Fifth series for Mrs Brown's Boys

Brendan O’Carroll's comedy being recorded next month

Mrs Brown's Boys is to return to BBC One.

The new episodes will comprise the fifth series of Brendan O’Carroll’s love-it-or-hate-it sitcom outside the Christmas specials and come two years after the last non-festive run, which comprised four episodes.

The new shows will be recorded in front of audiences in the BBC's Pacific Quay studios in Glasgow, on the first four Thursdays in May, with two recordings a day. Enter a random draw for free tickets here.

The broadcaster says: ‘Agnes Brown and the gang from Finglas are back! Everyone's favourite Irish Mammy returns for a brand new fifth series featuring all your favourite characters, so get ready for more slapstick shenanigans this spring!’

The 2024 Christmas Day special attracted just 2.2 million people - a far cry from its 2013 peak of 11.52 million. However, catch-up viewing in the next seven days boosted the figure to 3.88 million, making it one of the top 10-most watched British TV comedies of the year.

Recording was also marred by controversy as O’Carroll made a ‘clumsy’ joke implying the n-word during rehearsals.

The line, said in character as Agnes Brown, was reportedly ’I don’t call a spade a spade, I call a spade a n…’ before being stopped by O’Carroll wife Jennifer Gibney, in character as Agnes’s daughter Cathy.

The comic apologised after the joke ‘backfired and caused offence’.

It was clearly a far cry from the sensitive and nuanced way the comedy usually portrays its ethnic characters: