Bad Sugar to return

Channel 4 has ordered full series of Dallas-style spoof Bad Sugar and a second run of prank show I’m Spazticus.

Both programmes featured in last month's Funny Fortnight season, celebrating 30 years of comedy on the channel, and the newly ordered episodes will air next year.

Channel 4 says further commissions from the season will be announced over the coming months.

Bad Sugar is written by Peep Show creators Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong and stars Julia Davis, Olivia Colman and Sharon Horgan as members of a dysfunctional, wealthy mining dynasty family, The Caudwells.

The writers said: ‘We're looking forward to spending 2013 writing for the three funniest women in Britain, while the producers stockpile mink stoles, shoulder pads and hairspray.’

Nerys Evans, acting head of comedy at Channel 4, added: ‘We're delighted to announce a series of Bad Sugar, not only with the brilliant writing talents of Sam and Jesse but also starring the country's most ridiculously talented comedy cast.

I’m Spazticus – which features disabled performers playing practical jokes on members of the public –will return after a four-part series ran over consecutive nights last month.

The show, which was first piloted as a Comedy Lab idea back in 2005 hit the headlines earlier this year when students in an art class called police when a blind man groped a nude model as one of the hidden-camera stunts.

The series divided critics, with opinions ranging from ‘jolly prank show with a twist’ to ‘awful’, and was not a ratings smash, attracting 620,000 viewers on C4 and C4+1 combined.

Jamie O'Leary, director of producers Zeitgiest Television, said of the commission: ‘It really demonstrates Channel 4's appetite for challenging comedy, their support of disabled talent and commitment to regional indies - it's great news.’

Evans added: ‘I'm Spazticus showcases some of the best disabled talent around and I'm pleased that we are going to see a second series of hilarious pranks."

Published: 13 Sep 2012