Philomena Cunk return confirmed by BBC Two
- Cunk On Earth - a five part series coming to BBC Two in 2022 - will see Diane Morgan return as Philomena Cunk
- The BBC says: "From virtually nothing, to virtual reality, she'll tell the story of our greatest inventions"
- Charlie Brooker says: "I am delighted to be working with Philomena again, even though she is a fictional character"
BBC Two has confirmed that Diane Morgan will return as Philomena Cunk for new spoof documentary series Cunk On Earth.
British Comedy Guide exclusively revealed the news in September, but now the channel has officially confirmed that five half-hour episodes have been filmed.
The BBC says: "Philomena Cunk's latest landmark mockumentary series Cunk On Earth will see the long-awaited return of pioneering documentary-maker Philomena Cunk on her most ambitious quest to date; venturing right up humanity to find out who we are, how we got here and what was the point.
"Made by Broke & Bones, Cunk On Earth will see Philomena (played by Diane Morgan) attempting to unlock the mystery of human civilisation and discover humankind's greatest achievements.
"From virtually nothing, to virtual reality, she'll tell the story of our greatest inventions, like the wheel, creative masterpieces, like the Mona Lisa, and mind-blowing concepts, like enlightenment and nuclear power.
"Along the way, Philomena will be asking experts hard-hitting questions about humanity's progress, as well as standing near impressive old ruins, or inside museums, before the shot cuts away from her to some archive of the bits that don't exist anymore.
"The series will examine cultures, science, art and ideas that have enriched the world as well as some of the people that produced and inspired them. It's a journey through time from the stone age to the space age, and also the future age of tomorrow that hasn't been named yet."
The character Philomena says: "This series it's in my contract to go somewhere better than just Britain so I'm hoping I at least go to Italy as that seems a safe bet. I'm looking forward to getting out of the house and tracing humanity's progress and also finding out exactly what a 'civilisations' is."
Creator, writer and executive producer Charlie Brooker says: "I am delighted to be working with Philomena again, even though she is a fictional character who, like me, has never experienced the emotion of 'delight' and has only a limited understanding of what constitutes 'work'.
"In pursuit of nothing less than the definitive story of human civilisation, she's going to visit every corner of the globe our budget and official pandemic travel restrictions will allow. Globes don't have corners but you know what I mean. Diane Morgan is very funny. I have run out of things to say in this quote. Stop reading. Go away."
Tanya Qureshi, Head of Comedy at the BBC says: "We couldn't be more excited that Philomena Cunk is returning to the BBC. A huge thank you to her and the incredibly talented team at Broke & Bones for braving everything from Ancient Rome to the wilds of Silicon Valley in this fantastic new series. Who better to educate us all on the history of civilisation as we know it?"
Cunk On Earth will debut on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer in 2022 and on Netflix outside of the UK and Ireland.
Next up for Diane Morgan is a new series of her sitcom, Mandy. Series 2 starts tomorrow (Wednesday 5th January) on BBC Two at 10pm.