BBC Television has announced a raft of new comedy programmes today, underlining their commitment to comedy. Among the commissions are a BBC1 series for Tracey Ullman, an annual Ronnnie Barker comedy Lecture, a new Ben Miller series and a programme celebrating 25 years of Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse at the BBC.
There will also be more satire from Rory Bremner, while Morgana Robinson, currently appearing in House of Fools will have her own BBC pilot and Kerry Howard from Him & Her will front a series on BBC3.
Going into further detail at a BBC launch co-hosted by BBC Director General Tony Hall and Shane Allen, Controller, Comedy Commissioning, it was announced that the annual Ronnie Barker Comedy Lecture is to be given by a key comedy figure to share his or her experiences and to help inspire others, as well as addressing the present day challenges and opportunities facing the industry.
Akin to the Reith and Dimbleby lectures, the Ronnie Barker Comedy Lecture’s aim is to articulate why comedy matters so much, both on a personal level and how it helps to reflect and define our national character. An inaugural speaker announcement will be made shortly.
Shane Allen also outlined details for several new comedy commissions. After a number of years working in the US, BAFTA and EMMY award winner Tracey Ullman is back for a brand new series on BBC One. The six part series, The Tracey Ullman Show, will feature Tracey portraying a multitude of diverse and distinct characters living in, or visiting, the busy global hub that is the UK.
Ullman last appeared on the BBC in A Kick up the Eighties and Three of a Kind in the early and mid-eighties before emigrating to the States where she enjoys huge success as an actress, writer, producer and director, pushing the boundaries of character comedy whilst also introducing The Simpsons to television.
Ben Miller will star in I Want My Wife Back, written by Mark Bussell and Justin Sbresni (The Worst Week of My Life). Miller plays nice guy Murray, whose wife Bex walks out on their marriage. On her 40th birthday, at her surprise party. Murray is confused. What's he done wrong? Where's she gone? Is she coming back?
So begins Murray's quest to find out what went wrong with his marriage and how he can change...though it's less a journey than a floundering stumble in the dark towards the prize of returning his life to something approaching normality. All the while he’s having to manage the demands of his ultra-needy team members at the office, as well as navigating his way through the well-meaning but counter-productive advice from friends and family.
Elsewhere An Evening with Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse will celebrate the meteoric 25 year rise of Harry and Paul including their successful shows Harry Enfield's Television Programme and Harry and Paul.
The show will celebrate not only their sketch characters, but also, for the first time, will introduce the real Harry and Paul, who appear almost live on stage as themselves. Harry and Paul will find themselves exposed to the rigorous questioning of an audience of celebrities. As the programme looks back at their quarter-century old professional relationship, viewers will gain a genuine insight into the two personalities.
Following his Coalition Report earlier this year, Rory Bremner returns to BBC Two in Rory Bremner's Election Report for atimely post-election special, focusing on life after the vote, and the story of how the establishment makes sure that while parties come and go, the power-makers behind the scenes never lose out. With a new government installed, who really runs the country? And how? Just before the new government sets out on its five year mission to austerity and beyond, we ask who has really won, and why.
Morgana & Friends is a brand new sketch show pilot for BBC Two starring Morgana Robinson. This show brings together some of her favourite impersonations of Danny Dyer, Natalie Cassidy and Fearne Cotton, along with her take on a whole host of new impressions, including Joanna Lumley, Miranda Hart, Dame Maggie Smith and Karl Pilkington. Morgana & Friendswill explore the world of celebrity both on and off camera, moving seamlessly between ‘behind the scenes’ ob-docs and a series of fictional celebrity-obsessed travelogues, cookery shows and fake sitcoms.
Witless, written by Joe Tucker and Lloyd Woolf, is a new sitcom for BBC Three starring Kerry Howard (pictured). Flatmates Rhona and Leanne have their lives turned upside down after they witness a shocking gangland shooting. Forced into witness protection, the girls quickly discover that assuming a new identity isn't simple. While Leanne jumps at the chance to create an extravagant alter-ego, Rhona is paralysed by fear telling the simplest lie. And with two teenage gang members determined to track them down, the girls find themselves getting deeper and deeper into trouble.
