Jennifer Aniston surprises Friends fans visiting the Central Perk set

Jennifer Aniston gave unsuspecting Friends fans a shock when she visited the show’s set.

The actress, 50, filmed the hit 90s sitcom on the Warner Brothers lot in California from 1994 to 2004. The iconic set is now part of a studio tour which tourists can visit.

While filling in for Ellen De Generes on her chat show, which is filmed on the same lot, Aniston decided to return to her old stomping ground – with hilarious results.

“You probably know that Ellen’s show is filmed on the Warner Brothers lot and I spent about 10 years here on a show called Friends,” the actress told viewers during Thursday’s (January 23) episode.

“And the set is actually still here. It’s part of the Warner Brothers studio tour so I thought while I’m here, I’ll go and take a visit.”

A pre-recorded segment showed Aniston popping up behind groups of tourists as they posed for photos on Central Perk’s famous orange sofa.

When the oblivious fans answered the question “Who’s your favourite character?” with anything other than Rachel, Aniston jumped out to argue with them.

While most tour-goers screamed in shock, some were left speechless, prompting the star to admit that the prank was “the cruellest thing in the world.”

One confused visitor asked “Is it really, really you? So you really film here?” which allowed Aniston to show off her famous comic timing, responding with a deadpan “I live here.”

The actress then invited the fans to watch her film the special episode of Ellen – although she later couldn’t resist the chance to make a dig at their apparent disdain for her character.

“Now that you guys are here, you get to watch your third favourite Friend!” she quipped.

Aniston won her first ever individual SAG Award this week for her performance in Apple TV’s The Morning Show. She and her Friends castmates previously received the SAG trophy for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series back in 1996.