Series 8 set for 2017

 Lee Mack’s sitcom Not Going Out is to return for an eighth series, the BBC has confirmed today.

The eight new episodes, to air next year, follow on from the 2015 Christmas special, which attracted almost three million overnight viewers.

That episode saw the central characters  Lee and Lucy, played by Mack and Sally Bretton, having their first child after finally resolving the will-they-won’t-they tension. Now, in the eighth series, they will have three young children. 

The news was announced by Shane Allen, the BBC’s controller of comedy commissioning, as the Edinburgh International Television Festival kicked off. 

He  said:  ‘Not Going Out is on its way to modern classic status as it clocks up another richly gag-packed and comic incident heavy series. 

‘The jump forward introduction of their kids provides Lee and Lucy with a new family domestic setting and springboard to broaden out their world from a "will they, won’t they?" dynamic to the "why the hell have we?" that comes with parenting.’

Jon Thoday, joint managing director of programme-makers Avalon Television, added: ‘I am delighted this brilliantly funny show by Lee Mack will continue and we all really appreciate the fantastic support from the BBC.’

The commission makes Not Going Out the longest-running comedy still on British TV, now Peep Show has come to an end.

Mack became a father of three in the ten years since the show started, and Bretton previously said that 'he wants to write what he knows about now,’ as she hinted about the show’s return in an interview earlier this year. 

Hugh Dennis and Abigail Cruttenden will return for series eight alongside Bobby Ball as  Lee’s inept father. No other cast has yet been confirmed.

Published: 24 Aug 2016