Tracey Ullman's Show

Tracey Ullman's Show
Genre	Sketch comedy
Starring	Tracey Ullman
Composer(s)	Richard Thomas Andy Marlow
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	6
Production
Executive producer(s)	Tracey Ullman Myfanwy Moore Ben Farrell
Producer(s)	Caroline Norris
Camera setup	Single
Running time	30 minutes
Production company(s)	BBC Allan McKeown Presents
Release
Original network	BBC One
Picture format	16:9 (1080i HDTV)
Audio format	Stereo
Original release	11 January 2016 – present
External links
Website

Tracey Ullman's Show is a British television sketch comedy show starring Tracey Ullman (not to be confused with the 1980s The Tracey Ullman Show on Fox). Tracey Ullman's Show premiered on BBC One on 11 January 2016.^[1] The BBC announced that the programme had been recommissioned for a second series on 5 March 2016.^[2]

Background

In 1981, the success of her performance in the Royal Court Theatre's production of Four in a Million led to many offers; one being the chance to move into television comedy. The BBC was quick to cast her in Three of a Kind, co-starring comedians Lenny Henry and David Copperfield, debuted in 1981.^[3] and also BBC Scotland sketch comedy programme A Kick Up the Eighties.

The network was so impressed with her that it offered Tracey her own series. She initially turned down the offer. "My first reaction was you must be joking, as women are treated so shoddily in comedy. Big busty barmaids and all those sort of cliches just bore me rigid."^[4] She also had reservations due to a lack of female contemporaries. "At that time English women were't really allowed to be funny on television. I didn't have any examples. I mean, I didn't have a Gilda Radner, Carol Burnett, Lily Tomlin. I mean, my only point of reference, quite honestly, was the Benny Hill girls."^[5]

In 1983, she signed on to star in a comedy about four women sharing a flat together, Girls on Top (provisionally titled Four-Play, Bitches on Heat, and Four Fs to Share).^[6] In 1986 Ullman left the UK for the USA to star in her own series The Tracey Ullman Show.

Return to British television: Tracey Ullman's Show

On 4 March 2015, it was announced that Ullman would return to the BBC with a new six-part comedy series, The Tracey Ullman Show for BBC One. It will be her first project for the broadcaster in thirty years, and her first original project for British television in twenty-two years.^[7][8] The press release states that she will play "a multitude of diverse and distinct characters living in, or visiting, the busy global hub that is the UK."^[9] On 7 October 2015, it was confirmed that HBO had picked up the American rights to the show, and like the BBC, would broadcast it in 2016.^[10]

Credits

Cast

• Tracey Ullman
• Tony Gardner
• Gwen Taylor
• Samantha Spiro
• Steve Pemberton
• Daniel Lawrence Taylor
• Derek Griffiths
• Elizabeth Berrington
• Jason Forbes
• Katherine Jakeways
• Kim Wall
• Zahra Ahmadi
• Dave Lamb

Episodes

Series 1 (2016)

Series no.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Overnight UK viewers (in millions)
1.1	"Episode 1"	Dominic Brigstocke	Kevin Cecil, Andy Riley, Georgia Pritchett Lucy Montgomery, Arthur Mathews, Laurence Rickard	11 January 2016	2.9[11]
Dame Judi Dench is caught shoplifting. A woman seemingly on the phone holds up a sign to a homeless man which reads: "Pretending to make phone call". Karen, a woman who'd been imprisoned for twenty-eight years in Thailand on a drugs charge returns home to Britain and is met by a bevy of reporters at the airport. Angela Merkel is unhappy about having to meet in Cardiff. Karen checks out her old bedroom. An aromatherapist manages to have the fire department extinguish a fire she's started without her client knowing. A woman is questioned about her CV during a job interview. Karen has a flashback. Dame Maggie Smith auditions for science fiction movies. Hayley is caught trying to take a penguin home with her. Sally is convinced to cover-up. Karen pays Barry a visit. Dame Judi destroys Rupert Grint's tablet. Angela Merkel leaves an angry voicemail to Nicola Sturgeon. a tap-shoe and operetta sendoff to a library's closure. Karen's mum reassures her that she and her shampoo are safe. Guest star: Rupert Grint
1.2	"Episode 2"	Dominic Brigstocke	Georgia Pritchett, Jonathan Harvey, Jeremy Dyson, Kevin Cecil Andy Riley, Gemma Arrowsmith, Carrie Quinlan, Laurence Rickard	18 January 2016	2.4[12]
Camilla Parker Bowles agrees to watch Prince George. A man smuggles himself into the UK via the bottom of a couple’s camper. Dame Judi Dench vandalises the hotel toilets. Colin and Christine discuss what to do about Allende. Prince George arrives. Dominic runs into an old co-worker. Dame Maggie Smith auditions for James Bond. A course in online bullying for seniors. Line judging with Margaret McDonald. Allende watches Eastenders. Prince George plays with a tractor. A real estate agent tries to persuade Kay to put her house on the market. A woman passing a homeless man holds a sign reading: “I gave all my money to the bloke round the corner with the dog.” A tour guide reveals the history behind Henry the VIII’s bed. Prince George makes off with a ruby. Angela Merkel sings for the staff. Christine locks Allende in for the night. Guest star: Steve Pemberton
1.3	"Episode 3"	Dominic Brigstocke	Jeremy Dyson, Georgia Pritchett, Laurence Rickard, Andy Riley Kevin Cecil, Bert Tyler-Moore, George Jeffrie, Jonathan Harvey	25 January 2016	1.8[13]
Jackie and Hal arrive at their hotel. A woman passing a homeless man holds a sign which says: “Trying not to catch your eye.” Sally Preston hosts her first constituency surgery topless. Dame Maggie Smith auditions in a motion capture suit. Kay waits patiently with her mother in hospital. Jackie and Hal inspect ads found in a telephone box. A reporter interviews the woman behind Bridget Sweeney Ceramics. Steph spots the perfect girl for her company in a shopping mall. Dame Judi Dench sneaks into a cinema. Hayley feeds the chickens. Dominic tries to sell his latest app idea. Kay continues to wait. Jackie and Hal make a discovery. Two aromatherapists fight over a bottle of oil. Steph spots a girl on a road. Rebekah Brooks is almost burned at the stake. Kay and her mother have been forced to take a new number as they filled out a form incorrectly. Jackie and Hal make yet another discovery. Guest star: Michael Brandon
1.4	"Episode 4"	Dominic Brigstocke	Lucy Montgomery, George Jeffrie, Bert Tyler-Moore, Kevin Cevil Andy Riley, Jonathan Harvey, Georgia Pritchett, Carrie Quinlan	1 February 2016	1.8[14]
Soraya Al Amir, an overthrown dictator's wife, attempts to start a new life in Hounslow with her son. A working-class drama teacher becomes frustrated trying to teach posh students. Illifat prepares for his first day of school. Dominic interviews a potential intern. Dora catches the bus. Hayley shows off a barn owl. Soraya FaceTimes with her husband. Dora makes it to Norman's. Three women wait to audition for a primetime BBC drama. Birgit shows Angela Merkel photos from her trip to the Doctor Who Experience. Hayley presents a scrapbook to a turtle. Soraya is ambushed in public. Dame Maggie Smith's audition reel. Dora gets confused. Margaret McDonald on grunting. Four women wait to audition for a primetime sitcom. Dora forgets why she's entered a sex shop. Soraya attempts to comfort Illifat after his first day of school. Angela remembers Germany winning the Eurovision Song Contest 1982 and sings Nicole's "Ein bißchen Frieden."
1.5	"Episode 5"	Dominic Brigstocke	Georgia Pritchett, Andy Riley, Kevin Cecil Laurence Rickard, Jeremy Dyson, Katherine Jakeways	8 February 2016	1.7[15]
Kay attempts to conceal her smoking from her mother. It's the Middletons turn to watch Prince George for the day. Dominic arrives for work at the cafe. Dame Maggie Smith auditions for an action movie franchise. Dominic reveals what happened at his old job. Sally Preston has a meeting. Jackie and Hal are taken with British currency. Carole takes Prince George into the warehouse. Hayley demands to know more before allowing a squirrel monkey off to be mated. Sally does a interview. Dame Judi Dench keys a car. Hayley shows off meerkats. A tour guide discusses a portrait. Sally offers her support for an anti-Page 3 group. A vicar uses a woman's social media account for her eulogy. Michael finds Carole and Prince George in the warehouse. Jackie and Hal continue sightseeing through rose-coloured glasses. Dominic is thrown out of the cafe. Prince George is picked up. A very modern murder horror tour. Sally arrives home. Hal figures out how to turn their American shower English. Guest star: Michael Brandon
1.6	"Episode 6"	Dominic Brigstocke	Jonathan Harvey, Andy Riley, Kevil Cecil Georgia Pritchett, Laurence Rickard, Carrie Quinlan	15 February 2016	1.4[16]
Northern powerhouse, Pam Garrity speaks at a school about her 38 ½ businesses. Dame Maggie Smith shows off her many voices. A woman explains to a homeless man why she give him money via signs. Pam goes for fillers at Pam-Per. Dame Judi Dench wreaks havoc on a bus. Parents speak to the headmaster of a school they're considering sending their Korean child to. Pam stops by Glam Pam. Hayley shows off a rabbit to children at the zoo. Steph thinks she's found perfect girl. An aromatherapist devours a pizza while giving a massage. A stately homes tour guide thinks she found love. Margaret McDonald shows how not to crumble when hit by a high-speed serve. Pam is forced to turn down a gig because it takes place down South. Dominic celebrates one year at the cafe. Steph thinks she's found the perfect girl -- again. Kay decides that she's going to go out on her own for the first time without her mother since she was 14-years-old. Pam sings about her life.

Home media

The first series of Tracey Ullman's Show was released on DVD in the UK on 22 February 2016 by Acorn DVD.

References

1. "BBC - Tracey Ullman's Show - Media Centre". BBC. BBC.co.uk. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
2. "BBC One’s Tracey Ullman’s Show to return for second series – Media Centre" (Press release). BBC. 5 March 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
3. "BFI Screenonline: Three of a Kind (1981-83)". BFI Screenonline. Screenonline.org.uk. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
4. "Tracey's Papers". The Face: pg.69.
5. Ullman, Tracey (2005). Tracey Ullman: Live and Exposed (DVD). HBO Video.
6. "The Troubled Production History of Girls On Top". Smarter Than Average. Tumblr.com. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
7. "Tracey Ullman returns to BBC with own comedy show". BBC News. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
8. "BBC One announces the cast for brand new family comedy The Kennedys". BBC. 6 March 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
9. "BBC celebrates its commitment to comedy with raft of new commissions". BBC. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
10. "MIPCOM: Tracey Ullman on Her New Show, BBC's Female Revolution". The Hollywood Reporter. 7 October 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
11. "Tracey Ullman's Show set to return for Series 2". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
12. "Tracey Ullman and Crashing lose ground". Broadcastnow.co.uk. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
13. "Tracey Ullman's Show - Episode 1.3. Episode Three - British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
14. "Tracey Ullman's Show - Episode 1.4. Episode Four - British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
15. "Tracey Ullman's Show - Episode 1.5. Episode Five - British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
16. "Tracey Ullman's Show - Episode 1.6. Episode Six - British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 18 February 2016.

External links

• Tracey Ullman's Show at BBC Programmes
• Tracey Ullman's Show at the British Comedy Guide
• Tracey Ullman's Show at the Internet Movie Database