Lee Mack’s critically acclaimed, multi-award-winning studio sitcom will return for a new series on the BBC from Wednesday 23rd September. Not Going Out is the UK’s longest running British sitcom currently on air (second longest-running ever by number of series) and the newest member to the elite group of sitcom centenarians with over 100 episodes. This autumn the show also hits a twenty-year anniversary. Alongside six brand-new episodes, a standalone celebratory documentary, 20 Years of Not Going Out, will premiere the same night as the first episode of the series on BBC One, with the documentary and full series available that day on iPlayer.
Twentieth celebrations are most certainly the theme of the day as we return to the world of Not Going Out. Lee and Lucy very much regret hosting a twentieth birthday party for Lucy’s goddaughter in their house. Wisely, Lucy absolutely forbids Lee from leaving the bedroom to check that everything is OK in case he (inevitably) ruins the big day. But when Lee hears someone playing his precious, special edition Frankie Goes To Hollywood LP, he just can’t stop himself from rushing downstairs to save it.
As the rest of the series unfolds it becomes clear Lee and Lucy’s life has not got any simpler since their children went to university. In fact, it seems as if trouble just follows them around. Coming up: When a beauty ‘tweakment’ goes horribly wrong Lucy refuses to show her face in public… unfortunately old friends Anna (Abigail Cruttenden) and Toby (Hugh Dennis) are already en route for a long-arranged weekend visit. Lee meets one of his heroes in a packed restaurant and absolutely ruins comedy legend Nigel Planer’s dinner. Lee and Lucy decide to invite two women from the local church into their home to referee an argument they are having about money. Lee somewhat reluctantly helps Lucy to sell her badly made Dreamcatchers at an alternative craft fair. And finally, Lee finds an undiscovered Banksy and in a foolhardy quest for fame and fortune attempts to steal the artwork.
Not Going Out (6 x 30) is produced by Avalon for BBC One and BBC iPlayer. The producer is Jamie Rix, the director is Nick Wood and the writers are Lee Mack and Daniel Peak. The executive producers for Avalon are Richard Allen-Turner, Rob Aslett, Lee Mack and Jon Thoday. The commissioning editor for the BBC is Ben Caudell.
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What the press said about the last series…
“in streamlining things quite as much as this move has, Mack and his co-writer Daniel Peak have secured its future for a long time to come, should they wish to continue, and in doing so kept the studio sitcom alive – again… This season feels like a refreshing blend of a slightly new approach with the established elements of the show that fans know and love.”
James Hibbs, Radio Times
“Lee Mack has to be the funniest man on TV right now. The BBC One sitcom returns with a slightly retooled format, but it’s still concerned with packing in more gags than any other show… He brings his stand-up skills and talent for physical comedy to Not Going Out…it made me laugh like a drain…Stay in and watch it.”
Anita Singh, Daily Telegraph
“Lee Mack has by stealth, become the nation’s favourite comic… Mack is one of those rare modern comedians who seem to have almost universal appeal…it’s Not Going Out that has turned him into a national treasure… it’ll be hailed a classic…”
Nick Duerden, The i Newspaper
“Beautifully crafted, classic sitcom tomfoolery”.
Craig McClean, The Observer
“Thank heavens, then, for Lee Mack’s Not Going Out, continuing to buck the trend as it returns tonight for its 14th series. I was about to say I don’t know how it does it, but I’m pretty sure I do. It does it by tapping into a whole bunch of old-school sitcom techniques (for which it makes no apology), with gags and set-ups that are shamelessly silly and, as often as not, hilariously predictable (that’s half the fun). It then puts these in a modern-day domestic setting and -hey, presto! – ratings gold.”
Mike Ward, Daily Express
“Farce isn’t easy to get right, but Lee Mack’s comedy mainstay — still flying the flag for that endangered species, the studio sitcom — returns with a mini-masterclass in escalating suburban absurdity.”
The Times
“The longest running sitcom on British TV is back for a new 14th season and the good news is, it’s still going strong! …The opening episode is a delightful farce”
Boyd Hilton, Heat
“As always with Not Going Out, the gag hit rate for the new run is high – there’s a joke every ten seconds – and the slapstick humour remains as strong as ever.”
Rod McPhee, The Sun
“…Lee Mack is so conscious that his creation is such an anomaly that he gives us no option but to crease up… the joke rate is so machine-gun rapid”
David Brown, Radio Times
“Lee Mack is certainly one of the funniest men on TV right now, if not the funniest… as well as Mack’s top rate performance, it does have some great laugh out loud gags.”
Bruce Dessau, Beyond the Joke
“Laugh-out-loud fun.” ★★★★★
The Sun
“Lee Mack is Britain’s wittiest man”
Pete Paphides, Radio Times
“Perfect Friday night escapism”
TV Times
“…with a barrage of one-liners from Mack, it’s near impossible not to get sucked in.”
Daily Mirror
“In a TV era obsessed with slick dramas, thrillers and satire, comedian Lee Mack is doing something radical – he’s trying to make us laugh. Out loud. Every few seconds. And he’s doing it the old – fashioned way, with a studio sitcom, a live audience and endless gags.”
Sara Wallis, New!
“…the funniest show on telly”
Mike Ward, Daily Star
“…jam-packed with witty gags and one-liners.”
James Moore, Daily Star Sunday
“The series remains a cornerstone of British comedy”
Ok Magazine
“The farce is as finely tuned as ever”
Daily Telegraph
Celebrating its incredible 14th series…Lee and Sally really get a chance to shine now it’s just the two of them.”
Kate Noble, The Sun
“The farce is as finely tuned as ever and once again, if one gag leaves you cold, don’t despair, you can rest assured, another one will be along shortly to keep you laughing.”
Gabriel Tate, Daily Telegraph
For more information contact Dan Lloyd or Lucy Plosker – dlloyd@avalonuk.com/ lplosker@avalonuk.com
