The Bicycle Thief (Modern Family)

"**The Bicycle Thief**"
"The Bicycle Thief"
Modern Family episode
	Claire (Julie Bowen) and Phil (Ty Burrell) meeting their new neighbor, Desiree (Brandy Ledford)
Episode no.	Season 1; Episode 2
Directed by	Jason Winer
Written by	Bill Wrubel
Cinematography by	Jim Bogdonas
Editing by	Jonathan Schwartz
Production code	1ARG02
Original air date	September 30, 2009
Guest appearances
	Brandy Ledford as Desiree; Julia Lehman as Danielle; Lindsey Stoddart as Helen;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "Pilot"	Next →; "Come Fly with Me"
	Modern Family season 1
	List of episodes

"The Bicycle Thief" is the second episode of the American family sitcom television series Modern Family. It originally aired on ABC in the United States on September 30, 2009. The episode was written by Bill Wrubel and directed by Jason Winer.

In the episode, Jay tries to show his stepson he can be a good father; Phil tries to teach his son a lesson by stealing his bike, but suffers the consequences when he discovers he stole the wrong bike; Cameron and Mitchell put Lily in Day Care Center and try to act straight.

"The Bicycle Thief" received positive reviews from critics mostly towards Ty Burrell's performance as Phil Dunphy. The episode was viewed by 9.99 million viewers and dropped four-tenths from last week's episode, "Pilot" in the 18-49 demographic tying with Criminal Minds in the timeslot according to Nielsen Media Research.