BBC One orders mountain rescue sitcom Mountain Goats
BBC One has given the greenlight to a new sitcom about a mountain rescue team.
Mountain Goats, which will be filmed in front of a studio audience, follows the adventures of a ragtag group of Mountain Rescue volunteers.
The comedy was piloted earlier this year under the title Miller's Mountain, as part of the BBC's revived Comedy Playhouse strand.
Written by Donald McLeary, the sitcom focuses on the naïve and enthusiastic Conor, a new recruit to a Scottish mountain rescue team. He is shown the ropes by Jimmy, the shambolic old rescue hand. Other characters include Bernie, the mountain rescue team's head of operations; and Jules, a no-nonsense barmaid at the local pub.
The BBC describes the series as "an energetic studio sitcom set around the antics of a ragtag group of Mountain Rescue volunteers. Set in the Highlands, the series takes us from pub to hillside as our ramshackle family try to save walkers, climbers, dogs and, most often, themselves."
The pilot episode, which aired in May, starred Jimmy Chisholm, Kevin Guthrie, Sharon Rooney, David Ireland, Kathryn Howden, Jonathan Watson and Sheila Reid.
Six half-hour episodes have been ordered by BBC commissioner Shane Allen for BBC One's 2015 schedule.
The news was revealed by BBC One controller Charlotte Moore in a speech at the Edinburgh Television Festival. She used her time on stage to talk about her plans, which include "expanding the range of comedy" on the channel.
Miller's Mountain was one of three Comedy Playhouse 2014 pilots. Chortle has previously reported that Monks will not be picked up for series, but the future of the other pilot, Over To Bill, is not currently known. Meanwhile, the BBC has confirmed that Comedy Playhouse will return next year to allow for more sitcoms to be tested.
Below is a clip from Miller's Mountain: