RUSSELL HOWARD’S GOOD NEWS – NEW SERIES STARTS ON BBC TWO ON OCTOBER 22nd BEFORE BEGINNING WORLDWIDE STREAM

“Stupendously successful topical comedy show”

Sharon Lougher, Metro

“Quite the pan-generational sex symbol and rumpled comedy god these days; a huge TV star”

Alison Graham, Radio Times 

 “Howard is energetic, uncynical and, most importantly, very funny.”
David Hayles, The Times

Russell Howard’s Good News returns to BBC Two this October following a successful series in its new home on the channel last year. Having reached 3 million viewers a week and regularly been the most watched show on iPlayer across all BBC Channels, the award-winning show makes a welcome and highly anticipated return this October with a brand new nine-part run.  Now a global phenomenon with a YouTube channel launched in 2014 – which allowed fans around the world to watch full episodes of the show (without piracy) in countries where the show wasn’t already being broadcast – it has seen over 11 million views and been watched in 180 countries (even finding viewers in North Korea and Vatican City).  Episodes of Russell Howard’s Good News have even been subtitled and uploaded to Chinese video site AcFun, where the show has also been watched over 4 million times.  The global success of Good News has seen RUSSELL go on to sell out a world stand-up tour playing to over 285,000 fans and then return to the USA for a major second sell-out tour earlier this year.

In this latest series, RUSSELL will once again offer his unique and quirky take on the week’s global headlines and bizarre news stories.  Sifting through over 60 international news channels, 140 newspapers from around the world and over a thousand news clips, no stone is left unturned in his pursuit of the weird and wonderful stories that have been dominating the press and TV news.

 

As well as his trademark mix of topical stand-up and sketches, not to mention the inspirational and thought-provoking story to close the show on a feel-good note, RUSSELL will also chat to a high-profile person involved in the news that week.  In the last series we saw him meet and get the measure of: legendary war correspondent JOHN SIMPSON; popular MP ALAN JOHNSON; DAVID ATTENBOROUGH’s cameraman DOUG ALLAN; charismatic social commentator and poet BENJAMIN ZEPHENIAH; former premiership footballer and cancer survivor, STILIYAN PETROV; and leading palaeobiologist TORI HERRIDGE, who performed an autopsy on a perfectly preserved mammoth.

 

A packed year of TV saw RUSSELL also host his first ever live stand-up TV show, Russell Howard’s Stand Up Central which premiered on Comedy Central to critical acclaim in April, while this Christmas will see his first foray into films with the premiere of, A Gert Lush Christmas (BBC Two).   As well as co-writing the feature length special, RUSSELL will star along-side his sister KERRY HOWARD (Him & Her, BBC Three), GREG DAVIES (The Inbetweeners, Man Down, Channel 4), NEIL MORRISEY (Men Behaving Badly, Waterloo Road, BBC1), and SOPHIE THOMPSON (EastEnders, BBC1).  RUSSELL is now the biggest British comedian on Facebook with over 3 million fans and over a million on Twitter, where Russell Howard’s Good News regularly trends globally during each episode.  Recorded in front of a live studio audience, viewers at home can also help shape the show’s agenda by submitting news stories online via Twitter @bbcgoodnews.

“You can be sure that this cheeky chappie’s take on the week’s headlines will have you roaring with laughter.”

TV Times

“He knows how to cheer up a working week. Russ is topical comedy gold”
Heat

Russell Howard’s Good News returns to BBC Two this October

For more information please contact: Lucy Plosker or Dan Lloyd at Avalon on 0207 598 7222 lucyp@avalonuk.com / danl@avalonuk.co.uk

 

NOTES TO EDITORS

  • RUSSELL HOWARD is the most popular British comedian on Facebook with 3,000,000 fans and over one million followers on Twitter .

 

  • The last series (S9) of Russell Howard’s Good News in its new home on BBC2 achieved over 3 million viewers each week.

 

  • RUSSELL will have written and starred in 96 episodes of Russell Howard’s Good News by the end of Series 10 in 2015.

 

  • Russell Howard’s Good News is regularly the most watched show on iPlayer across all BBC Channels.

 

  • Russell’s YouTube channel, which was launched in September 2014 allowing fans around the world to watch full episodes of Russell Howard’s Good News (without piracy) has had 11 million views from hit viral videos and been watched in 180 countries (even finding viewers in North Korea and Vatican City).

 

  • Episodes of Russell Howard’s Good News have been subtitled and uploaded to Chinese video sharing site AcFun, where the show has had over 4 million views.

 

  • RUSSELL’s brand new stand-up series – Russell Howard’s Stand Up Central, which aired from April 2015 on Comedy Central (UK) achieved viewing figures of 159% above the slot average for its first episode.

 

  • RUSSELL’s latest 2014 tour, Wonderbox – his biggest tour to date, saw him perform to over 285,000 fans at 40 shows across the UK and Ireland, including four consecutive nights at London’s Royal Albert Hall and extended with a further eight arena shows in December.

 

  • RUSSELL extended his 2014 Wonderbox tour across the world following over 17,000 suggestions from his fans after he asked them via Facebook where they’d most like to see him perform. The extra sold out dates saw RUSSELL travel to New York, LA, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington DC, Denver, Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Auckland.

 

  • His previous tour in 2011, Right Here, Right Now saw him perform to over 240,000 fans across the country, including three sold out dates at London’s O2 arena.

 

  • RUSSELL has performed to over one million people on his UK and international tours from 2006-2014.

 

  • RUSSELL HOWARD has four bestselling stand-up DVDs, 2014’s Wonderbox Live, 2011’s Right Here, Right Now, 2008’s Russell Howard Live and 2009’s Russell Howard Live – Dingledodies, which have sold over 619,000 DVDs and all been in the top 5 DVD comedy chart.

 

  • RUSSELL was voted Heat Magazine‘s “Weird Crush of the Year 2013”

 

  • RUSSELL HOWARD has made 58 appearances on Mock The Week between 2006 and 2010.

 

  • In addition to being a regular on Mock The Week, RUSSELL has twice featured on Live At The Apollo and appeared on Would I Lie To You (BBC One), Never Mind The Buzzcocks (BBC Two), and 8 Out 10 Cats (Channel 4).

 

  • In 2010 RUSSELL HOWARD took part in the Sport Relief Million Pound Bike Ride with DAVID WALLIAMS, JIMMY CARR, FEARNE COTTON, MIRANDA HART, PATRICK KIELTY and DAVINA McCALL – cycling 874 miles from John O’Groats to Land’s End in 4 days and raising over £1, 337.099.

 

  • In the same year RUSSELL HOWARD ran the London Marathon, raising money for the National Society for Epilepsy – a condition from which his brother suffers. He completed the 26 mile course in 4 hours and 15 minutes and raised over £7,000.

 

  • RUSSELL HOWARD’S fifth ever stand-up gig got him to the final of Channel 4’s So You Think You’re Funny.

 

  • In 2006 RUSSELL HOWARD was nominated for the Edinburgh Fringe Comedy Award for his show Wandering, which followed with a nationwide sell-out tour.

 

  • From November 2006 to July 2008, RUSSELL co-hosted The Russell Howard Show (BBC 6 Music) with fellow comedian JON RICHARDSON in a Sunday morning slot previously hosted by RUSSELL BRAND.
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