Small Prophets, the brand-new BBC sitcom written and directed by The Office star Mackenzie Crook, has confirmed its release window. Announced last year and set to air on BBC Two and iPlayer, the new show follows Pearce Quigley as a man named Michael Sleep.
Following the disappearance of his partner Clea seven years previously, Michael sets out to create magical spirits from a recipe given to him by his father Brian (Michael Palin).
The synopsis reads: “With recipe in hand, Sleep sets out (albeit with some scepticism) to create Homunculi – magical prophesying spirits that can predict the future.”
Per the press release, the series will incorporate “visually stunning animation elements throughout as we tell a story of friendships and hope, the magical and the mundane, and where secrets and lies lurk in a suburban cul-de-sac”.
Filmed and set in and around Manchester, the six-part series is expected to launch on iPlayer and BBC Two in February.
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Crook will play a role in the series alongside Palin and Quigley, and they are joined on the cast by Lauren Patel, Sophie Willan, Jon Pointing and Paul Kaye.
Speaking about the show, which marks his first as a creator since the end of Detectorists, Crook said: “Like all my best ideas, this one has been percolating for nearly a decade and is finally ready to see the light of day.
“It’s wonderful to be working again with my friends Gill Isles and Pearce Quigley and to realise a long-term ambition of collaborating with animators Ainslie Henderson and Will Anderson.”
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Producer Gill Isles said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to be working with Mackenzie again on such a funny, beautiful and unique show.”
BBC Director of Comedy Jon Petrie added: “BBC Two viewers are in for a treat with BAFTA winner Mackenzie Crook’s Small Prophets.
“This magical comedy series brims with wit and wonder – from Mackenzie himself and Sir Michael Palin to Sophie Willan, Pearce Quigley, Lauren Patel and Jon Pointing – and is backed by a top-tier creative team and stunning animation. It’s British comedy at its finest.”
Small Prophets will air on iPlayer and BBC Two in February.
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Harriet is a freelance news writer specialising in TV and movies at Digital Spy.Â
A horror enthusiast, she joined Digital Spy after working on her own horror website, reviewing films and focusing largely on feminism in the genre.Â
In her spare time, Harriet paints and produces mixed-media art. She graduated from the University of Kingston with a BA in fine art, where she specialised in painting. She also has an MA in journalism from Birkbeck University.