BBC comedy controller Shane Allan has confirmed that Alan Partridge will be with returning to BBC 2 later this year with the broadcast of a 25th Anniversary Special. It’s exciting news for Steve Coogan fans as he’s been away from the BBC for a while now thanks to a deal with Sky, which has seen the likes of Mid Morning Matters Series 2 and The Trip To Spain airing exclusively on Sky Atlantic.
However, the good news doesn’t end there, though, because a brand new series has also been confirmed for BBC 1 with an expected air date in 2018. It’ll be the first full series for Alan Partridge since 2002, which saw Coogan returning for a second series of BAFTA award-winning sitcom I’m Alan Partridge, and while little is known about the set up for the new show, it’s sure to be one of the most popular comedies on BBC 1 in 2018.
A lot has happened to Alan in the intervening years since his static caravan and serial killer days with the attack on North Norfolk Digital that took place in the feature film Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa and his continued show on the station for Mid Morning Matters. He’s had a new relationship with divorcee Angela, picked up a side-kick, had a massage live on air and responded officially to potential allegations of sexual misconduct.
We’ll be very surprised if the new series doesn’t reinvent the format a little, which has been a big part of the evolution of the show’s over the years.
Knowing Me Knowing You saw Alan as the host of a chat show before his fall from grace and move to Norfolk to pick up the pieces of his life in I’m Alan Partridge. Mid Morning Matters centres on his new radio slot through the lens of a desk cam and we should see another change in direction in the 2018 show.
Before that, we’ll have the 25th Anniversary Special later in 2017, which will celebrate Alan’s solo debut on BBC radio in Knowing Me, Knowing You With Alan Partridge all the way back in 1992. In all fairness, the character first arrived a little earlier in the BBC Radio 4 show On The Hour in 1991, but he broke free for his very own stint on radio a year later.
The Alan Partridge 25th Anniversary Special will be a one-off 60-minute special giving Alan the right royal fanfare that he deserves. Filming is due to commence shortly with Baby Cow Productions behind everything as usual, so there should be a raft of new information about both the 1-hour special and the new series from the BBC in the not too distant future.
