Kevin Bishop to star in brand new Porridge for BBC One
Actor and comedian Kevin Bishop (The Kevin Bishop Show) will play Nigel ‘Fletch’ Fletcher - the grandson of Ronnie Barker’s iconic character Norman Stanley Fletcher - in a brand new episode of Porridge. Written by the original series creators, Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, the one-off special will air this summer on BBC One as part of a landmark sitcom season.
Published: 29 March 2016
Dick and Ian have brought Porridge back to life again with a brilliant script and it is a genuine honour to be involved in a show that is iconic in so many ways.
Joining Bishop behind bars will be Mark Bonnar (Catastrophe) as Officer Meekie, Ralph Ineson (The Office) as prison bad boy Richie Weeks, and Dave Hill (EastEnders) as cellmate Joe Lotterby.
Nearly 40 years after his grandfather served his time, Nigel – ‘Fletch’ to his friends – has landed himself in a spot of bother. Imprisoned for a series of cyber-crimes, Fletch finds himself beholden to Richie Weeks and forced to use his hacking skills to get Weeks off the hook. The problem being that wily Officer Meekie has got his beady eye on Fletch – he knows a wrong ’un when he sees one.
Kevin Bishop says: "Dick and Ian have brought Porridge back to life again with a brilliant script and it is a genuine honour to be involved in a show that is iconic in so many ways. Ronnie Barker’s character was one of the most loved in BBC history and the thought of stepping into his grandson’s shoes fills me with both thrills and paralytic fear!”
Shane Allen, Controller of BBC Comedy Commissioning, says: “Dick and Ian are comedy writing royalty who have cleverly re-conceived the spirit of Porridge into a modern setting with new characters. Their endorsement of our sitcom season is a true blessing.”
Also joining the cast of Porridge are Dominic Coleman (Miranda) as Officer Braithwaite; Harman Singh (Rude Boys) as Aziz; Jason Barnett (The Javone Prince Show) as Shel; and Ricky Grover (EastEnders) as Scudds.
It will be produced by Richard Webb (Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle, The Kennedys, House of Fools), directed by Dominic Brigstocke (Tracey Ullman’s Show, I’m Alan Partridge, Green Wing) and executive produced by Gregor Sharp (The Rack Pack, Boomers, Count Arthur Strong).
Porridge is part of a landmark sitcom season on the BBC. The season of programming across BBC One, BBC Two and BBC Four will celebrate the heritage and legacy of BBC comedy by revisiting some of Britain’s iconic sitcoms alongside launching brand new comedy shows.
KP2
