UKTV today announces that Jack Dee will front brand-new retrospective documentary Tony Hancock - Very Nearly an Armful, which looks at the life and career of comedy legend Tony Hancock (1 x 120') for Gold. Additionally, Gold has commissioned episodes (2 x 30') from Hancock's BBC series' to be exclusively colourised and available to view once more. The UKTV Original is produced by Studio Crook and will air on Gold next year.

Jack Dee said:

The life and career of Tony Hancock is truly fascinating. As a fan myself, to view items so personal to him was such an experience. I hope Gold viewers get as much out of this as I did.

With exclusive access to the archives of one of Britain's greatest and most influential comedians, comedy actor and Tony Hancock fan Jack Dee opens up the archive for the first time to discover its priceless, unique contents. A treasure trove of never-before-seen personal items such as photos, ideas, scripts, scrapbooks, production files and extraordinary letters that illustrate his life in vivid detail. This documentary also has exclusive TV access to clips from Hancock's 1963 ATV series, unbroadcast for over 50 years.

Hancock is commissioned for UKTV by Iain Coyle, head of comedy entertainment, and ordered by Gerald Casey, channel director for Gold. Richard Watsham is director of commissioning, and Steve North is genre general manager for comedy and entertainment. Executive producer is Matt Crook, managing director of Studio Crook.

Iain Coyle said:

Two comedy icons in one show. I'm so delighted to be working with Jack. The legend of Hancock still has a huge influence on comedy and sitcom today and the team at Crook have done a fantastic job and unearthed some incredible artifacts. I can't wait to see these two classic episodes in full glorious colour.

Gerald Casey added:

This new commission is one of the biggest comedy archive finds in years. The life and career of Tony Hancock is truly fascinating. Viewers will get a new insight into one of British comedy's most prominent influences. We're thrilled to have this come to Gold next year.

Matt Crook said:

It's an absolute treat and a pleasure to be working on a programme about one of my comedy idols, Tony Hancock. To get access to such treasures from the Hancock estate and to work with UKTV on such an engaging project has been incredibly exciting. We have loved adding a splash of colour to classic Hancock, it's been an absolute dream project.

Tony Hancock - Very Nearly an Armful and the newly colourised episodes of Hancock will air on Gold next year.

For more information, please contact:
Mel Lynch, Publicist, UKTV

About Gold

Dedicated to celebrating the best of British comedy, Gold is the nation's favourite comedy channel.

Classic British comedy series loved by all the family sit comfortably alongside new UKTV Original scripted comedies crafted by some of the nation's finest comedic minds, such as Dad's Army: The Lost Episodes, Murder, They Hope, The Cockfields and Sandylands.

Meanwhile Gold's unscripted series reunite the stars and partnerships of the nation's best-loved shows to get to the heart of what makes them so evergreen - from passion projects such as French & Saunders: Funny Women, Billy Connolly Does..., Lenny Henry's Race Through Comedy and Ricky and Ralf's Very Northern Road Trip to the retrospective likes of dinnerladies diaries and The Fast Show: Just A Load of Blooming Catchphrases.

Gold is the perfect tonic to make you laugh whatever the time of day.

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About UKTV

UKTV has been at the forefront of branded television for over 25 years, entertaining the nation with programmes they love. Its leading brands - Dave, Gold, W, Drama, Alibi, Eden and Yesterday - span comedy, entertainment, natural history, factual and scripted drama, and are delivered to audiences through UKTV Play, Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media, BT, TalkTalk, YouView, Freesat and Amazon Fire. The broadcaster is a significant investor in British creativity and is committed to working with new and established writers, directors and programme-makers.

UKTV is part of BBC Studios, the UK's most-awarded production company, a world-class distributor with international branded services, and a commercial subsidiary of the world's leading public service broadcaster, the BBC. | |