UKTV has announced three new shows for Dave and Gold which will air under its Original banner.
Meet The Richardsons
Jon Richardson and Lucy Beaumont star in the six-part sitcom Meet The Richardsons (6×40’) for comedy entertainment channel Dave.
Written by Lucy Beaumont and Tim Reid (Car Share), the new sitcom series offers a fictional window into the funny and frustrated marriage of Jon and Lucy.
The comedy series will see stand-up comedians Jon Richardson and Lucy Beaumont play exaggerated versions of themselves as viewers get a glimpse into their home and work lives, surrounded by their celebrity friends and their Hebden Bridge neighbours.
Produced by Second Act Productions, the series was commissioned for UKTV by Iain Coyle, and ordered by Richard Watsham and Luke Hales, Dave channel director. Meet the Richardsons will be directed and produced by Lee Hupfield and Eddie Stafford.
Dave Gorman: Terms and Conditions Apply
Stand-up comedian and “high priest of comedy PowerPoint”, Dave Gorman returns to UKTV with a brand-new show, Dave Gorman: Terms and Conditions Apply (8×60’).
Once again Dave will be bringing his trusty screen along but now, in each episode, he will also be joined by three comedy guests as they cast their eye over his latest modern world discoveries, compete in mischievous games and generally try to unscramble the baffling morass of non-stop information that surrounds us in the internet age.
Dave Gorman: Terms and Conditions Apply is produced by Avalon, commissioned for UKTV by Iain Coyle and ordered by Richard Watsham and Luke Hales. The show will be directed by Paul Wheeler and series produced by James Fidler, and will air later in 2019 on Dave.
Dial M for Middlesbrough
Dial M for Middlesbrough (1×120’) is the sequel to the hit shows Murder on the Blackpool Express and Death on the Tyne and will feature an all-star cast in a brand-new comedy caper.
The Agatha Christie-inspired whodunnits have delivered incredible ratings for the channel, Jason Cook’s first outing Murder on the Blackpool Expresswas the most watched show ever on Gold with 1.8 million viewers* tuning in during the first week. Followed by its 2018 sequel Death on the Tynewhich was watched by 1.1million viewers during the first week.
Dial M for Middlesbrough is written by Jason Cook (Murder on the Blackpool Express, Death on the Tyne) and produced by Shiny Button. The UKTV Original was commissioned by UKTV’s head of scripted Pete Thornton and ordered by director of commissioning Richard Watsham and Gerald Casey, channel director for Gold.
In 2018 UKTV Originals were the highest rating shows on six of UKTV’s channels plus its UKTV Play catch-up and on demand service. They also contributed to the network growing its 16-34 share of commercial impacts by 6% in the first quarter of the year.
Richard Watsham, UKTV’s director of commissioning, said: “The latest crop of UKTV Originals demonstrates our commitment to finding and backing the very best talent both in front of and behind the camera.
“Our indie partners continue to help us raise the quality and ambition of our shows across more genres. These new series span both feature length and half hour scripted comedy as well as an evolution of one of Dave’s most watched comedy entertainment shows, from the brilliant mind of Dave Gorman.
“And with our future position as part of BBC Studios, I’m particularly excited about the opportunities to grow our UKTV Originals slate further going forwards.”