Dave orders fantasy comedy series 'Zapped!'
- Channel Dave has ordered Zapped!, a 3-part comedy series about a man transported to a parallel world
- The show stars James Buckley, Paul Kaye, Ken Collard, Sharon Rooney and Louis Emerick
- Steve Coogan is the show's Executive Producer, and will make a guest appearance in the series
Dave has announced a new fantasy comedy series.
Zapped! focuses on the adventures of a man who is transported to a parallel world featuring "psychopathic Fairies, Shell Men, seductive Demi-Fins and vicious Throcks".
James Buckley, who is best known for playing Jay in The Inbetweeners, will take on the central role of Brian Weaver, the online data marketing assistant who finds himself at the centre of the story.
In the parallel world he stumbles across a pub where he gets to know the landlord and regulars Barbara, Steg and Howell. Brian is desperate to get home, but his new acquaintances are no help at all. Instead, he finds himself being sucked into a world he doesn't understand.
Pulling star Paul Kaye is taking on the role of "brain-fried wizard" Howell, Cuckoo's Ken Collard will play "armchair revolutionary" Steg, and Two Doors Down actress Sharon Rooney will be "hopeless soothsayer" Barbara.
Louis Emerick, who played the young PC Walsh in Last Of The Summer Wine, will play Herman, a former warrior who now runs the pub that Brian finds himself in.
Zapped! has been created by Black Dog Television's Dan Gaster, Will Ing and Paul Powell. The three-part series will be produced by Baby Cow Productions, with Steve Coogan acting as an executive producer.
Coogan, who will also make a guest appearance in the show, says: "Zapped! is fantasy, heightened reality, lots of escapism, with one foot firmly in the real world. It has all the requisite elements to take the audience on a journey to this slightly mad world; from wizards and spells to mermaids, psychopathic fairies, smartphones and then back to the boring office job. We have a great cast on board, led by the brilliant James Buckley. We're excited to be working with UKTV on another original comedy series and we feel this is a great example of Baby Cow at its best."
Zapped! will be produced by Kerry Waddell (Red Dwarf) and overseen by Dave Lambert, the director who has worked with Coogan on recent Alan Partridge specials, including Scissored Isle.
Commissioner Simon Lupton comments: "Everyone at UKTV is very excited to be working with Baby Cow on Zapped!, the latest addition to our growing scripted comedy slate on Dave. It has already been loads of fun collaborating with the writers as they created this fantastical world and array of extraordinary characters. We know that the Dave audience loves their comedy to give them big laughs and offer escapism in a bold, joyful and distinctive way - and we really believe Zapped! will do that. The scripts have a wonderful blend of great storytelling and humour, combined with an extremely high quality cast and director."
Steve North, the head of Dave, adds: "Zapped! combines very funny scripts with an exceptionally talented team making it. The casting is superb and brings a wealth of comedy talent to Dave that is genuinely exciting. We have an ongoing commitment on Dave to developing and launching original scripted comedy - we continue to take risks, developing high concept comedies that broaden our entertainment slate."
Zapped! goes into production at Pinewood Studios this month. It will be broadcast on Dave in the autumn, launching off the back of the new series of Red Dwarf.