The Kumars at No. 42
The Kumars at No. 42 | |
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Sky 1 | |
Release | 15 January 19 February 2014 | –
The Kumars at No. 42 is a British
Plot
The show stars a fictional
The show has an improvisational feel, though in reality much of the regular cast's performance was scripted but the guest interviews were not. In the early episodes only Meera Syal improvised to any great extent though as the cast became accustomed to their characters, the improvised content increased for later episodes. Bhaskar stated in a 2009 interview, "We never rehearsed the guests, and the best ones were the ones to keep the ball in the air."[5]
Production
When talking about
Sanjeev Bhaskar told interviewer Mark Lawson in August 2007 that the inspiration for the series was an embarrassing evening when he took a girlfriend to meet his parents. They asked her awkward questions and he wondered how they would react if he invited a famous person to his home. Ashwin and Madhuri are exaggerated versions of his own parents.[6]
The show's UK debut was on 12 November 2001 on BBC Two.[7] It was produced by Hat Trick Productions and Pariah Television. Seven series of the programme have aired on BBC Two (and latterly on BBC One), with the seventh shown in 2006. In an interview for Radio Times in May 2007, Bhaskar confirmed that the show had run its course and there were no plans for any further series.[citation needed]
The Kumars also made a guest appearance on the 2003 Comic Relief single "Spirit in the Sky" performed by Gareth Gates. They also starred in the video. It reached number 1 in the charts[8] and sold more than 550,000 copies.[citation needed]
International
The Kumars at Number 42 was shown in
.In August 2002, the American network NBC entered a deal to buy the format but later dropped out.
A new version of the show was planned for Sunday evenings on Fox, restyled as a show in the 2003-04 season featuring a Latino-American family called The Ortegas and featuring Cheech Marin.[10] However the program was dropped from Fox's post-baseball playoffs schedule to focus the network's schedule on the success of The O.C. at the time,[11] and became another one of Fox's series which were scheduled, but never made it to air. Six episodes were produced, but never aired.
The Australian version,
In Russia,
Revivals
On 1 May 2012, it was announced that a pilot for a revival of the show would be produced by
A 6-episode series was commissioned after a successful pilot, renamed simply to The Kumars, which started on 15 January 2014.[14][15]
Episodes
# | Guests |
---|---|
1 | Daniel Radcliffe, Chevy Chase and Olivia Colman |
2 | Rupert Everett, Dame Diana Rigg and Ray Winstone |
3 | Kay Burley, Elizabeth McGovern and Harry Shearer |
4 | Jenny Agutter, Brian Blessed, Shane Filan, Adrian Lester and Deborah Meaden |
5 | Emilia Fox, Richard E. Grant and Caroline Quentin |
6 | Heston Blumenthal, James Corden, Terry Gilliam, Hugh Jackman, Ash King and Twiggy |
Radio
Meera Syal revived her character from the series in 2021 for BBC Radio 4's Gossip and Goddesses with Granny Kumar.
See also
References
- ^ 2002 International Emmy Awards, Internet Movie Database.
- ^ 2003 International Emmy Awards, Internet Movie Database.
- ^ 64th Annual Peabody Awards, May 2005.
- ^ The Kumars at No. 42 (TV Series 2001–2006) - IMDb
- ^ "Why comedians are dubbing Hollywood". The Independent. 3 February 2009. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
- ^ Mark Lawson (20 August 2007). Mark Lawson Talks To... Sanjeev Bhaskar (Television production). BBC Four.
- ^ "The Kumars At No. 42 - 2001 - British Classic Comedy". British Classic Comedy. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
- ^ "Gates tops the charts". BBC. 16 March 2003. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
- ^ "BBC Canada - Schedule". Archived from the original on 2 February 2002.
- ^ "'The Ortegas' to air on Fox, Sunday nights - TV News". Digital Spy. 17 May 2003. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
- ^ "MEDIA; Fox Drops 'The Ortegas' but Insists the Show Has Not Been Canceled - New York Times". The New York Times. 6 October 2003. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
- ^ ru:Рубик Всемогущий
- ^ "The Kumars to return with new TV show pilot". British Comedy Guide. May 2012. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
- ^ "Sky confirms more Little Crackers and The Kumars". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 23 August 2012.
- ^ "The Kumars". Retrieved 24 July 2012.