Sir Michael Palin cast in Mackenzie Crooke's 'magical' new BBC comedy
Monty Python icon Sir Michael Palin has been cast in Mackenzie Crooke's upcoming new BBC comedy.
Sir Michael Palin has been cast in Mackenzie Crooke's new comedy.
The 'Worzel Gummidge' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean' actor has written, created and directed a new BBC show with the working title 'Small Prophets' with an all-star cast featuring the Monty Python legend.
The BBC sitcom will follow eccentric Michael Sleep (Pearce Quigley), who has lived an ordinary life since his darling Clea disappeared seven years ago.
As well as working in a DIY store, he often visits his dad Brian (Palin) while he waits for her to return.
In a press release, the BBC teased: "That is just the way it is, until one day dad Brian shares an old recipe involving rainwater, horse manure and more than a little alchemy.
"With recipe in hand, Michael sets out (albeit with some scepticism) to create Homunculi - magical prophesying spirits that can predict the future - in the hope they have the answer to his burning question, ‘will I ever see Clea again?’.
"Michael gets help from young work mate Kacey (Lauren Patel), an unlikely friendship that blossoms partly (but not wholly) through their mutual dislike of store manager Gordon (Mackenzie Crook).
"Their friendship adds to the frustration and intrigue of his nosy neighbours (Sophie Willan, Jon Pointing) who are obsessed with trying to find out what the hell is going on in the garden shed."
The six-part series is set in and around Manchester, where it is filmed, with "visually stunning animation elements" alongside a story of "friendships and hope, the magical and the mundane, and where secrets and lies lurk in a suburban cul-de-sac".
Mackenzie said in a statement: "Like all my best ideas, this one has been percolating for nearly a decade and is finally ready to see the light of day.
"It’s wonderful to be working again with my friends Gill Isles and Pearce Quigley and to realise a long-term ambition of collaborating with animators Ainslie Henderson and Will Anderson.”
