SERIES TWO LAUNCHES AT 10PM ON THURSDAY 22ND MAY
ALL EPISODES WILL BE AVAILABLE TO STREAM ON CHANNEL 4 FROM THURSDAY 22ND MAY
“Refreshingly funny and at times quite silly… a first-class comedy”
Tim Glanfield, The Sunday Times
“endlessly charming, offbeat humour… Horne’s show sparkles ”
Isobel Lewis, The Independent
“this riotously fun sitcom is an utter delight… The Horne Section TV Show is a lot of fun. It’s a riotous, good-natured sitcom that sits somewhere between Flight of the Conchords and The Goodies”
Stuart Heritage, The Guardian
It was announced today that The Horne Section TV Show will make a highly anticipated return to our screens as the musical sitcom airs its second series from 10pm on Thursday 22nd May on Channel 4. Created by Alex Horne (creator of BAFTA and National Comedy Award winning Taskmaster) and his actually talented band, the entire box set is also available from Thursday 22nd May.
Struggling with his newfound fame, the pressure of filming live from his family home and subsequent lack of money, Alex is determined to prove to the nation that he is a credible musician and bandleader, especially when an appearance from acclaimed multi-instrumentalist Reggie Watts throws what little musical confidence he had. Trying not to be overshadowed by the real musicians he works with, and struggling to cope with guests being cancelled during live recordings, the first ever World’s Strongest Musician competition, desperate corporate awards and a haunted tv studio, Alex is insistent that the show must go on.
Calmly steering the ship is production extraordinaire Thora (Desiree Burch) who does her best to keep the show on air amid the chaos and in the face of Channel 4 exec Ash (Georgia Tennant) being generally obstructive, her admirably lazy TV researcher and niece Lucy (Camille Ucan) barely looking away from her phone, and intern runner Nelly (Tim Mahendren) being perpetually flustered. Despite his international success, John Oliver is still keen to make it as a musical comedian and desperate to be part of the band, while the phenomenal Reggie Watts is in the UK after his residency on James Corden’s late night show comes to an end and is booked to make a one-off appearance that leaves a lasting impression that almost everyone is dazzled by.
The Horne Section TV Show series 2 airs from 10pm on Thursday 22nd May, along with the entire box set available on Channel 4
Previews available on Ready to Air
Further information about The Horne Section TV Show series 2:
The new series sees internationally renowned musician, comedian, writer, and actor Reggie Watts join the cast this series along with critically-acclaimed comic Tim Key, and John Oliver as returning special guests. Desiree Burch (Live At The Apollo), Georgia Tennant (Staged), and Camille Ucan (Lee and Dean) also star in the returning cast, while Ronni Ancona (Friday Night Live), Kiell Smith-Bynoe (Ghosts), Stevie Martin (8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown), and Anna Crilly (Horrible Histories: The Movie) join the new cast for the new show that was described as “riotously fun… [and] an utter delight” (The Guardian ★★★★) and highlighted as one of the ‘Best Hidden Gem TV Shows’ (The Sunday Times).
The Horne Section Series 2 was commissioned for Channel 4 by Head of Comedy, Charlie Perkins and Commissioning Executive, Joe Hullait. The Executive Producers are Alex Horne, James Taylor, Jon Thoday, Richard Allen-Turner for Avalon. The series is produced by Matt Stronge and directed by Barbara Wiltshire. The Horne Section are: Alex Horne (band leader), Joe Auckland (trumpet and banjo), Mark Brown (saxophone and guitar), Will Collier (bass), Ben Reynolds (drums and percussion) and Ed Sheldrake (keyboards).
WHAT THE PRESS HAVE SAID ABOUT THE HORNE SECTION:
“Britain’s funniest band”
Emma John, The Guardian
“a quietly charming watch… fans of the Horne Section and Taskmaster will find a lot to enjoy”
Rachael Healy, The I
“funny and delightful… this is a welcome escapist treat”
Boyd Hilton, Heat
“Horne’s irresistible, intelligent, humour”
Julia Raeside, The Times
“It’s a thoroughly endearing affair- Horne’s long-running band share an obvious personal and comic chemistry. Crucially, like the Flight of the Concords before them, their musical chops are comfortably up to the task of composing briskly amusing ditties in whatever genre takes their fancy”
Phil Harrison, The Guardian
“clever, chaotic sitcom… Alex and his band, who he’s played with for more than a decade, show off their musical talent and songwriting skills to great effect”
Stuart Pink, The Sun
“This is my favourite kind of comedy: a silly surreal sitcom. Fans of hit TV show Taskmaster will know Alex Horne as Greg Davies’s sidekick; theirs is one of TV’s great double acts, in the mould of Morecambe and Wise, Reeves and Mortimer, Patsy and Edina, and Trinny and Susannah”
Sarah Vine, Daily Mail
“ingenious and engagingly playful”
John Dugdale, The Sunday Times
“It all makes for barmy, yet wonderfully original TV”
Emma Pryer, The Daily Mirror
“hilarious sitcom”
Gerrard O’Donovan, The Daily Telegraph
“an understated delight”
Steve Bennett, Chortle
“and excellent new sitcom… The Horne Section TV Show is a clever blurring of fact and fiction”
Mike Ward, Daily Express
“funny sitcom”
Huw Fullerton, The Radio Times
“So clever, so daft”
Bruce Dessau, Beyond The Joke
“hilarity and havoc… brimming with in-jokes, meta gags, and silly comedy songs”
Sukaina Benzakour, The Sun Online
“Irreverent and sometimes surreal, the humour is self-aware and silly, with the lovable blend of comedy and catchy music that The Horne Section is known for”
Laura Vickers-Green, Den of Geek
About Alex Horne
Alex Horne is an award-winning comedian, author and podcaster, long-established as a key figure in the British comedy scene.
He is the creator and co-host of the BAFTA and National Comedy Award-winning hit TV Show, Taskmaster, which first aired on Dave before graduating to Channel 4 in 2020. With over 100 episodes, an Emmy-nomination and a Royal Television Society and Broadcast Award for Best Entertainment Programme under its belt, Taskmaster is a gem of British programming. The show has also transcended national broadcasting borders, with adaptations airing in a dozen markets around the world, including Australia, New Zealand, Quebec, Portugal, the Nordics, and Croatia. The Taskmaster format is a smash hit in Sweden, where it won the title of Best Entertainment Programme of the year in 2020. Other notable instalments in the Taskmaster Entertainment Universe include a book, a board game and two podcasts.
Alex is also the creator and frontman of The Horne Section, a six-piece band of multitalented musicians. After a successful pilot, The Horne Section TV Show was commissioned for release by Channel 4, with its first season airing in the Autumn of 2022. This follows the band’s establishment as a staple at the Fringe, appearances on 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown (Channel 4) and Never Mind The Buzzcocks (BBC2), and the release of the iTunes-chart-topping The Horne Section Podcast.
About Avalon
Avalon is a multi-award-winning talent management, television production and live promotion group with offices in London, Los Angeles and New York. Avalon, Artists Rights Group and The Agency together represent a diverse and distinctive roster of artists including actors, comedians, writers and directors, among them Academy Award, BAFTA, Emmy, Tony and Olivier Award-winners.
Avalon is the UK’s largest true independent television production company, with over 40 shows in production in the last year including: hit entertainment format Taskmaster (Channel 4 in the UK, Network 10 in Australia, TV4 in Sweden, TVNorge/Discovery+ in Norway); Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO); Starstruck (HBO Max/BBC); Not Going Out (BBC), the UK’s longest running sitcom on air; Breeders (FX/Sky); and Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly (Channel 5). Avalon has produced over 4,000 episodes of hit programming for audiences in the UK, US and around the world, winning over 30 Emmy Awards and BAFTAs from 100+ nominations.
Other landmark Avalon shows include Catastrophe (Amazon/Channel 4), Flatbush Misdemeanors (Showtime), The Russell Howard Hour (Sky), TV Burp (ITV), and the cult classic workplace sitcom Workaholics (Comedy Central). Avalon has also produced over 60 comedy specials for various platforms including Amazon, HBO, Netflix and Sky, as well as numerous podcasts and radio shows, including the UK’s second most popular podcast, Shagged. Married. Annoyed. with Chris & Rosie Ramsey. Avalon’s dedicated distribution arm licenses its catalogue of programmes and formats to over 200 territories worldwide.
Avalon also produces and promotes live comedy around the world and has promoted more winners and nominees of the prestigious Edinburgh Comedy Award than any other company. Avalon produced Newman and Baddiel: Live at Wembley, the UK’s first arena comedy show, Jerry Springer: The Opera, winner of four Olivier Awards, and is currently producing the 2024 Olivier Award-winning Best New Musical, Operation Mincemeat in the West End and on Broadway.
For Avalon news visit: www.avalonuk.com/press or follow @avalonent
About Channel 4
Channel 4 exists to create change through entertainment. Publicly owned yet commercially funded, Channel 4 generates significant and sustainable cultural, economic and social impact across the UK – at no cost to the taxpayer.
The broadcaster’s distinctive remit is set by Parliament, and it has a role to represent unheard voices, challenge with purpose and reinvent entertainment. For over 40 years, it has been a British success story, engaging generation after generation of young people.
Through a unique publisher-broadcaster model, Channel 4 commissions its content from the UK independent production sector. Working with around 300 creative companies every year, Channel 4 makes a major contribution to the local, regional and national economy, creating and supporting thousands of jobs and businesses across the country.
In 2020, Channel 4 launched its Future4 strategy to become a digital-first public service media company and to continue to deliver significant impact for UK audiences and investment into the UK creative economy.
Across its bases in London, Leeds, Manchester, Bristol and Glasgow, Channel 4 is turbocharging its efforts to find, nurture and develop talent across the UK. Through its training and development initiative 4Skills, Channel 4 is opening up opportunities in broadcasting, with a particular focus on disadvantaged young people, and addressing skills gaps across the Nations and Regions.
Channel 4 has the UK’s biggest free streaming service plus 11 television channels including: Channel 4, E4, E4 Extra, More4, Film4, 4Seven and The Box Plus Network. Through Film4 Productions, Channel 4 also invests in British filmmakers to huge critical acclaim, producing 37 Oscar wins and 88 BAFTA wins in its history.
https://www.channel4.com/
