C4 confirms second series

Broadcast Comedy Forum: Hidden camera show Facejacker is to return to Channel 4, the station’s head of comedy has confirmed.

Shane Allen let the news slip at the Broadcast Comedy Forum in London yesterday, telling delegates: ‘Facejacker is coming back – I was told not to say that!’

The show, which first aired in April this year, is the invention of Kayvan Novak, who previously made the prank phone call series Fonejacker.

Allen also confirmed that Channel 4 was doubling its comedy output next year, to help fill the gaps in the schedule left by the demise of Big Brother, with plans to launch ten shows on the main channel and five on E4.

‘We’re looking for things that haven’t been done before,’ he said. ‘You might pitch us the best flatshare sitcom in the world – but we’ve already got Peep Show.

‘We want authorship and passion, and there’s room for all kinds of genres on Channel 4. We’re fighting against the idea we do just weird, dark comedy.’

And he had a word of warning for those pitching ideas: ‘Don’t tell us it’s “The Office meets Peep Show”,’ he said. ‘You didn’t write those, so you can’t claim that ownership.’

He said next year’s batch of Comedy Lab pilots had already been commissioned, but was looking for another eight half-hour ideas for 2012, which would be chosen next June.

Here's a clip from ther first series:

Published: 23 Sep 2010