David Mitchell to star as Shakespeare in new BBC sitcom
David Mitchell has signed up for a new TV sitcom project.
The Peep Show and Mitchell & Webb star will take the lead role in Upstart Crow, a sitcom pilot for the BBC.
The comedy focuses on the early career of William Shakespeare, with Mitchell set to play the lead role of Shakespeare himself.
The sitcom's title comes from the first reference to Shakespeare as a writer. In a pamphlet written by playwright and poet Robert Greene in 1592, the now famous playwright was attacked as an "upstart crow", implying that Shakespeare stole ideas from others.
The BBC confirms: "David Mitchell stars as William Shakespeare in a pilot recording of a new situation comedy about the life of the nation's best-loved bard before he became famous. A purloined play, a wise wife, a stroppy teen and the underhand machinations of England's sexiest spy combine in a mirthful entertainment suitable for groundlings and gentlefolk alike."
Upstart Crow has been in development with BBC Two for some time, with rehearsed readings having already been performed.
Ben Elton - the writer behind sitcoms including Blackadder and The Thin Blue Line - has been linked to the project, however his involvement has yet to be officially confirmed by the BBC.
Elton's last sitcom, The Wright Way, was written off by most critics and was voted Worst New British TV Sitcom in the Comedy.co.uk Awards 2013.
This will not be the first time David Mitchell has been linked to a project involving Shakespeare. The comedy actor has previously appeared in ShakespeaRe-Told, a 2005 BBC series in which the playwright's texts were updated to a modern day setting.
Mitchell's on-going TV projects include acting as a team captain in another series of Would I Lie To You?, and filming the final series of long-running Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show. He will also be appearing in cinemas from the end of May as a policeman in Up All Night, a comedy film linked to the CBBC series Friday Download.
Upstart Crow will be filmed in front of a live studio audience on Monday 27th April at The London Studios. To apply to see the recording, visit our free tickets page
Upstart Crow is not the only current BBC comedy project focusing on the early career of William Shakespeare. Bill, a BBC Films production starring the cast of Horrible Histories, is being marketed as telling the story of Shakespeare's "lost years". It is due in cinemas in August.
It is not currently known whether the one-off pilot episode of Upstart Crow will be shown on television. The BBC is expected to reveal further details in due course.