/10174 votes
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    #5 - Episode 5

    Season 2 Episode 5 - Aired 2/1/2005

    Sheila asks Lip to water the plants for a neighbour who's away on holiday, but the house is burgled and Lip is arrested by a bent copper, stitched up and charged. Frank goes to the police station and makes matters a lot worse.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 6
    8.1/10165 votes
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    #6 - Episode 6

    Season 2 Episode 6 - Aired 2/8/2005

    Lip is sleeping with Mandy while she pretends to be Ian's girlfriend to hide the fact that he's gay. However, after Mandy falls pregnant with Lip's baby everyone thinks Ian's the dad and the Maguires welcome him to the family - with the threat of castration if he doesn't marry her. Fiona gets mugged on her way home from a drunken night out.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 14
    8.1/1091 votes
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    #7 - Episode 14

    Season 11 Episode 14 - Aired 5/28/2013

    After spending months in jail, Frank returns to Chatsworth hoping for a welcome home party. However, he discovers Monica has took up residency at the Gallaghers - and is expecting his tenth child, and the return of a few faces from his past heralds the end of an era. Meanwhile, it's business as usual at Chesco's, as an old face re-instates herself.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 10
    8.0/10179 votes
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    #8 - Episode 10

    Season 2 Episode 10 - Aired 3/8/2005

    The local elections are underway and Kash is running to be Chatsworth's councillor against dirty-dealing Bernie Creme. However, it turns out that Bernie is just a racist who exposes himself to the entire pub and loses all his supporters. Lillian's husband is involved in a tragic accident which, at first, appears to be caused by Tony and Stan's Police van. But it later turns out that moments before he was hit by the van he was shot in the head. And it seems he was a junkie, according to the Police. Lillian is dashed off down the Police station to be interviewed about her late husband while Carol realises who shot him-Carl! Tony and Stan quickly figure out it was Carl as well due to CCTV footage. The family (bar Fiona who doesn't know) rallies behind Carl and just about manage to get him off the hook. Frank meanwhile decides to take the deadman's indentiy to get his benifits and then tries to kill his pet dog through various methods.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 6
    8.0/10134 votes
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    #9 - Episode 6

    Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 2/7/2006

    The Gallagher clan can't believe it when Carl starts to bring money into the household - but his mini-enterprise involves growing cannabis for the Maguires and the police are quick to bust him. Lip is jealous when Mandy gets a new boyfriend and he later discovers that she was the brains behind Carl's business.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: Paul Abbott

  • Episode 8
    8.0/10127 votes
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    #10 - Episode 8

    Season 3 Episode 8 - Aired 2/21/2006

    In preparation for her wedding to Frank, Sheila commissions the building of a conservatory in her back yard - but she suddenly remembers her first husband is buried under the patio. Veronica's last stab at IVF on the NHS fails, so she hatches a macabre plan to raise cash for private treatment.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: Paul Abbott

  • Episode 11
    8.0/10100 votes
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    #11 - Episode 11

    Season 5 Episode 11 - Aired 3/11/2008

    When Paddy is caught on camera for an armed robbery and could face 20 years inside, Mimi begs him to call his brother, Noel. He's the only one who can help. But Paddy has a dark history with his sibling and would rather go to jail than ever set eyes on him again. As the reality of his situation dawns, he realises he has no choice. The Gallaghers find themselves three grand in debt to Mimi after Frank inhales a box of her drugs, and it seems that Ian is the only one who can bail the family out. But when his business venture fails, Ian finds he has nowhere to turn. In an act of desperation, he steals money from the till at the Jockey but things quickly spiral out of control. The status quo gets altered in the police house when Carrie becomes a sergeant. Tom is peeved that Carrie is exploiting her new position, but a chance comment leads him to discover a dark secret in Carrie's past, which means he can regain the upper hand...

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 15
    8.0/1094 votes
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    #12 - Episode 15

    Season 5 Episode 15 - Aired 4/8/2008

    While enjoying another secret rendezvous, Debbie and Tom are forced to come to the aid of an assaulted woman, but things go horribly wrong when Tom gets arrested on suspicion of being the attacker. Only Debbie can supply his alibi, but not without putting both of them in a compromising position. There's a gruesome showdown between Shane and Paddy over Shane's girl, leaving Mimi torn between her love for her husband and the love she feels for her son. When Norma wakes up in a stranger's jogging bottoms after a night on the tiles, she sets off on a wild goose chase to find out whoever it was she slept with.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 1
    8.0/10107 votes
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    #13 - Episode 1

    Season 6 Episode 1 - Aired 1/27/2009

    Ian is attacked and left shaken and confused as to what he could have done to provoke it. When the stranger strikes again, Ian is left hospitalised and there's more bad news when he regains consciousness: he's got amnesia. Suddenly he's an alien amongst his own family and friends, and even his own sexuality is a mystery. Meanwhile it's Debbie's 16th birthday. Tom decides it's time to go public with their relationship, but Debbie has doubts about whether their relationship was ever really serious. Kelly has bad news for Shane about her pregnancy; Frank and Monica are faced with an impossible challenge when they hear the voice of newborn baby Stella: but do they want to know what she has to say about her parents and Chatsworth? And Ian's amnesia brings him a whole new perspective on his life, leaving him questioning if Chatsworth is the place for him after all.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 4
    7.9/10264 votes
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    #14 - Episode 4

    Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 2/3/2004

    The Gallaghers have a big problem on their hands when a local child goes missing from a party. Debbie steals/kidnaps a baby from the estate. However, the local residents immediatly think that the kid has been kidnapped by a pervert not least because Frank thinks he saw one outside the house of the missing girl. The race is on to find the girl while the Gallaghers, Veronica & Kev come up with a madcap scheme to get the baby back. It looks set for disaster but somehow they manage to get it off. The baby is returned and Debbie is flooded with money and praise by the Police little knowing she actually kidnapped the kid in the first place. Meanwhile after all the excitement Karen Jackson seduces Frank and they pair embark on a dangerous and likely disasterious affair.

    Director: Mark Mylod

    Writer: Paul Abbott

  • Episode 6
    7.9/10244 votes
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    #15 - Episode 6

    Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 2/17/2004

    Frank brings down the power of the social services on his family in a failed attempt to extract money from Monica.

    Director: Dearbhla Walsh

    Writer: Paul Abbott

  • Episode 1
    7.9/10120 votes
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    #16 - Episode 1

    Season 5 Episode 1 - Aired 1/1/2008

    An emergency visit to the hospital results in Frank receiving devastating news, prompting him to embark on an orgy of drink and drug-fuelled mayhem, which culminates in a bizarre, drug-induced encounter with his younger self. Elsewhere, Lillian comes up with a surprising way to make money, and Lip's shady past catches up with him and leads to a no-holds-barred fight in The Jockey, with shocking consequences.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 7
    7.9/10102 votes
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    #17 - Episode 7

    Season 5 Episode 7 - Aired 2/12/2008

    When there is a gas leak at the Gallaghers along comes a sexy fireman named Sean. He gets the attention of Ian and Mandy but which one of them will win the race to get the Sean into bed? Also, Carl finds himself in a risky situation.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 8
    7.9/1061 votes
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    #18 - Episode 8

    Season 11 Episode 8 - Aired 4/16/2013

    Frank is shocked when he boards a bus - only to be reunited with his eldest son, Lip, and grandaughter Katie. However, it is not a pleasent reunion between father and son as it soon becomes clear that Lip is living in the area. But doesn't want Katie to be associated with his alcoholic father or Chatsworth.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 3
    7.8/10277 votes
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    #19 - Episode 3

    Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 1/27/2004

    Kev accidentally proposes to Veronica, and although he soon admits he's still legally married to Roxy, they decide to go ahead with a fake ceremony anyway in order to claim a small inheritance from Veronica's father.

    Director: Jonny Campbell

    Writer: Daniel Brocklehurst

  • Episode 5
    7.8/10246 votes
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    #20 - Episode 5

    Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 2/10/2004

    Karen and Frank's affair continues behind the backs of Shelia and Lip. Shelia is concentrating on beating her phobea of open spaces, through a nurse that comes and visits her. Shelia goes shopping through a virtual reality machine but panics when she gets too near the doors. Ian's affair with Kash is ruined after security cameras are installed in the shop to stop shop lifting. Yvonne notices strange behaviour and comes to the correct conclusion. She tells Kash that she wants another baby and decides that Ian can stay on at the shop but his relationship with Kash is over. Lip discovers Karrens and frank's affair and goes crazy. He attacks his father.

    Director: Mark Mylod

    Writer: Carmel Morgan

  • Episode 1
    7.8/10202 votes
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    #21 - Episode 1

    Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 1/4/2005

    Frank is forced to take a job as a window cleaner when his father arrives. But is the window cleaning round really the best form of employment for Frank? Meanwhile Karen eyes up Kev down the pub.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 3
    7.8/10189 votes
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    #22 - Episode 3

    Season 2 Episode 3 - Aired 1/18/2005

    A gardening competition is launched, by the council, to find the best garden and reward the winners with a years free rent! Naturally the shabby gardens of the Chattersworth estate suddenly turn into gardens fit for the queen. Carol doesn't wish to loose the winning prize and turns the Gallagher's garden from old wreck to sparkling garden. Veronica wants to do up their garden but Kev isn't too keen, that is until he meets with Tommy who works for the council. Together they steal a Diana Memorial Garden (!) and move it into their back yard. Carol see's it as a declaration of war between mother and daughter and when the garden is trashed things turn even nastier between the warring family. It's later revealed that a group of yobs were responsible for trashing the garden, and others, but this does little to end the argument. Meanwhile Shelia leaves to visit her sick mother in a hospice and leaves Frank with baby Nigel and Delia.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 7
    7.8/10155 votes
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    #23 - Episode 7

    Season 2 Episode 7 - Aired 2/15/2005

    Ladies Night at the Jockey proves to be more trouble than its worth. For one thing its full of blokes which only serves to anger Jez. Fiona eyes up footballer Ryan but when she wakes up the next morning it isn't Ryan who is lying next to her. Instead its the less-than-desirable Joey Dawson. Fiona decides to take contraception but before she can actually take them Liam swallows them and then Marty traps Joey's arm in a door. At the hospital they discover that Joey's arm is broken but Liam is fine and there will be no ill effects. A follow up visit from social services isn't as simple for the Gallagher family. The inspector is Katrina a woman who went to school with Fiona and who's life was apparently hell because of Fiona dubbing her "Sperm Whale". But the family pass the visit but Katrina reveals she's engaded-to Joey Dawson. At the Jockey Joey confesses he loves Fiona while Ryan lets slip to Katrina that Fiona and Joey were all over each other the night before.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 9
    7.8/10153 votes
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    #24 - Episode 9

    Season 2 Episode 9 - Aired 3/1/2005

    Debbie's on a mission to help Marty who has an impending court appearance for a breach of the peace. Fiona is suffering from morning sickness, so Craig is planning a surprise trip to Wales to relax. Craig's wife, Sue, is jealous of his new relationship and seeks a showdown at the Gallaghers' house.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Episode 1
    7.8/10158 votes
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    #25 - Episode 1

    Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 1/3/2006

    When five year-old Liam denounces religion at his RC Primary School and is subject to a home-visit by his teacher and the local priest, sister Debbie has to think fast. But shaving his head and pretending that he is dying of cancer is NOT one of Debbie's better ideas. In fact, by the time the rest of the Gallagher clan realise what's going on and try to set the record straight, the news has leaked out into the wider community and Debbie's lie lands the family in true Gallagher-style catastrophe. Could things get any worse for Debbie?

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A