Philomena Cunk return confirmed by BBC for all new-series with a very different focus

Comedian Diane Morgan’s deliciously dim-witted character Philomena Cunk is coming back to the BBC for a new series.

Morgan, who recently appeared in the second season of Last One Laughing, first portrayed documentarian Cunk in Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe back in 2013.

The ill-informed interviewer returned in acclaimed shows including Cunk on Britain and Cunk on Life, where she asked real historians and experts such important questions as "Which was more culturally significant? The Renaissance or Single Ladies by Beyoncé?" and, to an expert on nuclear warheads, "Can we talk about something a bit more cheerful? Do you like ABBA?"

For Philomena Cunk's latest endeavour, Morgan is reuniting with Black Mirror creator Brooker on a three-part BBC series entitled Cunk on Cinema, in which the clueless reporter will examine the world’s love affair with movies.

Filming began this week on the show which, according to the synopsis, is Cunk’s "most glamorous series to date".

It continues: "Philomena (Diane Morgan) will be asking experts all of the hard-hitting questions about the history of cinema, from the invention of the camera, to the New Wave filmmakers of the 60s, right up to entrance of CGI and what the future of AI holds.

"Cunk will attempt to demystify it all while sitting in lumpy seats with stale popcorn, asking herself where did cinema come from? And why? What does it want? And why can’t it tell us?"

The synopsis also includes an interview with Philomena Cunk herself. "Cinema has given the world some of the most profound, memorable and moving visual moments in its unswerving depiction of the human condition: the shower scene in Psycho, Death playing chess in that Swedish thing, and Tom Selleck's glistening moustache in Three Men and a Little Lady, to name but all three of the only examples I can think of at the moment.

"There will, unfortunately, be some bits in black and white, but we'll keep that to the barest minimum," she promised.

Writer Brooker added: "Now that Sora has killed off Hollywood and itself (presumably as part of a murder-suicide pact), it's the perfect time to look back at 200 centuries of cinema, in the company of an idiot we’re apparently cursed to employ: Philomena Cunk."

The series, which is executive produced by Brooker, Morgan and Sam Ward, is expected to air on BBC Two later this year.

Philomena Cunk’s previous ‘documentaries’, including Cunk on Life, Cunk on Shakespeare and Cunk on Earth are available on BBC iPlayer.

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