Monday 31 July 2017
UKTV is returning to Brighton for a second series of Gold's original scripted comedy The Rebel (6x30').
Legend of stage and screen Simon Callow (Four Weddings & A Funeral, Crackanory) stars as irascible hellraising pensioner Henry Palmer, the former mod who sees no reason to stop living his life by his own rules now he's in his seventies. Sticking two fingers up at authority, society and the vagaries of modern life, and of the firm belief there's no problem that can't be solved by a great tune and a quick bit of vandalism, Henry Palmer is "a potty mouthed Victor Meldrew on steroids" (Radio Times).
Simon Callow said,
I'm so pleased to be getting inside Henry Palmer's skin again: a man of certain age behaving very badly, casting off the chains of convention, uttering the unutterable and defying decency. Age has only sharpened his refusal to conform. Ladies and gentlemen - sorry - hello everyone, I give you Henry Palmer: reprobate, rascal - Rebel.
The Rebel Series 1 Clip
Also returning for the new series, once again set and filmed in Brighton, are Bill Paterson (Fleabag) as former hippie Charles, Anita Dobson (EastEnders) as charity shop worker Margaret, Anna Crilly (Lead Balloon) as Henry's put-upon daughter Cath, and Amit Shah (Stag) as her husband Jeremy.
The Rebel is written by Andrew Birch, adapted from his own cartoon strip for The Oldie, produced by Retort, and the series is once again directed by Vadim Jean (Henry IX, Porters, Leon The Pig Farmer).
Andrew Birch said,
The one thing better than having a sitcom commissioned is being asked to write a second series. I feel especially fortunate to be working once again with such marvellous actors, film crew and director, and such a brilliant team from Retort and UKTV. I hope the continuing adventures of Henry, his friends and long-suffering family in the mean streets of Brighton amuse you all, and provoke acts of rebellion throughout our fair land.
Pete Thornton, UKTV senior commissioning editor, said,
It was such a joy to watch Simon breathe (or should that be bellow?) life into Henry Palmer over three episodes last year - a joy that Gold viewers clearly shared in their numbers. It's a real pleasure to be working with him and the rest of the cast, Andrew Birch and the talented production team at Retort to create a full six-part series of senior misbehaviour this year.
Steve North, Gold general manager, said,
We're hugely proud that The Rebel struck such a chord with our viewers with its first series. Along with Murder On The Blackpool Express and our upcoming retrospectives on Sir David Jason and Only Fools and Horses, the rest of the year is really exciting for Gold.
Jon Rolph, executive producer at Retort, said,
We're delighted that Henry and his friends are returning to UKTV to say "yes" to more glorious rebellion and "no" to the madnesses and stupidities of modern life.
A Retort (part of FremantleMedia UK) production, The Rebel has been ordered by UKTV director of commissioning Richard Watsham and Gold general manager Steve North, and is executive produced for Gold by Pete Thornton. Executive producer for the series is Jon Rolph and the series producer is Simon Lupton. The new series of The Rebel joins other exciting UKTV Originals in 2017 on Gold such as the star-studded feature length special Murder On The Blackpool Express, We Have Been Watching, Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais' sitcom Henry IX and a pair of exclusive retrospectives, David Jason: My Life on Screen and The Story of Only Fools and Horses. The Rebel returns exclusively to Gold later this year.
Praise for series one of The Rebel:
"Hearty half-hour of catharsis for those with post-millennial tension" - Radio Times
"Old Men Behaving Badly... whatever your age, there are some funny potshots at the lunacy of modern life" - Metro
"Callow is clearly having fun in the role" - TV Times
"Hilarious" - Sunday Mirror
"Packed full of belly laughs and some brilliant slapstick farce" - BT.com
For more information, please contact:
Ben Duncan or Ali Laurie at UKTV
or Claire Mulvey - Claire.Mulvey@FremantleMediaUK.com / 0207 861 8403
About Gold
Sky 110, Virgin 126, BT and TalkTalk 408
On demand on Sky, Virgin and Now TV
Dedicated to celebrating the best of British comedy, Gold is the nation's favourite comedy channel. Much-loved comedy series such as Only Fools and Horses, The Vicar of Dibley and Outnumbered sit alongside successful commissions including Comic Strip Presents...Red Top and Marley's Ghosts, starring Sarah Alexander and John Hannah, and the live broadcast of the final ever performance of the Monty Python Live (mostly): One Down Five to Go stage show which became the highest rating programme in Gold's history in 2014.
The perfect tonic to make you laugh whatever the time of day, Gold shows universally funny content that everyone can enjoy.
Gold.uktv.co.uk / @goldchannel
About UKTV
UKTV is a commercial broadcaster reaching over 41m 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 company's most recent financial results showed record-breaking year-end revenue of £344.8m and EBITDA of £91.3m. It invested £151.2m in programming and related launches last year, and is a significant investor in British creativity.
The network embraces technology to deliver 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 / pressoffice.uktv.co.uk / @uktvpress
About Retort
Retort is the FremantleMedia UK label specialising in scripted comedy, with Managing Director Jon Rolph at the helm. Retort productions include: Birds of a Feather (ITV), BAFTA and RTS-winning Chewing Gum (E4), BAFTA-nominated Count Arthur Strong (BBC One), The Rebel (with Simon Callow for UKTV), and most recently Goodnight Sweetheart (BBC One).