What’s coming up on British TV this year in the world of comedy?
We take a look at some of the treats in store…
Camping
This is a new Sky Atlantic comedy from Julia Davis (Hunderby, Nighty Night) which sounds like it’s going to be just as darkly funny as her previous work. It’s about a group of families on a camping holiday, which goes awry when recently separated Tom arrives with his new girlfriend in tow.
Julia Davis has written and directed the series, and she stars alongside Rufus Jones (W1A), Steve Pemberton (Inside No. 9) and Vicki Pepperdine (Getting On).
Camping begins on Tuesday 12 April with a double bill from 10pm on Sky Atlantic.
Cunk On Shakespeare – A Moments Of Wonder Special
As part of the channel’s upcoming Shakespeare season, BBC Two will broadcast this documentary about the Bard himself, presented by the character Philomena Cunk from Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe. Expect plenty of Cunk’s signature wisdom (“Where does your lap go when you stand up?”) and nonsensical interviews with unsuspecting academics.
This one-off special is expected to air on BBC Two at some point in April.
Alan Partridge’s Scissored Isle
Following the recent second season of Mid Morning Matters, Steve Coogan’s Alan Partridge will soon be returning to Sky Atlantic in a one-off documentary about ‘Broken Britain’. We will see Alan travel up North to begin “a deeply personal journey of redemption” in which he attempts to tackle issues like poverty and, most likely, prove what a ruddy great bloke he is.
Alan Partridge’s Scissored Isle is due to air Monday 30 May on Sky Atlantic.
Flowers
Channel 4’s Flowers is a dark comedy about an eccentric, dysfunctional family. Julian Barratt stars (in his first big TV comedy role since The Mighty Boosh) as a depressed children’s author, and Olivia Colman (Broadchurch) plays his unhinged wife who suspects he may be having an affair with his illustrator.
Flowers will air on Channel 4 over one week, starting with a double bill on Monday 25 April from 10pm, followed by an episode per night until the finale on Friday 29 April.
The Cloud
This new sci-fi-comedy written by Adam Buxton (The Adam and Joe Show, Bug) and Graham Linehan (Father Ted, The IT Crowd) was announced by Channel 4 back in November 2015.
Little is known about The Cloud so far, other than it’s set on a data hub in space, where a team is trying to protect all the information that we now store on our digital devices. With these two writers behind it though, our hopes are already high.
The Cloud is expected to be broadcast on Channel 4 at some point in 2016.
Upstart Crow
This new BBC Two sitcom about William Shakespeare has been written by Ben Elton, alternative comedy pioneer of the 1980s who co-wrote The Young Ones and Blackadder.
It’s difficult to know what sort of expectations should be set for Elton’s new venture though, as his more recent output, from West End musical We Will Rock You to BBC One sitcom The Wright Way, has been critically panned. But the fact that its cast includes David Mitchell (Peep Show), Harry Enfield (Harry & Paul), Mark Heap (Green Wing) and Helen Monks (Raised By Wolves) is promising.
Upstart Crow is expected to air on BBC Two at some point in 2016.
Morning Has Broken
Another new show from Julia Davis – hooray! Davis is co-writing this Channel 4 comedy with Nick Mohammed (Drifters, The Job Lot) and will star as a TV presenter whose morning programme is going downhill. David Schwimmer (Friends) will also star, as an American producer who is brought in to save the struggling show.
Morning Has Broken is expected to air on Channel 4 at some point in 2016.
Britain Today, Tonight
Kayvan Novak’s skills as a ‘master of disguise’ are second to none and they were put to good use in Fonejacker and Facejacker, but he was most recently seen starring in flop BBC One sitcom SunTrap. This new spoof news show from Channel 4, in which Novak is set to play multiple characters and pull pranks on people, will hopefully be a return to him doing what he does best.
Britain Today, Tonight is expected to air on Channel 4 at some point in 2016.
Which new comedy shows are you most looking forward to this year? Let us know below…