UKTV no longer interested in the sort of genre Red Dwarf is News Posted by Ian Symes on 7th September 2025, 14:27 Yesterday, Doug Naylor did an AMA on Reddit, primarily to promote Sin Bin Island, but as you’d probably expect, not least because it took place on the Red Dwarf subreddit, there was a heavily Dwarfy tinge to the conversation. Our community did a lovely job of highlighting all the interesting bits on our forum, but there was one particular answer that deserves closer scrutiny. On the topic of the rumoured new special, Doug said: Back in January 2023, I went in for a meeting with UKTV who said they wanted to progress a new 90-minute Red Dwarf special. The cast were all on board and I was told to start writing. Several months later, things were progressing and I had got two-thirds of the way through the script, I had just signed my writer’s contract, when I got an e-mail from UKTV who said they had difficult news to share – they were no longer going to commission scripted comedy, including the RD special, which I hadn’t yet sent them. The script involved Lister going back in time to help his 23-year-old self escape from stasis. He and a reluctant younger Lister would go on the run as Lister was trying to give his younger self a more fulfilled life. Meanwhile Rimmer teams up with his younger self to hunt them down on behalf of JMC. On the one hand, this hardly comes as a huge surprise. This year alone, we’ve already written and waffled on about the perceived change of direction in Dave’s commissioning, so this is just a confirmation that our fears have been realised. And it’s understandable to a large extent; scripted comedy is way more expensive than a panel show, standup special or travelogue, and even the biggest broadcasters are scaling things back, let alone one that’s been punching above its weight for several years. What’s exasperatingly frustrating though, is that this policy was seemingly introduced overnight, regardless of what was already planned and in development. I can understand them not commissioning new Red Dwarf going forward, but it’s a crying shame that they pulled the plug on something they’d already started. Were the finances really that bad that they had to abandon an ongoing project immediately, rather than finish it off as one last hurrah? It would have been such a full circle moment if Red Dwarf had become the final scripted comedy to be broadcast by Dave, having been its very first back in 2009. So I guess that means the Dave era is officially over. 2009-2020. We hardly knew ye. It doesn’t definitely mean the end for Red Dwarf as a television programme – other broadcasters are available, including the one that currently has every single episode available on its streaming service – but the odds are even more stacked against us than ever before. Not that this is the be all and end all – elsewhere in the AMA, Doug seemed very keen on writing another Dwarf novel, although he also revealed that he has at least two more Sin Bin Island books to write first. There’s also talk of the oft-discussed stage show possibly coinciding with the fortieth anniversary in about two and a half years, and even that Out of the Red is still on the cards. At least we know for sure that this particular route to new material is now closed, which leaves Doug and/or Rob free to pursue other options. It’s just a shame it’s all fizzled out with such little fanfare, when The Promised Land deserved to have been the prelude to a blaze of glory. EDIT (08/09/2025): Thanks to Chortle doing actual journalism and asking UKTV for comment, we now have confirmation from them that the Dave era is no more. UKTV confirmed the cancellation, saying: ‘UKTV has no current plans to commission further episodes of Red Dwarf. It’s been a privilege to work with Doug Naylor and the cast in a relationship that began with the Back To Earth specials, which premiered to 4 million viewers, and has subsequently produced three full series, a retrospective and Red Dwarf‘s first ever feature length, The Promised Land.’ Bugger.
Yeah, this is all a great shame, especially as so much of it was written and that story idea sounds pretty cool. Hopefully it someday finds its way into a Red Dwarf novel.
Not that it makes much difference to anything but it’s likely that Doug meant January 2024 given that December 2023 was the first rumours of anything and the cast were blabbing by April 2024 which would fit in with the timeline of events (and he described it in another answer as “The two Listers story that I was writing last year“). If it doesn’t find another format, I wonder if performing bits from the two thirds completed script at a live show is an option.
I must admit it brings me some (actually quite a lot) of joy to see the shitty Dave comedies like Battle In The Box and Silence Is Golden get cancelled. They said they were going to stop commissioning that type of programming at the Edinburgh TV Festival. I thought that could mean a return to scripted comedy but instead they’ve announced Dave’s first drama despite UKTV already owning two drama channels one called Alibi and one literally called fucking Drama. I’m sure this will be a success as I can see everyone going to a channel called Dave for serious emotional dramas.
He also said this, in reply to another question about more Red Dwarf specials after The Promised Land: https://www.reddit.com/r/RedDwarf/comments/1n9xcqi/comment/ncqrtug/ If it hadn’t been for Covid, how many more Red Dwarf specials might we have had after The Promised Land? Were there any tentative agreements in place or scripts written? Thank you for the question. Two more Red Dwarf specials were on the brink of being commissioned but UKTV didn’t want to go ahead if I was no longer apart of Grant Naylor Productions.
So who the hell’s on board to make Out of the Red that doesn’t want to make Red Dwarf? In some ways, it’s sort of nice to know that this is probably the end, the show has a cap on it, and a pretty good one that both calls right back to the first series, and has a broadly happy ending. And, unlike in the past, Doug has an idea of how he wants to properly end the franchise. Sometimes the waiting just gets a bit tedious and can put a bit of a dampner on things. I dunno, stage show could be a thing that might be mildly entertaining. Novels would be nice. I’m not sure how many we’ll get, but even just a couple to round things off would be a good sendoff. Doug’s clearly not done with Red Dwarf, which is also kind of nice to know. I dunno, it’s weird. I suppose it still isn’t impossible that someone else will pick it up.
Im in a weird position because in some way id be sad if Red Dwarf ended its run on TV, but in another way id be kinda relieved as i have not been a big fan of the dave era and i feel like any future Red Dwarf would just have been the same thing. Im not really interested in this experimental meta project Out of the Red. It sounds like that The five Doctors-ish fan film some of the doctor who actors made because they were not in the 50th celebration. And it will likely just end up being cringey. I think the stage show project is probably dead. I think there is a reason why Doug was talking about it a lot and then suddenly stopped.
‘The Promised Land’ was – for multiple reasons, including the absolute joy it brought at that point of the pandemic – the high point of the ‘Dave’ era for me so I would be satisfied with that as the overall end point, if it is. But I am also bloody excited at the prospect of a new novel, even though I don’t take his comments as anything more than wishing at this point.
Interesting but I’m not sure any concern and I’ll tell for why. 2023… “several months later.” That puts us in 2024 at the latest. On the 7th of June this year I talked to Chris Barrie in person. He told me that just one month prior he had seen Doug in person and he was just finalising funding. Plan to begin filming in January 2026 for a release later in the year. This predates Chris’s health issue which I suspect will have had an effect on the January 2026 plans.
Interesting but I’m not sure any concern and I’ll tell for why. 2023… “several months later.” That puts us in 2024 at the latest. On the 7th of June this year I talked to Chris Barrie in person. He told me that just one month prior he had seen Doug in person and he was just finalising funding. Plan to begin filming in January 2026 for a release later in the year. This predates Chris’s health issue which I suspect will have had an effect on the January 2026 plans. As posted above, very likely Doug meant 2024 as otherwise you’d have an agreement followed by 11 months of silence before Craig says they’re in talks about something already agreed & Doug spending a year and a half to get 2/3 of the script done so doesn’t really make sense. June 2024 Craig was still saying they were shooting soon. September Chris said on ITV that they hoped to do it next year so unclear whether Doug had had the bad news at that point or not. Either way, think it’s fairly clear from Doug’s answers in the AMA that he’s resigned to it not being made barring some unexpected developments from a broadcaster like the BBC. Would suggest the following to help that along:
The absolute brass balls on display at the British Comedy Guide. Following press reports, fans were looking forward to the long-running sitcom returning to television again soon, however this comment would now appear to dash those hopes. Oh, which press reports would those be, then?
Is it UKTV that runs U&Alibi ? The one that’s done Bookish by Mark Gattis recently with a series 2 on the way, with a period drama budget? And has at least co funded some of Shakespeare & Hathaway Series 5 with BBC daytime as they are debuting it on their channel first before iplayer. So they have no problem commissioning scripted crime drama with a comedic mix. Very popular. Time for another Red Dwarf who dunit mystery episode like Thanks for the memory! Maybe they are interested in Out of the red. Shame there isnt a U&Sci Fi channle i guess. Maybe UK Gold could stretch to a one off commission, Lister seeing his younger self in flash back would be very similar sounding to when the comic strip did Five to to Rehab on Gold, along with a 30 years documentary. it was a mixture of nostalgia flash back and same characters where are they now type mix. That wouldnt be too bad for a final bit of TV Dwarf before it finally rests and becomes just a couple more Novels. We have been sooooooo lucky the show ever came back, compared to almost nearly everything else that has a much shorter life.
Ironic this has come days after the reanimated corpse of TOS was released upon the world, as well, as that will have no doubt lead to some people thinking something was in the works.
Good of him to clear that up. I noticed Chortle have posted a story too where they say that they have “contacted UKTV for comment.“
I think Promised Land was a great way to finish off the show (actually I thought The Beginning was even better but hey) The proposed story idea is dynamite though, and would probably work better as a book (to get around casting/de-ageing) Most of all I’m chuffed for Doug that his new books seem to be going well. He deserves to be happy!
https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2025/09/08/59004/smeg%21_red_dwarf_special_is_canned “UKTV confirmed the cancellation, saying: ‘UKTV has no current plans to commission further episodes of Red Dwarf. It’s been a privilege to work with Doug Naylor and the cast in a relationship that began with the Back To Earth specials, which premiered to 4 million viewers, and has subsequently produced three full series, a retrospective and Red Dwarf’s first ever feature length, The Promised Land.'”
Gutted to hear this. Amusingly though this now means the Dave Era lasted 11 years (2009-20) the same as the BBC era (1988-99)
Gutted to hear this. Amusingly though this now means the Dave Era lasted 11 years (2009-20) the same as the BBC era (1988-99) We need a fan film now called The De-aging Special Yeah, No. Yeah… oh.
https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2025/09/08/59004/smeg%21_red_dwarf_special_is_canned “UKTV confirmed the cancellation, saying: ‘UKTV has no current plans to commission further episodes of Red Dwarf. It’s been a privilege to work with Doug Naylor and the cast in a relationship that began with the Back To Earth specials, which premiered to 4 million viewers, and has subsequently produced three full series, a retrospective and Red Dwarf’s first ever feature length, The Promised Land.’”
If it’s of any interest i did email the head of BBC comedy Jon Petrie and i got this response Thanks for getting in touch, just picking this up on Jon’s behalf. It’s great to hear from a fellow Red Dwarf fan. It is sad to hear the news that UKTV are no longer commissioning scripted comedy and have cancelled their Red Dwarf special. We really value feedback from our audiences and will take this onboard. Thanks again for writing.
If it’s of any interest i did email the head of BBC comedy Jon Petrie and i got this response Thanks for getting in touch, just picking this up on Jon’s behalf. It’s great to hear from a fellow Red Dwarf fan. It is sad to hear the news that UKTV are no longer commissioning scripted comedy and have cancelled their Red Dwarf special. We really value feedback from our audiences and will take this onboard. Thanks again for writing.
Maybe if more people email jon.petrie@bbc.co.uk they might actually take the idea on board. I might write to Points of View.
Very glad Chortle got that quote out of UKTV, but damn, it’s really sad to see it in black and white.
Very glad Chortle got that quote out of UKTV, but damn, it’s really sad to see it in black and white. Just another reason to not read Chortle. (Feeble attempt at bantz aside, I know what you mean)
Very glad Chortle got that quote out of UKTV, but damn, it’s really sad to see it in black and white. As much as I like XII byte 2, I don’t think I’d have been as disappointed if this had been the situation back then. Since TPL I’ve really, really wanted another special.
My current re-listen to the Dwarf Cast back catalogue is currently on the 30th anniversary live special. Kind of sad in the context of where we are now to hear just how optimistic everyone was back then about the relationship with Dave/UKTV, how we all just assumed series 13 was around the corner and how more Dwarf was almost a given. In fact 2017 Ian just said “Red Dwarf didn’t need any more allies at UKTV” – so confident were we all in that relationship back then! 😭
If this is the end, at least we were treated to a feature length finale. It’s funny when you think that in every last episode of an era (Out of Time, Only the Good… and The Promised Land) Rimmer has always had the last line and this final one, was optimistic.
I think this is probably the end now. And I feel absolutely fine about that. After Series VIII, I was doubtful we’d ever get more. But I’m so grateful we had the Dave era. Some hits, some misses. Overall it’s been an amazing ride, and I wouldn’t swap any of it (not even Timewave). Hoping now that either Rob or Doug produce another novel. “I’ll say goodbye to love…” etc etc.
I’d always hoped Doug would get to end TV Dwarf on his own terms, so it’s a shame he hasn’t been given the opportunity. Unless maybe the AA could fund another special…
I think this is probably the end now. And I feel absolutely fine about that. After Series VIII, I was doubtful we’d ever get more. But I’m so grateful we had the Dave era. Some hits, some misses. Overall it’s been an amazing ride, and I wouldn’t swap any of it (not even Timewave). Hoping now that either Rob or Doug produce another novel. “I’ll say goodbye to love…” etc etc. Yeah, I feel like you couldn’t really ask for a better episode to go out on than The Promised Land, and even if it all ends here then we’ve had decades more of the show than I ever expected.
Depending on when you start on that gif, it either a normal person saying “it is the end” or Yoda saying “the end it is”
The moment you guys get so depressed and starved of new material that you start to say Timewave maybe wasnt that bad im frying you alive. Like a mercy fry.
I think this is probably the end now. And I feel absolutely fine about that. After Series VIII, I was doubtful we’d ever get more. But I’m so grateful we had the Dave era. Some hits, some misses. Overall it’s been an amazing ride, and I wouldn’t swap any of it (not even Timewave). Hoping now that either Rob or Doug produce another novel. “I’ll say goodbye to love…” etc etc.
NGL, I’m really gutted about this. Unless another broadcaster/station picks up the rights, it’s safe to say that outside of novels and such, we won’t get any more new RD on the tele box and TPL was the last. If this was to happen with most other shows, I would mentally file it away as “they’ll sort that at some point”, but, and I hate to be morbid, our boys from the Dwarf are not getting any younger, so if a new broadcaster were to grab the rights and make more, it needs to happen quickly. Sad times, this, sad times indeed.
Doug speaks: https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/red-dwarf-return-not-dead-doug-naylor-exclusive-newsupdate/ However, Naylor has now confirmed there’s “absolutely” a possibility of the episode being shopped to other channels. Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com to celebrate the publication of his children’s book, Sin Bin Island, Naylor said: “Absolutely, yeah, there’s always that possibility. “It’s public knowledge now this week, because I’ve announced it, and so now we will go out. The [cast] are really keen to do more. “I’ve also done two thirds of a movie called Out of the Red where the guys play fictitious versions of themselves, and there’s real interest in that as well, both from a distributor and from a production company. “In fact, I had a meeting about that this morning, so there’s that possibility as well. So it’s not dead, Dave – yet!” —– The new episode was set to see Craig Charles’s Lister encounter a younger version of himself, with Naylor explaining: “I thought it was a fascinating idea of the present day Lister going back in time and busting his younger self out of stasis, and the two of them going on the run together, because the older Lister didn’t want the younger Lister to lead the life he had led. “They were kind of like two fugitives, but the younger Lister being slightly reluctant and needing convincing that this old guy knew anything better than he did. So it was a great chemistry. “And then, of course, we had a posse of older Rimmer [played by Chris Barrie] and a younger Rimmer, who were promised promotion if they managed to get them. So it was an interesting dynamic, and I was having a lot of fun writing, actually. “And we even did some vis effects work, where we created a younger Lister from CG who looked identical to the 23-year-old Craig Charles, so fingers crossed. In the worst case scenario, it will be a novel, I think.”
I think the novel might even be the best case scenario. It could be even more fun reading that story without the distraction of CGI and de-aging effects.
It’s very optimistic to not consider the worst case scenario being fuck-all. Warming up with a kids’ novel or three should result in stronger writing too, even though it’ll be delayed.
I get the feeling Doug has become quite fond of Meta material. But often it just becomes a cringe fest. As for De-aging. If Doug could pull off CGI lister on a likely Small budget he would show up many american million dollar studios. Which makes it all sound too good to be true. I gather Mac Mcdonald (Dennis the Doughnut Boy) was going to return in the story and be de-aged too. Probably get all the series 1 sets out of storage from Skipper too. Need that nostalgia.
Once again, who the fuck wants to make Out of the Red but not Red Dwarf? People who have enough money for original comedy, but not enough money for sci-fi VFX, costumes and set design?
As for De-aging. If Doug could pull off CGI lister on a likely Small budget he would show up many american million dollar studios. Which makes it all sound too good to be true. Yeah, this part has never seemed likely.
“And we even did some vis effects work, where we created a younger Lister from CG who looked identical to the 23-year-old Craig Charles, so fingers crossed. In the worst case scenario, it will be a novel, I think.” Yeah, this guy Chris can do a killer dinosaur btw.
What if the plot of Out of the Red is that the CGI Young Lister gains sentience and tries to take out the UKTV executives as revenge for cancelling his Red Dwarf special, and Doug and the cast have to work together to stop him?
Once again, who the fuck wants to make Out of the Red but not Red Dwarf? They like the french windows in it, obviously.
U&Gold have commissioned a 90 minute look back at Open All Hours world with roy clark writing new Granville closing the shop at night scenes with David Jason reprising his role at 85. There is still time for just a little more Red Dwarf to sneak in somewhere in the future.
The Last Temptation of Kryten, but edited down so it’s just Kryten sighing and saying “I’m really going to miss this old place” before turning off Red Dwarf’s light switch and sadly walking out the airlock.
The Last Temptation of Kryten, but edited down so it’s just Kryten sighing and saying “I’m really going to miss this old place” before turning off Red Dwarf’s light switch and sadly walking out the airlock. This is quite close to the actual Babylon 5 finale, except it’d be Doug making a cameo as a random technician we’ve never seen before.
Kinda needs to be done as a voiceover after the fact though. As for the TNG one, has it ever been confirmed that the title “Only the Good…” was a homage to “All Good Things…”?
The monkey’s paw curls and Red Dwarf gets saved by a streaming network that refuses to make any physical releases.
“And we even did some vis effects work, where we created a younger Lister from CG who looked identical to the 23-year-old Craig Charles, so fingers crossed. In the worst case scenario, it will be a novel, I think.” I assume Craig saw this and was what he assumed tanked the special.
has it ever been confirmed that the title “Only the Good…” was a homage to “All Good Things…”? I think it’s just sci-fi literate Doug wanting to end on a pompous ellipsis title to make the episode appear more profound.
The monkey’s paw curls and Red Dwarf gets saved by a streaming network that refuses to make any physical releases. Given GNP owns the IP, presumably they’d be able to shop a Bluray option around.
Unless the deal is “we’ll only pay to make more Red Dwarf if you sign over the home media rights to us, which we will then not use”.
(You have to pretend there were no more revivals of Futurama for that one.) Technically that applies to the Doctor Who and TNG ones too.
New Radio Times article: https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/red-dwarf-doug-naylor-concerned-sitcom-shortage-exclusive-newsupdate/ Doug Naylor, co-creator of Red Dwarf, has said he’s “really concerned” about there being a shortage of sitcoms in the current TV climate. Naylor, who has just published his first children’s book, Sin Bin Island, recently revealed that a new episode of Red Dwarf was scrapped by UKTV last year despite dedicated fans calling for its return – although he did recently confirm that there may be hope for the episode on other channels. Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com after the cancellation, Naylor admitted he’s “really concerned about sitcoms”. “If we’re just talking about the BBC, the BBC used to have great slots on BBC Two with lots of really good sitcoms, and it was kind of like the home of sitcoms,” he added. “Channel 4 were also great for a long time, and they seem to have just evaporated. We don’t have those same slots anymore, and it’s such a shame because hit sitcoms are so hugely loved. “People comfort watch them and watch them over and over and over again. We know this. The figures are there, the facts are there. My feeling is – maybe it’s irrational – but I feel the BBC are obliged to look after the nation by creating much-loved sitcoms.”
The British Comedy Guide’s list of the Top 50 British TV Sitcoms is still based on a 2004 poll* (Red Dwarf at #18, but that’s beside the point), so the most recent entry is Phoenix Nights. Way to champion a struggling format, guys. * I just thought the voters had extremely archaic and occasionally inexplicable taste before I finally noticed that small print.
I just thought the voters had extremely archaic and occasionally inexplicable taste before I finally noticed that small print. What would you add?
What would you add? I mainly found it odd how so many late-90s ones that never struck me as all-timers (e.g. Gimme Gimme Gimme) made the list while ignoring anything from the last 23 years, until I realised they were fairly recent. I haven’t kept up as much as I should have done, but Peep Show, Darkplace, Detectorists, Ghosts, Stath Lets Flats would make it, maybe Psychoville and Fleabag too. Seems weird that Spaced isn’t on there since it was old enough, maybe it was still too kvlt in 2004 and the cool kids didn’t vote.
Sitcoms just don’t carry todays media the way they used to be. They recently brought back Frasier for a revival and remembering how long cheers went on for, and remembering how long frasier in the 90s went on for and how successful they were… The revival had 2 seasons and now its on a shelf waiting to see if anyone wants to continue it. I think there is a split where its about whether you can unite and old audience an a brand new audience.
The sitcom is a bit different these days in that the family isn’t sat around the TV watching them all together. And they’re nearly always single camera. Which is fine. It’s just a very different type of sit com and comedy in general. They all tend to carry a little more depth and drama than what might be considered a traditional sitcom that used to just reset every episode. Bar a few big American sitcoms – that have all finished – (and Ghosts in the UK*) I can’t really think of many of I’ve seen that would have the same rewatch ability as a older classic sitcoms have. Probably because in part they’re focused on telling a story rather than each episode just being an excuse to do something funny in a given situation. *US Ghosts is worth a watch for anyone that hasn’t given it a chance.
As impoverished as the Britcom is getting, there are definitely plenty you’d think might make it on a more up to date list – Gavin & Stacey, Miranda, Outnumbered, The Inbetweeners, Derry Girls (which feels weird to call British but it technically is), and Toast of London spring to mind. Also Not Going Out and Mrs. Brown’s Boys, just going on enduring popularity. Sad that most of those are single camera no audience affairs though.
Interestingly Wikipedia classes Father Ted as a “British-produced sitcom” while Derry Girls is just a “British sitcom”, despite the fact that of the two Father Ted is the one that filmed more in Britain. Maybe this was small print in the Good Friday Agreement.
Both produced by the same British production company so I’d say it’s just inconsistent wording in wiki (who’d have thought it?)
It’s just a very different type of sit com and comedy in general. They all tend to carry a little more depth and drama than what might be considered a traditional sitcom that used to just reset every episode. There’s a strong sitcom element to Doctor Who and many other non-harrowing dramas as well (and I guess it’s always been in soaps like Coronation Street too), I’m not sure where the line’s drawn or if it needs to be. Just keep making funny and creative scripted things to offset the blur of panel shows (though I don’t really watch them or have much idea of what shows are on which channel).
Interestingly Wikipedia classes Father Ted as a “British-produced sitcom” while Derry Girls is just a “British sitcom”, despite the fact that of the two Father Ted is the one that filmed more in Britain. Maybe this was small print in the Good Friday Agreement. Without wanting to open a big old can of sectarian worms, Northern Ireland is officially British. Derry Girls was shot mostly in Derry itself and Belfast, both of which are British cities, so the show was made almost entirely in Britain. That’s obviously “British” in the sense of “part of the United Kingdom” rather than “pertaining to Great Britain”. And of course I’m only going off what is officially official in law, rather than how the people of those cities identify.
OK, I understand the practical justification of “there is no good adjective meaning ‘of the UK'”, but I was convinced that the answer to that was “just say Irish if it’s Irish and British if it isn’t” not “call it British regardless”. I suppose there’s also the reasoning that Northern Ireland is technically part of the British Islands. But then, the Republic of Ireland is technically part of the British Isles as well, and I’m not sure that excuse would wash with the locals.
OK, I understand the practical justification of “there is no good adjective meaning ‘of the UK’”, but I was convinced that the answer to that was “just say Irish if it’s Irish and British if it isn’t” not “call it British regardless”. I suppose there’s also the reasoning that Northern Ireland is technically part of the British Islands. But then, the Republic of Ireland is technically part of the British Isles as well, and I’m not sure that excuse would wash with the locals. I agree it’s awkward, but people of the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Falklands, Gibraltar etc are all “British” too. Rightly or wrongly, the official demonym for citizens of the United Kingdom is “British”. The fact that hardly anybody who is officially called “British” would want to be called “British” over the demonym for their own particular region just highlights how stupid it is. People from Cornwall don’t even want to be called English, let alone British. But anyway, the point being that on a very pedantic level, there can be no quibbles with calling Derry Girls a British sitcom.
I love coming back to a thread after a week, seeing what completely unrelated thing the most recent message is about and trying to reverse-engineer what the conversation that lead to it could have possibly been. A bit like the Wikipedia game.
I agree it’s awkward, but people of the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Falklands, Gibraltar etc are all “British” too. Rightly or wrongly, the official demonym for citizens of the United Kingdom is “British”. The fact that hardly anybody who is officially called “British” would want to be called “British” over the demonym for their own particular region just highlights how stupid it is. People from Cornwall don’t even want to be called English, let alone British. But anyway, the point being that on a very pedantic level, there can be no quibbles with calling Derry Girls a British sitcom. I’m not disputing in principle, I’m just acknowledging that the complicated and politically delicate status of Ireland in particular creates a strong motivation not to go around calling things made there “British” willy nilly, even when it’s technically correct to do so. It’s right in a legal jurisdiction sense, but it can still be wrong in a colloquial sense. From a Wikipedia perspective though, noticing that Rab C. Nesbitt is “Scottish” but Two Doors Down is “British” cracked the code for me. If the production company is based in a different part of the UK to where it was filmed, it’s “British”. If the production company is based in the same part of the UK as the show is filmed, it can get a more specific demonym (but probably won’t if it’s English). If the production company is in Britain but the filming was outside the UK, then it’s “British-produced”. So Derry Girls is British because it was made by a British production company, but if it were made by an Irish production company it would be called Irish. Seems fair enough to me. I never said it was wrong to begin with, just that it felt weird to say, which it does. Although even these rules aren’t really consistent. E.g. The Flash TV series was filmed entirely in Canada by an American production company, but it’s “American”, not “American-produced”. For that reason I think they should change Father Ted so it’s just “British”. Graham Linehan has become far too deranged to care anyway.
One of the interesting ones for me was always the Harry Potter movies. Lots of British talent in front of and behind the cameras, but they’re made with Hollywood money, but they’re made largely in the UK. Are they British movies?
One of the interesting ones for me was always the Harry Potter movies. Lots of British talent in front of and behind the cameras, but they’re made with Hollywood money, but they’re made largely in the UK. Are they British movies? I made a similar comment in the discord the other day re Ted Lasso. Ostensibly an American show but bar two leads it’s almost an entirely British production.
OK, I understand the practical justification of “there is no good adjective meaning ‘of the UK’”, I propose “Youkayian”. Not to be confused with Mr Symes, who is a UK Ian.
I think with Father Ted and Harry Potter we can probably stick to “we prefer not to talk about it anymore.”
E.g. The Flash TV series was filmed entirely in Canada by an American production company, but it’s “American”, not “American-produced”. We actually have legal definitions for Canadian content. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_content At least 75% of all costs incurred for production services, as well as 75% of all costs incurred in post-production, must be for services provided in Canada.
All the set pieces are being recycled. so even if it did come back they would have to restart from scratch.
OK, I understand the practical justification of “there is no good adjective meaning ‘of the UK’”, I propose “Youkayian”. Not to be confused with Mr Symes, who is a UK Ian. UKian pronounced ‘yookian’. Similar to how USian would be ‘yoosian’. (Although in my head I do actually type that as yoo-ess-ian.)
Similar to how USian would be ‘yoosian’. (Although in my head I do actually type that as yoo-ess-ian.) In Spanish they say “estadounidense”.
https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/exclusive/red-dwarf-guru-blasts-tv-35890125 Some new comments from Doug but pretty much repeating what’s already been said. If you’re looking for a specific quote where Doug blasts TV bosses as ‘a bunch of smegheads’, you won’t find it, despite the headline.
I think we’re all ignoring the obvious way to get UKTV to pick up Red Dwarf again: convert it into a panel show. We could do Can’t Smeg Won’t Smeg 2.
We could do Can’t Smeg Won’t Smeg 2. As long as they wash their hands after handling raw chicken this time.
8 Out of 10 Samurai Sword Toting Cats Never Mind the Globalist Psychopaths Crackmaster The Big Fat Mac McDonald of the Year
https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/classic-bbc-sitcom-set-comeback-36065808 “Fans of Red Dwarf have expressed their excitement following an announcement by co-writer and director, Doug Naylor on Sunday (October 12). Appearing at a Comic Con event in Bristol alongside Danny John-Jules (who plays Cat) and Chloe Annett (Kristine Kochanski), Naylor told fans in a Q&A session that plans are afoot to turn the BBC sitcom into a stage show. “Discussions have taken place about doing a stage show at the O2 [in London] – probably about 10-12 shows,” he said. Naylor went on to explain: “But they want it to coincide with our 40th anniversary, which is in 2028. So I’m not saying it can’t be done before then, but there’s very much interest for us to do that.”
The O2 has seating for “up to 20,000” people, so 10-12 nights is quite confident. Monty Python did 10 shows of their farewell there (after planning just 1) due to high demand, maybe wait and see if that demand exists?
The O2 has seating for “up to 20,000” people, so 10-12 nights is quite confident. Monty Python did 10 shows of their farewell there (after planning just 1) due to high demand, maybe wait and see if that demand exists? Quite possibly overstating it to create hype rather than a realistic estimate, much like Rob coming out and going “so I’m hoping to do an animated series” rather than “I dunno, maybe me and Andrew will do another Radio 4 show or a book or something, if we get around to it.”
The O2 has seating for “up to 20,000” people, so 10-12 nights is quite confident. Monty Python did 10 shows of their farewell there (after planning just 1) due to high demand, maybe wait and see if that demand exists? The Hydro in Glasgow sold out multiple nights of 20,000 for the Sitcom Still game, when it had been off air and missed for about 7 years, as a come back. It then did it again when it returned to air, and again as a finale run. Its TV ratings were 2 to 4 million. Not quite Dwarfs height and comparable with its Dave era. Only Fools and Fawlty Towers had long theatre runs, maybe a weeks worth of punters gets near a night at the 02. Partridge & Peter Kay have done multiple arena night shows more recently. Sure a tour, or a theatre run might seem a better financial setting, but the show might be something that both needs the big staging and is difficult to set up for touring, if it has say star bug prop element or some spectacle that’s design based. I would be happy to see a best of nostalgia meets some new bits, with a song at end style show. Giving doug, robs% and the cast a nice cash grab end of life that im sure tv hasnt been as lucrative. not least a merch grab around the event also. im 50 and my comedy tastes really do seem to have been very well serviced by theatre comedy nostalgia for tv show and comedians i loved decades ago. Seeing David Jason and Harry Enfield next year just talking onstage. Drop the dead donkey did a brilliant stage return a couple of years ago too. Dwarf deserves a slice of larger cash if the 02 can do it, as the convention circuit already brings in the talking style touring with much less effort than a promoter putting on a Dwarf chat evening.
A touring production would be great but I’m guessing one of the big hurdles is cast scheduling, given all their other commitments. Getting the whole thing done in a couple of weeks at the 02 is surely preferable to months of touring.
‘We’d love to do it but we need to wait 3 years’ sounds about right for Dwarf. Maybe Doug can convince them that actually everyone celebrates the anniversary of it first being commissioned really and get it on next year instead.
I’m hearing that Robert Llewelyn is “absolutely thrilled” at the idea of appearing in a Kryten mask for 12 nights straight. Under stage lights. When he will be 73.
I’m hearing that Robert Llewelyn is “absolutely thrilled” at the idea of appearing in a Kryten mask for 12 nights straight. Under stage lights. When he will be 73. Red Dwarf Live: DNA
I heard it was going to come along sooner but Doug put it back a few years to research the possibility of live de-aging technology.
I’m hearing that Robert Llewelyn is “absolutely thrilled” at the idea of appearing in a Kryten mask for 12 nights straight. Under stage lights. When he will be 73. Red Dwarf Live: DNA Red Dwarf 60th Anniversary (written and directed by Richard Naylor) Kryten’s voice (off-stage): Actually, Space Corps Directive No. 597 clearly states that…” Rimmer (currently invisible because plot): Shut up, you dead git!
Still Game is huge in Scotland. You cannot go an entire week without somebody talking about it. Red Dwarf on the other hand, it’s mostly just me bringing it up.
Thinking about the Stage Play and the lack of likelihood of it happening. It’s a shame, in a way, that David Ross wasn’t available to play Kryten in Series 3, as we’d probably have more chance of a stage play that was. Ross was only 38 when he played Kryten, but Robert Llewelyn is now 69, which is much older.
Red Dwarf: This Is It Commemorative film compiled from rehearsal footage for Red Dwarf’s extended 40-night residency at the O2 arena, which was scuppered at the last minute when they all died of being dead old.
Ross was only 38 when he played Kryten Incorrect. David Ross was actually 260 when ‘Kryten’ was first broadcast. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Ross_(actor,_born_1728)
It’s a complete racket that these 18th century actors get all the jobs just because their resume can hit multiple pages without padding.
https://www.slashfilm.com/2001197/why-red-dwarf-planned-sci-fi-series-return-canceled/ Well that was awful…
https://www.slashfilm.com/2001197/why-red-dwarf-planned-sci-fi-series-return-canceled/ Well that was awful… “This special only appeals to longtime fans of the series, as the familiar cast of characters deliver a more lived-in performance within the scope of the humor-laden narrative.” What does that even mean?
tl;dr: “The Dave era got consistently high viewing figures and the show was cancelled because the channel is no longer commissioning new scripted comedy. In conclusion, Red Dwarf has become old and tired and needs to reinvent itself if it’s ever going to be successful again.”
Red Dwarf needs to adapt to the changing TV environment and reinvent itself as a panel show or a football match
Red Dwarf needs to adapt to the changing TV environment and reinvent itself as a panel show or a football match Someone commission 5 series of Universe Challenge
Doug is interviewed on the latest ep of Comedian’s Comedian. https://www.stuartgoldsmith.com/podcast/episode/85f3bdac/doug-naylor “In this episode we dig into all things Red Dwarf, from the creation of the show with Rob Grant, the show’s continued success while retaining an outsider status, UKTV’s recent cancellation of a TV film and what the future may hold… We also talk about writing his incredible first children’s novel, Sin Bin Island which I highly recommend! “ Haven’t listened yet, so no idea if there’ll be anything ‘new’ revealed.
Everyone’s favourite jumping the gun website The British Comedy Guide have put some quotes and a relevant clip up https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/fyi/954/doug-naylor-on-red-dwarf-axe/ In addition to those quotes, he says he’ll need to finish writing the script before he can see if anyone else wants to make it and hasn’t had time yet because of Sin Bin.
“He elaborated in the podcast: “The way I wanted to make it, was I wanted to have a fully CG [computer-generated] young Lister who looked identical to Craig Charles and I had an FX guy working on it, and he created one, and it was like ‘oh my god, is that CG? … Jesus, that’s amazing!’.” Talking further about the young Lister, Naylor said the tech would make people think “that’s straight out of the first ever episode”, and that it would have allowed the two versions of Lister to have a great relationship.” Fully CGI as in a digital puppet or layered over footage of Craig and/or a stand in?
“He elaborated in the podcast: “The way I wanted to make it, was I wanted to have a fully CG [computer-generated] young Lister who looked identical to Craig Charles and I had an FX guy working on it, and he created one, and it was like ‘oh my god, is that CG? … Jesus, that’s amazing!’.” Talking further about the young Lister, Naylor said the tech would make people think “that’s straight out of the first ever episode”, and that it would have allowed the two versions of Lister to have a great relationship.” Fully CGI as in a digital puppet or layered over footage of Craig and/or a stand in? Having listened to it now, from Doug’s comments I believe the latter, and they went on to compare it with Mark Hamill in The Mandalorian.
The more detail we get on this digitally youthed Lister, the less I believe it. A fully CGI photorealistic Lister that was 100% convincing, and proposed to be made for a UK sitcom budget (even the most extremely generous one hypothetically possible)? That just smells like bullshit, sorry. Even big budget Hollywood movies which attempt this mostly don’t quite pull it off. I don’t suppose this “FX guy” was the Duke of Manchester?
I just about bought CGI Tarkin in Rogue One, but that was a multi-million dollar movie with effects by ILM spearheaded by the legendary John Knoll himself, and even then it was still obviously CG, and both attempts at a CGI Leia in Rogue One and Episode IX were dogshit, so no, I don’t expect CGI Lister on Red Dwarf’s budget to be remotely convincing.
I just about bought CGI Tarkin in Rogue One, but that was a multi-million dollar movie with effects by ILM spearheaded by the legendary John Knoll himself, and even then it was still obviously CG I still remember watching it in the cinema, and they introduce him primarily showing his reflection in a window. I thought “this could work, as long as they don’t show his face on screen for long stretches at a time”. Yeah…
I think even when the technology is at its best, these kinds of face-layering anti-ageing CGI effects can be ropey, because the performance is never quite right even when the look is vaguely convincing. The Irishman and the latest Indiana Jones movie are both examples of young-man faces of very well-known actors (De Niro and Ford) being laid over their old-man performances in a way that looks really wonky even when the CGI is beyond reproach.
Oh, I forgot I saw that scene from Dial of Destiny, it scarred me so much I’d blocked it from my memory.
I don’t think it matters whether its perfect. Its whether its passable enough to pull the illusion off. But I doubt they would even be able to pull that off on Red Dwarf. Thats something thats a lot of work to do in Hollywood and for Red Dwarf im guessing its will look as good as something you could pull off on your phone. No one will be working months on a de-aged Rimmer and Lister for cheap.
Honestly I think the cleanest way to do it would just be to splice modern Craig Charles into some of the footage originally shot for series 1 (maybe some of the deleted scene?), like in those old Star Trek episodes that revisited the original series. It would require some creative writing but would end up being more fun than a CGI young Lister I think.
The more I hear about it, the more it sounds like the ideal story for a non-visual medium, which now appears to be the most likely route to it seeing the light of day anyway.
I wonder what Doug had planned for the two further 2020/2021 specials, given that he hasn’t even finished the script for this one yet. Was this really the idea five years ago?
Aside all the technical limitations, I’m just not excited by the idea of the story. What’s Doug’s obsession been the last decade (yes it’s been that long) revisiting the early years in one way or another? TPL at least added value and expanded on a really under explored aspect of the shows lore, and wasn’t specifically about showing early series stuff, unlike MCorp, Skipper, Talkie etc.
Maybe his own personal nostalgia. You could say he is doing it for the fans but the amount of times he does it, gives off the idea he either likes the reaction to it or it may not be all for us. My guess is that a lot of the effects budget would have gone on de-aging and they would just have used the sets they already had in storage. Like the series 1 bunkroom and corridors from Skipper. Save a lot of money that way.
While Doug has always seemed to shy away from the idea of a full finale, I think he’s conscious that the show is in its final stages now and so pretty much all of his potential Last Episodes Ever have some kind of nostalgic backwards-looking element to them, to provide a sense of circularity and completion if they do end up being the show’s curtain call. I don’t think the plot outlined by Doug recently sounds bad (in fact it reminds me of that idea for a Christmas special mooted in one of the Dwarfcasts, playing on It’s A Wonderful Life by having Lister shown the wider repercussions of what would have happened if his life hadn’t gone the way it did) – in a lot of ways I think it’s quite a good idea for a Red Dwarf story, especially if they can make it feel like more than just a Stasis Leak retread – but based on what we know I agree with Ian that TV maybe isn’t the best vehicle for it. A novel would be fantastic, though.
the last decade (yes it’s been that long) revisiting the early years in one way or another Even Series VIII, fresh from Remastered, seemed like a nostalgic 10th anniversary idea that got out of hand.
Red Dwarf trading in nostalgia for earlier episodes has been going on for a long time: BTE revisits Back to Reality, Rimmer Munchkins, and “I’m gonna eat you little fishy” VIII revisits the luck virus and Duane Dibbley VII revisits Ace and Holly VI revisits the Polymorph, Ace, and Duane Dibbley But I don’t think any of them did it to the extent of Skipper and the end of M-Corp.
Having listened to it now, from Doug’s comments I believe the latter, and they went on to compare it with Mark Hamill in The Mandalorian. Then it’s not really “fully CGI”, even if it is by far the more reasonable approach. Other than, you know, just casting a younger actor… I already pointed out Phillip Labey is the right age now for accident era Rimmer. But a novel would be fine. Maybe with a full cast audio book.
the last decade (yes it’s been that long) revisiting the early years in one way or another Even Series VIII, fresh from Remastered, seemed like a nostalgic 10th anniversary idea that got out of hand. To be fair, the point of VIII wasn’t really to recapture I and II, but to set the stage for a “grand scale” Red Dwarf movie. They were going to use the blue Ouroboros uniforms at one point. I think even when the technology is at its best, these kinds of face-layering anti-ageing CGI effects can be ropey, because the performance is never quite right even when the look is vaguely convincing. We know Craig can recapture his youthful energy, or at least he was able to in 2017. That was the part of the special that excited me the most, the notion of Craig (and Chris) trying to perform as they did in 1988. It would have been a great challenge for them as actors and I’m convinced they would’ve done it well.
Series 8 is trying to be nostalgic but also more expensive-looking. Even the bunkroom looks less grey and more silver. Its like at that time they were not ready to fully commit to the look of Series 1. Maybe because they really wanted the show to look good for movie investors. Remembering that Series 8 was meant to be the final series at the time. There are also a lot of nostalgic call-backs in series 8. So they were definitely taking more from the early years of the show. While i think with Series 7 there are a few call-backs but when it comes to really going far back, t seems like Doug was thinking more about the Novels as the backstory because it fits about right with the Kochanski stuff, and it acknowledges that Kryten killed the crew of the Nova 5 like in the novel.
> They were going to use the blue Ouroboros uniforms at one point Where are you getting the from? I don’t think I’ve ever heard that.
> They were going to use the blue Ouroboros uniforms at one point Where are you getting the from? I don’t think I’ve ever heard that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGUNdGfdEtk At 10:40, Howard Burden talks about it. The way he describes it makes it sound more like they only briefly considered it, so my memory might well be faulty here. But I could swear there was some interview with Doug where he said that he thought about using the blue ones and was told that the fans would be upset.
Chloe looks amazing in hers, but the white piping on Chris Barrie’s costume really puts me off. It’s an eyesore.
