Channel 4 commission sci-fi sitcom pilot Space Ark
Channel 4 have commissioned Space Ark, a sitcom pilot about a group of humans living on board a space ship.
The channel explains: "It's 6 months, 1 week, and 4 days since Earth was destroyed by an asteroid. 200 humans survive on board a huge 'Space Ark'. Their mission? To find a new planet where the human race can be re-established.
"The ship is populated by the finest minds the earth had to offer, plus an inept crew, an android-bear pilot and a member of the public who won his place by lottery."
Space Ark has been written by George Jeffrie and Bert Tyler-Moore. The duo have previously created Pete Versus Life together, and are working on new BBC Three show Murder In Successville.
A pilot episode of the sci-fi sitcom was recently filmed to test the format, but the intention is not to broadcast it on television. The script focused on the crew encountering a seemingly friendly alien race whose space craft had broken down.
The cast of Space Ark includes Georgia King (pictured), the Scottish actor who starred as Goldie Clemmons in American sitcom The New Normal and has had roles in comedies such as Cockneys Vs Zombies and Felix And Murdo.
Tom Stourton, from double-act Totally Tom and the star of BBC Three sitcom Siblings, also had a main role in the pilot.
The show also features Justin Edwards (The Thick Of It), Alex Beckett (Twenty Twelve), Ricky Grover (Getting On) and Nico Tatarowicz (OtherwOrld).
The project is being overseen by Hat Trick Productions, whose other sitcoms include the likes of Outnumbered, Episodes and You, Me & Them. The pilot was directed by James De Frond, who has previously worked on shows such as Very Important People.
The premise of Space Ark is similar to Radio 4's current sitcom My First Planet. Starring Nicholas Lyndhurst and Vicki Pepperdine, the episodes focus on an inept team travelling through space trying to find somewhere to set up a new space colony.
Britain has a long tradition of sci-fi sitcoms. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy was set after Earth was destroyed; Hyperdrive - a BBC sitcom broadcast in 2006 and 2007, starring Nick Frost and Miranda Hart - focused on a PR-based space mission; whilst Red Dwarf - which is due to return for an eleventh TV series in 2015 - focuses on a crew lost in space.
News on whether Space Ark will be given the green light for a series is expected next year.