Holly Walsh on Motherland spin-off Amandaland

Lucy Punch, Joanna Lumley and and Philippa Dunne reprise their Motherland characters  in BBC One’s new spin-off comedy Amandaland, which launches next week with the titular character forced to move out of chichi Chiswick and into the less salubrious South Harlesden area of London. Here writer Holly Walsh, below talks about the joys and challenges of creating the show.

What’s been the most fun part of creating this show?

Working with Lucy, Joanna and Philippa again, They're the absolute best. They're just so lovely to work with and really made me laugh. It goes without saying but writing jokes for incredible performers is just a joy, because they elevate the scenes and find the character with you. 

Amandaland, like Motherland, is a really collaborative show - and I think that's why it works - because we're surrounded by a team both in front and behind the camera who are at the top of their game.

Are there any characters or moments you’re particularly excited for audiences to see?

I'm excited to see what everyone thinks of Amanda's new boyfriend Johannes [played by Peter Serafinowicz, below]. He's a South African property developer who doesn't wear socks with his loafers.

If you could adopt one aspect of Amanda, Anne, or Felicity's personalities, which 

As awful as Amanda is, I really love her refusal to accept that things aren't working out. I think that's actually an admirable way to look at life. She's the queen of reinvention. Like a Harlesden version of Madonna.

Why is Amanda the perfect character to lead her own spin-off series?

There was always something unresolved about Amanda's story in Motherland – she was probably the character that evolved the most over the three series and we felt there was more we could explore. The fall-out from her divorce, her tricky relationship with her mother, her desperate attempts to find her calling in life - they were all rich seams fors tories. Plus this is a great time for middle class women of a certain age.

How did you approach creating new characters and weaving them into Amanda’s story?

Usually when you start a new series, you can invent a whole host of new characters and you don't have to worry what came before. Which is liberating but also quite intimidating until you know who everyone is. But with this, we kind of had the best of both worlds. We knew we had Amanda, Felicity and Anne - and then we could explore a bunch of new personalities to throw into the mix.

What can fans expect from Amandaland?

I hope if you loved Motherland, you'll love Amandaland. We've jumped forward a few years - so the parents are now dealing with teenagers. So instead of party entertainers and nits, it's underage drinking and love bites. 

I also hope if you didn't like Motherland, you might like Amandaland. But that's cos I'm needy.

Where did you find inspiration when writing the Amandaland scripts?

Exactly the same way as Motherland. We asked all our friends for their stories, wrote down conversations we overheard in cafes, and mined our own lives for embarrassin gdetails. 

And a word from co-creator Sharon Horgan…

How did you approach creating new characters for Amandaland?

Kind of like we did on Motherland. It was organic and evolved out of us just sitting around thinking of who would be good foils for Amanda but also rounded characters in their own right.

We knew we wanted someone for Amanda to aspire to be the friend of. Someone up the hierarchical ladder, a posable love interest, a bad choice boyfriend etc.

We also thought of actors we liked and wanted to work with and they inspired some of the initial ideas.

If you could adopt one aspect of Amanda, Anne, and Felicity's personalities, which would you choose and why?

Felicity's coolness. She’s so cool. Amanda’s belief in herself and her skincare regime. Anne’s kindness.

What can fans expect from Amandaland?

I think the whole world of what it is to be the parent of a young teen, the new characters are all very exciting to me. Seeing Amanda slum it a bit, that excited me too.

• Amandaland launches on Wednesday February 5 on BBC One and iPlayer.

Published: 28 Jan 2025