BBC Four orders Getting On spin-off Going Forward
- Going Forward is a sitcom spin-off from hospital comedy Getting On
- The BBC Four show will see Jo Brand return as nurse Kim Wilde, alongside new characters
- Her co-stars in the three-part series will include Omid Djalili and Tom Davis
BBC Four has commissioned a new spin-off from the critically acclaimed 2009 to 2012 hospital-based sitcom Getting On.
Going Forward will see Jo Brand return as her nurse character Kim Wilde, alongside new characters.
The BBC explains: "In 2011, Jo Brand won a BAFTA for her award-winning performance in the BBC Four hospital sitcom Getting On. Now Jo is back and in rude health as she returns as Kim Wilde in this brand-new three-part comedy series that turns the spotlight on the Cinderella of the NHS, domiciliary care, along with the patched-up domestic lives we all lead.
"Employed by a failing outsource provider as a Care Assistant in the community, Kim receives little more than the minimum wage for a package which consists of unpaid overtime, management bullying and horrendous shifts. Her daily slog is matched only by that of her husband, Dave, a self-employed private hire driver battling long days and grumpy customers, with only the rattlings of fellow driver Terry to fill the endless hours of waiting.
"Add to the above an ailing mum, three kids, a dog called Carpet, an unfinished extension and a sister Jackie with a plan to sort out all their woes at a stroke. Going Forward is a universal tale and holds a mirror to modern Britain and the sacrifices made as lives are put on hold for the sake of others. The unique series treads its own fine line between tragedy and triumph to add its own bittersweet voice to this well-trodden ground."
Going Forward, which has been written by Brand, will co-star Omid Djalili as Kim's husband Dave, with Tom Davis playing Dave's colleague Terry.
Jo Brand was a psychiatric nurse before starting a career in comedy. In January she received an honorary doctorate for her work in raising awareness about mental health. Talking about the new TV show, she jokes: "Having failed the auditions for Darts Players' Wives, it's lovely to slip into a glamorous lilac nurses tunic and step into the exotic world of community health care."
Going Forward will be directed by Michael Cumming and produced by Geoff Atkinson for Vera Productions, the team which was also behind Getting On.
BBC Four's Cassian Harrison comments: "I'm delighted to have Jo and the Getting On [production] team returning to BBC Four. Getting On was a defining series for the channel and I'm really looking forward to seeing how the story has moved on in the intervening years."
BBC comedy commissioner Shane Allen adds: "Jo's naturalism as a performer is mesmerising, the casting is spot on and the writing is sublime. This is the world of zero-hours contracts alongside juggling the responsibilities and demands of that middle generation with demanding children and evermore dependent parents. It's a world Jo knows well as she brings truth, depth, heart and humour to our everyday world. It's a great accompanying series to The Detectorists in cementing BBC Four's reputation for the biggest names in British comedy to make distinctive and heartfelt comedy centred around ordinary lives, whilst tackling broader themes about contemporary society."
Going Forward will air on BBC Four later this year. There is no news yet on if her fellow Getting On stars, Joanna Scanlan and Vicki Pepperdine, will make appearances in the new show.
Meanwhile, Jo Brand's Hell of a Walk for Sport Relief will be broadcast on BBC One on Thursday 17th March.