We’ve heard the numerous stories about Tom, Dick and Harry racking up huge mobile phone bills believing all that downloading they were doing was included in the fixed rate they pay for surfing the web with their phone.

Fast forward a couple of weeks and there’s a giant bill sitting on the welcome mat that weighs in at, oh about bajillion euro.

Well, this week’s story is no different, really. The wife of a City executive ordered four episodes of Friends using her husband’s unlimited phone broadband package - which allows free downloads - in this country, the Daily Mail reports.

Unfortunately, her husband then took his phone with him when he went to Germany.

The resulting bill is a pretty hefty £11,000, which hubby’s company was notified of by Vodafone.

All that for a few episodes of Friends, eh? Someone should tell his wife that E4 shows Friends practically 24/7 nowadays.

It’s still unsure as to whether Vodafone will reduce the bill, as was the case with one Ian Simpson not too long ago.

Ian managed to clock up a £27k bill, which was then reduced to £37 after Vodafone faced the wrath of the Mirror. . .Ahem.

The story of Ian Simpson came not too long after a Canadian man managed to download his way to a bill of $80k. This particular story prompted such reader comments as,

"the fact that these people can dress themselves and are free citizens of any country amazes me."

and

"How? How do some people think like this? It defies belief!"