American TV deal for folk parody duo

Folk parody duo Flight Of The Conchords have landed their own American TV series.

The Perrier-nominated New Zealanders have been commissioned for an 11-episode comedy from the prestigious HBO network.

Their show is being described as similar to fellow HBO show Curb Your Enthusiasm, as it will be partially improvised around a script and offers a fictional version of the lives of its stars, Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement.

It will also feature original songs, in a format similar to the pair’s Radio Two series last year.

The series was commissioned following a successful pilot, which Clement and McKenzie created with Ali G director James Bobin and Stu Smiley, executive producer of Everybody Loves Raymond.

The Conchords had previously developed a pilot with the rival NBC network after executives spotted them at Montreal’s Just For Laughs festival, but this didn’t make it to a series.

McKenzie had previously played an elf in the Lord Of The Rings movie.

>> To watch clips of the duo
>> To buy the Radio 2 series on CD

Published: 11 Sep 2006