Little Britain returns to terrestrial TV for Christmas
The BBC sketch show, which first aired in 2003, will air on That's TV to mark its 20th anniversary.
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Little Britain, Freeview channel That’s TV will be showing episodes of the series over the Christmas period, marking the show's return to terrestrial TV.
The mocumentary sketch comedy show, narrated by Tom Baker, first aired between 2003 and 2006, and saw David Walliams and Matt Lucas play exaggerated parodies of British people.
That's TV will be broadcasting all three seasons of the show, plus Little Britain Abroad, the series's 2006 Christmas specials, with the first episode launching on Saturday 16th December 2023 at 9:05pm.
That’s TV head of programming, Kris Vaiksalu, said: "'Tis the season to be jolly and to spread warmth and laughter. This year, we are especially excited to be showcasing the comedy genius of Matt Lucas and David Walliams to mark 20 years since the launch of Little Britain.
"When the show hit the screens 20 years ago, it quickly became a cultural phenomenon, and made Lucas and Walliams into comedy gods.
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"On this anniversary, it’s extra special for us to be able to show Little Britain every night as part of our Christmas week comedy festival."
Vaiksalu also responded to focus group research from Ofcom which showed that some respondents were offended by one of the show's sketches.
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He said: "There is a great tradition of British TV comedy being used to expose and ridicule prejudice. I am absolutely clear that Little Britain sets out to lampoon all forms of prejudice, the clue being in the name.
"We carefully consider the expectations of our audience and the episodes of Little Britain we are showing have been edited in collaboration with Matt and David. We’ve studied Ofcom’s research and are confident that all of our shows this Christmas comply with all Ofcom rules."
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In a report published earlier this year, compiled by polling company Ipsos for Ofcom, 115 viewers were shown a particular Little Britain sketch.
Participants said that the scene in question was "explicitly racist and outdated" and that they were "surprised that it was available on BBC iPlayer".
The BBC responded to the research, stating that the sketch was intended to "expose and ridicule" racist attitudes.
A BBC spokesperson told RadioTimes.com: "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."
The first episode of Little Britain will air on That's TV on Saturday 16th December at 9:05pm. The series is also available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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