Red dwarf is back

[mjnurney]

Saturday 2 May, 2015 - UKTV's leading entertainment channel, Dave, today announced it has greenlit two new series of Emmy Award winning comedy sci-fi classic, Red Dwarf.


Red Dwarf XI and Red Dwarf XII begin production in the autumn before airing on Dave in 2016 and 2017.
Co-produced by Grant Naylor Productions and Baby Cow Productions, Red Dwarf XI and XII are written and directed by Doug Naylor. The series once more reunites Chris Barrie as Rimmer, Craig Charles as Lister, Danny John-Jules as Cat and Robert Llewellyn as Kryten.


Red Dwarf XI and XII are commissioned by Richard Watsham, Director of Commissioning at UKTV, ordered by Dave General Manager, Steve Northand will be overseen and executive produced for UKTV by Simon Lupton, Commissioning Editor at UKTV. The Executive Producer for the production company is Baby Cow's Henry Normal, and the Series Producers are Richard Naylor and Kerry Waddell.


Doug Naylor said: "Steve North and everyone at UKTV have been so supportive of Red Dwarf from the start of their involvement with the show. Steve originally asked for more shows back in 2012 but frustratingly it's taken until now to get our ducks in a row and all the boys available at the same time. Now they are, we're all absolutely delighted."

http://youtu.be/WY_VMDeq2c4

 

[rootboy]

"I'm gonna get a sheep and a cow, and breed horses" LOL!

 

[Harrison]

Brilliant news. Can't wait.

 

[Jameson]

?! As a former Red Dwarf fan I must say this is crazy. Red Dwarf started out as a wacky, dark comedy about 3 young guys with completely incompatible personalities stuck in a (relatively) confined spare and then juxtaposed into odd situations. There was nothing quite like it and I still think the first couple of seasons hold up well even today.

However, I then watched the show sink into a bottomless pit of boring one liners and puns with an over emphasis on action and sci fi plot pieces and severe neglect of the core of the original show - character humour.

There is a reason why Ricky Gervais ends his series when they are at the top of their ratings. Red Dwarf has sooooooooo much over stayed its welcome that the original smart series is now stained by the umpteen years of rubbish "flushable" seasons.


....and how can the "boys from the 'Dwarf" pull off yet another season? They must all be in their 60s by now! I know Craig Charles looks like he should be put down (or put into rehab).

As much as I usually dislike reboots..... I think this is one situation where that would have been the more sensible option...

 

[PymerOne]

Wow original first few episodes/seasons were so very utter utter awesome
It will be very difficult to even come close to that kind of entertainment.
Sidenote: actor Craig Charles having aged should save make-up team some trouble in making the character Lister 's mindset visible.

Grtz, PymerOne

 

[manic23]

I'm happy and not happy, I love the original series but as is the case with anything that is brought back after a number of year it is not usually that great, it's hard to pinpoint why, it's like the actors forget how to play the characters or something just doesn't feel right. Same for Only Fools.

 

[Shoonay]

I'm happy and not happy, I love the original series but as is the case with anything that is brought back after a number of year it is not usually that great, it's hard to pinpoint why, it's like the actors forget how to play the characters or something just doesn't feel right.

This.
I LOVED the original series, and even that was getting lazy in the later seasons.
The 2012 season was fun, much better than the last seasons of the original, it was awesome to see them all back again, they felt fresh and doing exactly what they loved, but the script wasn't that awesome.
I miss the mind-blowing plot points and plot twists, it was just a space opera about a group of people at this point - likeable people - but this isn't what I signed up for, I got lured into the series with the sci-fi plots.

 

[manic23]

Red dwarf is back

Totally agree with you Shoonay. It would be like if Commodore rose from the dead and re released the A1200 or A0000....... Errrr no wait....

 

[mjnurney]

Sadly time moves on, I watched the first series with my friends when I was 20 and we loved it. Cardboard sets and plastic models but it was funny.

now it's 4 much older men but correct me in I'm wrong but aren't we all older now? I hope the script is good and the show is above all funny, there is no reason why it shouldn't be. Put some age related gags in too

fingers crossed.

 

[roy_bates]

ill just wait and see what its like.

i think the cheapo sets just added to the humor myself,im actually looking forward to watching it again.

 

[Shoonay]

Sadly time moves on, I watched the first series with my friends when I was 20 and we loved it.

Personally I rewatched it a few years ago, I don't mind the cardboards and claustrophobic settings, the plot in the first seasons is still awesome and getting worse in the later no matter what age you are

Similar case for Star Trek, I watched TNG as a kid and loved it, rewatched it a year ago and still loved it, *BUT* since I never saw a full season of Voyager I finally also watched it in all of it's glory a year ago and that is my favorite ST series of all time now.

It's all a matter of knowing when to turn of your nostalgia chip methinks

 

[mjnurney]

its all personal taste , i don't actually remember watching series 1 at the time but i must of. i recently watched it again and its bland to look at but the gags are good. i don't mind naff sets at all, in some ways it enhanced the show.

at the end of the day its a quirky British comedy show

Ricky Gervais, now theres a man who has never made me laugh, not once.

Comedy , its a funny thing.

 

[roy_bates]

ricky gervais,now there is a person i dont understand humor wise...never laughed at single thing or gag he was in.

 

[Shoonay]

ricky gervais,now there is a person i dont understand humor wise...never laughed at single thing or gag he was in.

LOL, I think that's the joke. It's a cringe-inducing type of humor.
Same goes for Steve Carrell, he was suppose to be unfunny to the point of being sad, thus loved for being a loser, in The Office, just like Ricky.

 

[deladrevoc]

:arms

 

[Sardine]

I was disappointed with the last series, the script was written for 3 young lads and it didn't work.

I hope they write the script for 3 older men etc..

 

[ratfink]

It's a nice idea but will be surprised if they pull it off - I watched the original but at some point it started to get tired, and restarting a series after a big gap with the same actors... no, I don't think I ever saw it work, and that last attempt on Red Dwarf... meh.

Actors get comfortable, they lose their edge or their immersion in their characters or whatever - or they have just moved on as people so they don't really feel for their characters any more.

They might pull it off if they can somehow build that into the new series - or really go for broke and it as a Ballard-esque study of inner space in outer space. That might be beyond the writers and actors though, and could either work or be incredibly dull/crap in it's own right.

On Ricky Gervais - I always found the Office either dull or too damn close to real life [number of times I have been in these situations with a boss telling everyone they are being made redundant "but the good news is..."] but watch him in Night At The Museum, pretty close to how Basil Fawlty used to come across when I first watched faulty towers. Arghh, makes me wanna cringe but hilarious at the same time.

 

[Jameson]

I always find it amazing just how diverse peoples sense of humour can be. When I first saw The Office (UK version, not that hideously lame US abomination) I could not understand how such a "mockumentary" (term was new to me at the time) could be considered funny... but I persevered and soon found the genius in it. Extras was also hilarious, as was Derek....

...the only thing I have seen Ricky in that stunk was that god awful Invention Of Lying.

I personally would much more welcome another witty comedy series from Ricky Gervais than yet another terrible season of four old guys trying to relive their past glory while spouting continuous groan worthy puns to canned laugher...... but that's just me.

 

[Nobby_UK]

Red Dwarf went downhill when Kochanski (Chloë Annett) returned = Series 7.

 

[Bryce]

"I'm gonna get a sheep and a cow, and breed horses" LOL!

And in this case they are flogging a dead one. Like all things in life, they are only good first time around. They should come up with new ideas instead of ruining our memories of a great series from back then.

Bryce.