Beast of Hollywood

Vet sitcom gets US makeover

The Americans have raided Britain to remake yet another sitcom.

Rupert Murdoch’s Fox network plans to remake BBC One comedy Beast, which centred on the life of a reluctant vet.

The broadcaster is also piloting another half-hour sitcom based on the hit film The Devil Wears Prada.

Beast was written by Men Behaving Badly creator Simon Nye and ran for two series in 2000 and 2001.

It starred Alexander Armstrong as Nick, who took over his late father's veterinary practice - even though he hates animal

Everybody Loves Raymond producer Tucker Cawley – who won an Emmy for writing the 2003 episode Baggage – will be adapting Nye’s scripts for a pilot episode for the US.

Meanwhile Fox has bought the TV rights to the fashion comedy The Devil Wears Prada, which started life as a book.

Fox TV Studios president Angela Shapiro-Mathes said: ‘I'm not looking to directly translate the movie into a TV show. That becomes a mistake.

‘The reason you loved the book and the reason you loved the movie was these were characters you really cared about in a world you wanted to learn more about.’

Published: 13 Oct 2006

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