Almost Royal to return for a second series
Almost Royal, the prank show in which the American public is fooled by two actors pretending to be British royalty, has been recommissioned by BBC America.
Starring comedians Ed Gamble and Amy Hoggart, a first series was broadcast earlier this year on the BBC's commercial US station, and later screened by E4 here in the UK.
Filmed on location, the series sees the pair pretending to be siblings Georgie and Poppy Carlton, obscure members of the British royal family.
The seven-part first series saw them fooling members of the public across the United States, with escapades including helping to demolish a derelict house in Detroit; taking part in a Revolutionary War re-enactment in Boston; meeting a congressman and a group of feisty females with guns in Washington DC; and appearing at New York Fashion Week.
Almost Royal was BBC America's first scripted comedy commission. Whilst it received positive press previews and reviews, it didn't attract a large audience.
Despite its poor performance in its home country, Almost Royal performed better when bought and broadcast by E4 in the UK. The first episode was watched by 190,000 people, in comparison to just over 103,000 in the US.
8 more episodes have now been ordered. A post on the show's Tumblr blog says: "Hello, Poppy here. My show (it's also Georgie's show, that's why I made sure to include a picture of both of us) Almost Royal is coming back next year!"
Executive Producer Clive Tulloh says: "Burning Bright is delighted to have the opportunity to be making a second season of Almost Royal for BBC America. We are very proud to have made such an innovative comedy series that had found an audience on both sides of the Atlantic."
Filming began last week on location in Miami, Florida. The details leaked after a dating coach, messaging the Twitter account for the character Georgie, acknowledged that he had been "completely and utterly pranked by such a PRO!"
Channel 4 has yet to comment on whether it will also purchase the second series for broadcast in the UK.
In the below clip the characters introduce themselves: