Full series for Hello Ladies

Stephen Merchant has signed a deal with HBO for a full series of his sitcom Hello Ladies.

A run of eight episodes has been ordered following the success of a pilot earlier this year.

The show was written with Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, who previously worked on the US version of The Office. It is Merchant’s first series created without Ricky Gervais.

It expands on the ideas Merchant explored in his stand-up tour of the same title, and portrays him as an awkward Englishman with misplaced confidence trying to find a glamorous girlfriend in among the beautiful people of Los Angeles.

The series will air in the autumn of 2013 in the States, and is almost certain to be picked up by a UK broadcaster, too. Merchant is already known to HBO views from Extras, Life's Too Short and the animated Ricky Gervais Show, all of which aired on the premium cable channel.

Christine Woods, Nate Torrence and Kevin Weisman co-starred in the pilot

Published: 2 Nov 2012