As a Luddite loner on the search of his missing cop brother

David Mitchell is to play identical twins in a new ‘genre-bending’ comedy detective show for BBC One.

The comic plays the Luddite  John ‘Ludwig’ Taylor, who has to take over the identity of his DCI brother when he disappears off the face of the earth.

His quest is discover his twin’s whereabouts, even though he lives in quiet solitude, without a computer, mobile phone or even a television,  designing puzzles for a living, under the nom-de-plume of ‘Ludwig’.

It is in stark contrast to the brother, who led Cambridge’s inner-city major crimes team.

The BBC  logline reads: ‘John may be a master of all things cryptic, but can he crack the biggest puzzle of his life?’

The show, comprising six hour-long episodes, is written by Mark Brotherhood, who has previously worked on Cold Feet and Shameless, and is being made by Big Talk.

 It was commissioned by Jon Petrie, director of BBC Comedy, who announced the series alongside nine other new and returning shows, at the BBC’s Festival of Comedy that kicked off in Cardiff today.

He said: ‘The BBC remains the biggest single investor in original comedy content in the UK. We’re so proud of the depth and range of our offerings which champion British creativity and I’m delighted to announce five brand new shows and five much-loved returning series.’

Published: 24 May 2023