Matt Lucas and David Walliams confirm work on Little Britain reboot – but announce major changes after backlash against show’s offensive humour and use of blackface
Matt Lucas and David Walliams have begun work on a rebooted series of Little Britain.
The BBC sketch show ran from 2003 to 2006 but in more recent years has received criticism for its offensive humour – including blackface and racial stereotyping.
The series followed the peculiar lives of a number of different diverse British characters.
The comedy duo are set to return for a new series, after they previously apologised for the way the original episodes came across.
However the revival will come with major changes. In the original series Matt and David portrayed all the characters but they will now be joined by a new range of actors to increase the show’s diversity.
Matt Lucas (pictured) and David Walliams have begun work on a rebooted series of Little Britain
The BBC sketch show ran from 2003 to 2006 but in more recent years has received criticism for its offensive humour – including blackface and racial stereotyping
It means characters such as Emily and Florence, Vicky Pollard and Desiree DeVere – played by David in blackface – are unlikely to return.
Former Great British Bake Off host Matt said, per The Sun: ‘The show will be different in many ways.
‘We are talking about how we can have diverse talent on screen and in the writers’ room and conceive it as something which is just not about me and David playing absolutely everyone.
‘That is something we should have done but didn’t do back then.’
He added that he ‘respects’ that ‘things have changed’ since the show was originally broadcast.
Little Britain episodes are still available to watch but carry a warning. They were previously taken off both Netflix and the BBC.
The controversial show is also set to grace screens during the festive season, as part of That’s TV’s holiday lineup, 20 years after first airing.
Last month the BBC defended an ‘explicitly racist’ Little Britain sketch which is still available to view on iPlayer where David Walliams describes an Asian character as ‘smelling of soy source’ and ‘the ching-chong China man’.
David Walliams (pictured) and Matt have said the new series will come with major changes
The corporation claims the sketch was ‘intended to expose and ridicule some of the outdated prejudices and racism that still exist in parts of British society’ after it was revealed viewers felt the content was inappropriate in new research by Ofcom.
The sketch, originally broadcast in 2002, shows David Walliams as university employee Linda Flint describing an Asian student, Kenneth Lao, over the phone to her manager.
He is described as having ‘yellowish skin, slight smell of soy sauce … the ching-chong China man.’ The scene is accompanied by a laugh track.
The clip was one of a series of videos shown to participants in a study which examined viewers’ attitudes towards live television and on demand services.
Other clips included excerpts from The Handmaid’s Tale and a stand-up show by Jimmy Carr.
The regulator was researching audience expectations on potentially offensive content across linear TV and streaming services.
The participants, who were questioned by polling company Ipsos, viewed the content as ‘explicitly racist and outdated, and felt that society had moved on’, the report said.
It added: ‘A few participants said they found it funny but seemed embarrassed to say this and could recognise why it would be offensive.’
The controversial comedy sketch Little Britain will air during the festive season, as part of That’s TV’s holiday lineup (pictured: Matt Lucas as wheelchair user Andy and David Walliams as Lou)
Participants agreed the clip was ‘not suitable’ for linear TV, with some even saying it should not be available at all, even to stream.
But the BBC defended the fact it can still be watched online.
A BBC spokesperson said: ‘All jokes in our output are judged on context and intent.
‘The sketches in which the character Linda Flint makes reference to the appearance or race of a series of people are intended to expose and ridicule some of the outdated prejudices and racism that still exist in parts of British society, which is more apparent when viewing the sketches within the context of a full episode, and across the series as a whole.
‘The programme is part of the BBC’s comedy archive and information is provided for iPlayer viewers about the inclusion of discriminatory language.’
Little Britain returned to streaming services in 2022 after offensive blackface scenes were cut by producers.
Assurances were given at the time that some scenes were removed by creators Matt and David, and advisory warnings were used at the start of some episodes.
Little Britain’s most iconic characters, including Vicky Pollard and wheelchair user Andy, were retained, alongside others including Matt’s homosexual Welshman Dafydd Thomas and David’s cross-dresser Emily Howard.
David Walliams pictured as Little Britain character Dudley Punt (left) and Matt Lucas seen as Ting Tong Macadangdang (right)
As part of the show’s 2022 revival, characters donning black face including Pastor Jesse King, Desiree DeVere and other racial stereotypes such as Thai bride Ting Tong, were left in the cutting room.
In a statement at the time, the BBC said: ‘Little Britain has been made available to fans on BBC iPlayer following edits made to the series by Matt and David that better reflect the changes in the cultural landscape over the last 20 years since the show was first made.’
Matt and David have both previously apologised for their use of blackface on the show, which began as a radio programme in 2000 before running as a TV series on the BBC between 2003 and 2007, launching their respective careers.
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