Radio 4 to launch Friday night comedy series The Naked Week
- Radio 4 will launch new topical comedy series The Naked Week on Friday 29th November
- Hosted by Andrew Hunter Murray with Amy Hoggart as chief correspondent, the episodes will be produced by The Skewer's Jon Holmes
- Radio 4 has also confirmed the recommission of TL;DR, the topical series hosted by Catherine Bohart
BBC Radio 4 is to launch Friday night comedy format The Naked Week.
The topical show, which was piloted in September 2023 as a one-off episode, will be hosted by satirist Andrew Hunter Murray and produced by The Skewer's Jon Holmes.
The six-part series will launch on 29th November at 6:30pm, joining Dead Ringers, The News Quiz and TL;DR as a topical series broadcast in the Friday night slot. This commission follows on from the end of The Now Show after 64 series.
TL;DR, which is hosted by Catherine Bohart, has been confirmed today to return next summer for another series following the success of the show's first series this summer.
Talking about its latest topical comedy series launch, the station explains: "The Naked Week is a fresh way of dressing the week's news in the altogether and parading it around for everyone to laugh at. Host Andrew Hunter Murray (No Such Thing As A Fish) and chief correspondent Amy Hoggart (Almost Royal, Full Frontal With Amy Hoggart) will strip away the curtain and slide into not only the big stories, but also across the way in which news is packaged and presented.
"Recorded in front of a live audience, imagine if Private Eye, TV Burp, and Popbitch had a lovely, if slightly demonic, baby. From multi-award-winning writers and a crack team of contemporary satirists, The Naked Week delivers a weekly (consensual) news nude straight to your ears."
The Naked Week will be written by Jon Holmes, Jason Hazeley, Katie Sayer, Sarah Dempster, Gareth Ceredig, Adam Macqueen and Louis Mian, with additional material from a wide range of contributors.
Andrew Hunter Murray says: "The news has been mad for some years now and it's a privilege to be given time on Radio 4 to attempt to work out what is going on, who's responsible, and whether there is possibly any compensation money in it for us all. Consider this show a support group, albeit one that offers stupid jokes instead of therapy."
Jon Holmes adds: "The news has had its own way for far too long, so it's about time someone came in and showed it who's boss. We'll be prodding around its inner workings with a mix of forensically dissected footage, rigorous journalism, and a healthy disrespect for authority. Oh, and jokes. There will be lots of jokes."
Like the BBC's other Friday Night Comedy shows, The Naked Week will also be released as a podcast.
Commissioner Julia McKenzie says: "Friday Night Comedy is an integral part of the Radio 4 comedy offering and I know it's a highlight of many listeners' weeks - so I'm thrilled that another brilliant topical comedy is joining the lineup. Andrew, Jon and the team have got a unique take on dissecting the news and listeners have a lot to look forward to."