Comedy Central buys US series

Comedy Central has snapped up the UK rights to air impromptu quiz show Billy On The Street and prank programme Fameless from the States.

Billy on the Street involves comedian Billy Eichner testing unsuspecting passers-by on their general knowledge and has attracted celebrity guests including Will Ferrell, Lindsay Lohan, Julianne Moore and Chris Pratt.

It first aired in America’s Fuse network in 2011 and has run for 42 episodes over four seasons.

Here’s Ferrell’s episode:

Meanwhile, Fameless will air on Comedy Central UK under the title Fameless Prankers. It is hosted by comic David Spade who seeks out how far real people will go for a moment in the spotlight.

Each week, unsuspecting desperate-to-be-famous people are told they’ve been cast on a reality show – but they are actually filming a parody with improv actors, who test the participants’ patience with increasingly ridiculous situations.

Fameless began broadcasting on TruTV, which is also now the home of Billy On The Street, last year.

Brad Wood, director of acquisitions for Comedy Central UK and MTV, said: ‘Billy On The Street and Fameless are natural Fit on Comedy Central as we expand our slate of non-scripted programming.

‘Prank shows like Fameless are always a big hit with our audience and Billy Eichner is one of the funniest guys around, bringing with him some of the biggest A-Listers to play silly games on the streets of New York.’

Published: 23 Feb 2016