Tuesday 23 January 2018
Award-winning network UKTV has commissioned an exciting new UKTV Original, Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier (8x60") for its leading entertainment channel, Dave.
Obsessive worrier and organiser Jon Richardson hosts a new comedy format where he attempts to analyse, assess and log every single one of his many, many worries.
Jon Richardson said,
I was always worried that my neuroses would hold me back in my career, but now that Dave have commissioned me to worry for a living I can put that one to bed and get on with worrying about how the show will be received. I would like to thank Dave Gorman for creating a gap at the network for a northern man with a beard. If I can make something half as good as his Modern Life Is Goodish series I will be delighted.
Will his wife replace him with a sex robot? Does his phone know more about him than he does? Will he ever make a jacket potato as good as the one he made in May 2009? Which of his worries should he worry about the most?
To help him with this colossal task, Jon is joined each week in the studio by big name comedians plus a range of experts. Using a mix of film, funny studio set-pieces and archive Jon and his guests will explore exactly how severe each worry actually is before filing it accordingly in Jon's very own 'Worriedness Index' - a high-tech digital log of every anxiety in existence.
Ever worried about laboratory-grown meat, accidentally touching someone's hand on the train or the impending nuclear apocalypse? Then join Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier as he hilariously works out exactly how worried the British public should be about everything there is to worry about.
Produced by Talkback (part of FremantleMedia UK), the UKTV Original series has been commissioned by UKTV senior commissioning editor Iain Coyle and ordered by Richard Watsham, director of commissioning and Steve North, genre general manager, comedy and entertainment. Talkback Thames managing director, Leon Wilson; director of programmes, Jonno Richards and Kate Edmunds will executive produce, alongside Iain Coyle for UKTV.
Iain Coyle said,
I've been concerned for some time about Jon's anxieties. I'm delighted that Talkback and ourselves, are helping him come to terms with a number of his more severe issues. Because laughter is the best medicine, right?
Luke Hales, Dave general manager added,
Ultimate Worrier is a perfect fit for Dave and we are really excited to have got this series off the ground. Jon is fantastic talent, a firm favourite with our viewers and in Ultimate Worrier, we think we have found the perfect format for his brilliantly funny brand of neurosis.
Jonno Richards, director of programmes, Talkback said,
We're incredibly excited to be working with both the brilliant Jon and UKTV for the first time on this new series. We're a nation of worriers and who better to process all of our concerns than Jon Richardson.
Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier joins an exciting slate of brand new UKTV Original's on Dave in 2018, including Judge Romesh and Cop Car Workshop, as well as returning series of Unspun with Matt Forde and Dara O Briain's Go 8 Bit.
Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier will air on Dave in Spring 2018.
#UltimateWorrier @davechannel
For more information and interview requests with Jon Richardson please contact:
Gem Pinkney - Publicity Manager, Dave
Tessa Matchett - Head of Network Communications, UKTV
Susan Wilks, Head of Communications, Talkback Susan.wilks@fremantlemediauk.com / 0207 691 6137
About Dave
Sky 111/246, Virgin 128/194, Freeview 12, BT & TalkTalk 12 On demand on Sky, Virgin and UKTV Play
About UKTV
UKTV is a commercial broadcaster reaching over 40m viewers every month.
The award-winning independent has eleven imaginative brands - UKTV Play, Dave, W, Gold, Alibi, Yesterday, Drama, Really, Home, Eden and Good Food. These include the two most popular non-PSB channels in the UK and account for nearly 10% of the British commercial TV market. The network delivers inspired channels to audiences through Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media, BT, TalkTalk, YouView, Freesat, Amazon Fire and UKTV Play, and distributes its highly valued original programmes to 200 territories. Now celebrating over 20 years at the forefront of digital television, UKTV - an independent commercial joint venture between BBC Worldwide and Scripps Networks Interactive, Inc. (SNI) - is proud to be the first British television broadcaster in The Sunday Times top 100 companies list.
corporate.uktv.co.uk | press.uktv.co.uk | @uktvpress
About Talkback (part of FremantleMedia UK)
Talkback is the comedy entertainment label of FremantleMedia UK, the UK arm of global media giant FremantleMedia. A powerhouse in scripted and non-scripted content, FremantleMedia also comprises a distribution arm, FremantleMedia International, a digital and branded entertainment division, and a kids & family entertainment business. As one of the world's largest and most successful creators, producers and distributors of TV brands in the world, FremantleMedia's comprehensive global network has operations in 31 countries, creating over 10,000 hours of programming a year, rolling out more than 45 formats and managing over 350 individual titles. The company also distributes more than 20,000 hours of content in over 200 territories. www.talkbackproductions.tv
Currently on air and in production: Celebrity Juice (ITV2), QI (BBC Two), Through the Keyhole (ITV), Your Face or Mine (Comedy Central), Keith Lemon: Coming In America (ITV2), My Teenage Diary (BBC Radio 4)