Gervais sitcom exported to 9 countries

Ricky Gervais’s Extras has been sold to nine countries, from Norway to New Zealand.

Australia’s ABC and New Zealands Prime Television will screen the six-part series next year.

Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Iceland, Israel and The Netherlands are the other countries to buy up the show.

Gervais said: ‘We make television for a British audience, and it’s still amazing to me that most countries in the world have my fat face beamed into homes once a week.’

It has already been screened in the US, as it was co-produced by upmarket cable network HBO, but only attracted around a million viewers. An average of just under four million saw it when it aired in Britain this summer.

The BBC has commissioned a second series of the show from Gervais and co-writer Stephen Merchant, to be aired sometimes next year.

Published: 17 Oct 2005