Steve Coogan is reprising his iconic role of Alan Partridge for new spoof documentary And Did Those Feet… Here are the details.
The BBC has announced a new Alan Partridge series, which will take the form of a spoof documentary called And Did Those Feet… With Alan Partridge. It’s once again written by Steve Coogan and brothers Neil and Rob Gibbons, with the latter also directing. The official description of the series reads as follows:
In his new documentary series – And Did Those Feet… With Alan Partridge – we follow the beloved and, to be fair, revered broadcaster as he reintegrates into life in Britain after a year working in Saudi Arabia. But what begins as a documentary about homecoming soon morphs into something more personal as Alan realises that the happiness he thought he’d feel at being back in Norwich just hasn’t materialised. Something’s missing.
We follow Alan as he sets off on a quest to understand his funk and to share what he learns with the nation. And if he ends up being seen as a mental health champion for the middle-aged, who’s also a good fit to present other issues-led documentary strands, so be it. Over six episodes, Alan explores exactly half a dozen of the areas that play a part in keeping us funk-free, from home lives, to work life, to the importance of nature, to relationships, to pastimes, to a sixth topic he’s not worked out yet because he’s a proper journalist, not just a sausage machine knocking out content. It’s a journey through the mental health of himself and the country he loves (the UK including Northern Ireland) to ask: are we mentally unwell, mentally challenged, sad, cross, disturbed or just plain fed up?
This show was announced amid a raft of new comedy commissions at the BBC, including Only Child, a sitcom starring Gregor Fisher and Greg McHugh, a new Philomena Cunk special, Dreaming Whilst Black series two and Man Like Mobeen series five. A third series of Greg Davies’ The Cleaner was announced earlier in the month.
While Steve Coogan made a name for himself on the comedy circuit of the late 1980s and early 1990s with characters like Paul and Pauline Calf and failed comedian Duncan Thickett, he will forever be synonymous with the cringe-inducing comedy of Alan Partridge.
Beginning life as a commentator on On The Hour, the radio version of The Day Today, Partridge quickly took off, his popularity leading to chat show Knowing Me Knowing You. That was before following his life after the show was cancelled in I’m Alan Partridge.
After a hiatus of more than a decade, Coogan returned to Partridge, first resurrecting him for his 2008 live tour before creating YouTube series Mid Morning Matters.
It’s around this time that Coogan began writing all Partridge material with the Gibbons brothers. This eventually led to 2014 feature film Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa and a return to television in the form of The One Show spoof This Time.
There is no airdate for And Did Those Feet, but we’ll keep you updated as we hear more.
