Here’s the first look at Felicity Ward in the forthcoming Australian remake of The Office – as she becomes the first woman to take the lead role in any international version.
The stand-up plays Hannah Howard, managing director of packaging company Flinley Craddick, in the show which will drop on Amazon’s Prime Video on October 18.
The eight-episode series features a number of familiar comedy faces including Steen Raskopoulos, a regular on the UK circuit as he is married to fellow stand-up Sara Pascoe.
It is the 13th adaptation of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s seminal sitcom in the 23 years since it first launched on BBC Two,
In this version, Hannah gets news from Head Office that they will be shutting down her branch and making everyone work from home, she goes into survival mode, making promises she can’t keep in order to keep her ‘work family’ together. The staff of Flinley Craddick indulge her and must endure Hannah’s outlandish plots as they work toward the impossible targets that have been set for them.
The cast also includes Shari Sebbens, Josh Thomson, Jonny Brugh, Susan Ling Young, Raj Labade, Lucy Schmidt, Zoe Terakes, Pallavi Sharda and Claude Jabbour
Susie Youssef, Justin Rosniiak, Carlo Ritchie, Rick Donald and Chris Bunton will appear in guest roles.
Other countries to have remade The Office include the US, France, Canada, Chile, Israel, India, the Middle East and Poland, where a third season has just been announced.
The Office Australia production credits
Made by: BBC Studios Australia & New Zealand, Bunya Entertainment, Amazon MGM Studios
Developed for Australia by: Julie De Fina, Jackie van Beek
Writers: Julie De Fina, Jackie van Beek, Jesse Griffin
Lead producer: Sophia Zachariou
Producer: Linda Micsko
Set-up director: Jackie van Beek
Directors: Christiaan Van Vuuren, Jesse Griffin
Executive producers: Kylie Washington, Julie De Fina, Jackie van Beek
Thanks for reading. If you find Chortle’s coverage of the comedy scene useful or interesting, please consider supporting us with a monthly or one-off ko-fi donation.
Any money you contribute will directly fund more reviews, interviews and features – the sort of in-depth coverage that is increasingly difficult to fund from ever-squeezed advertising income, but which we think the UK’s vibrant comedy scene deserves.
