OUTNUMBERED TO AIR SPECIAL SKETCH FOR CHILDREN IN NEED AHEAD OF CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

Award-winning comedy Outnumbered returns to BBC One and BBC iPlayer for a special sketch in aid of Children In Need, ahead of the one-off special this Christmas.

The BBC tease: "After 8 years, our favourite TV family reunites for a segment for BBC Children in Need ahead of their Christmas special. They are given an all-important task on the Night of TV…. What could possibly go wrong?" Children In Need airs Friday 15th November from 7pm on BBC One.

The upcoming Christmas special will follow the chaos in the downsized home of Pete and Sue Brockman, as they grapple with the challenges of parenting kids who are now adults, with their own lives to lead.

The stars of the original much-loved series are returning for the special including Hugh Dennis as dad Pete, Claire Skinner as mum Sue, Tyger Drew-Honey as eldest son Jake, Daniel Roche as the middle child Ben, and Ramona Marquez as the daughter, Karen.

In a moment of adversity, Sue and Pete gather all their offspring (including one grandchild) to try and celebrate a traditional family Christmas. But fate, neighbours, hyenas and bus replacement services get in their way.

Hugh Dennis says: “I can’t wait for the Brockmans to be back together again. Pete and Sue have downsized, the children are no longer children, but I’m sure family life will prove to be just as chaotic as ever.”

Claire Skinner says: “I’m really looking forward to being reunited with my TV family. Working on this wonderful BBC comedy doesn’t feel like work and is one of the greatest joys for us all.”

Jon Petrie, Director of BBC Comedy, says: “Outnumbered is one of the crown jewels of British sitcoms. We're so grateful to Guy, Andy, Hattrick, and the cast for dusting it off and putting it back on display.”

Jimmy Mulville, executive producer, Hat Trick Productions, says: “Who doesn’t want to know what happened to the Brockmans, our favourite television family, since we last saw them? Well we can find out when Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkins’ ground-breaking comedy returns in a one-off special this Christmas.  It’s unmissable!”              

Co-creator, writer and director Andy Hamilton says: “It’s a very exciting prospect to be revisiting the Brockman family - older, but not necessarily wiser - as they steer a path through the perils of Xmas and the rapids of modern-day family life.”

Co-creator, writer and director, Guy Jenkin adds: “I really wanted to find out what the Brockmans were up to these days, so Andy and I had to write this special.”

Outnumbered ran for five series between 2007 to 2014. The most recent episode was a Christmas special in 2016. While the show was scripted, scenes featuring the children were semi-improvised.  

Outnumbered (1 x 40) is a Hat Trick Production for BBC One and BBC iPlayer.