''Chickens'' is a

British sitcom A British sitcom or a Britcom is a situational comedy programme produced for British television. Most British sitcoms are recorded on studio sets, while some have an element of location filming. A handful are made almost exclusively on location ...

that was first broadcast on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

as a

television pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...

on 2 September 2011, as part of the channel's ''

Comedy Showcase ''Comedy Showcase'' is a series of one-off comedy specials featuring some of Britain's fledgling comedy talent. Its format is reminiscent of the much earlier ''Comedy Playhouse''. The format was replaced in 2012 by 4Funnies.Khalsa, Balihar (8 Nov ...

'' season of

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

pilots. It was then followed by a six-episode series that was commissioned on

Sky 1 Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non-terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...

and broadcast between 22 August and 26 September 2013. The show is about three men who don't go off to fight in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and consequently become social outcasts in their village. It was nominated for Best Comedy Programme at the 2014 Broadcast Awards.

Cast and characters

Simon Bird Simon Antony Bird (born 19 August 1984) is an English comedian, actor, director and producer. He is best known for playing Will McKenzie in the multi-award-winning E4 comedy series ''The Inbetweeners'' (2008–2010), as well as its two films ...

as Cecil: A young man who was rejected from the war due to his flat feet. *

Jonny Sweet Jonny Sweet (born 1985) is a British comedian and the recipient of the 2009 Edinburgh Comedy Award for best newcomer. Early life Sweet was born in Nottingham and educated at the local independent school Nottingham High School. He read English ...

as Bert: the dimwitted man of the trio of Chickens. Bert does tend to forget that the war is actually going on. * Joe Thomas as George: a young man who refuses to participate in the war and in violence altogether. * Sarah Daykin as Winky: George's fiancée *

Emerald Fennell Emerald Lilly Fennell (; born 1 October 1985) is an English actress, filmmaker, and writer. She has received many awards and nominations, including an Academy Award, two British Academy Film Awards, one Screen Actors Guild Award, and nomination ...

as Agnes, Cecil's sister * Louise Ford as Gracie * Amy Dawson as Dot *

Vicki Pepperdine Vicki Pepperdine (born 1961) is an English comedy actress and writer. She was nominated for two BAFTA TV Awards for co-writing the BBC sitcom '' Getting On'' (2009–12), and was also nominated for a British Comedy Award for her portrayal of Dr ...

as Hesta * Eileen Davies as Gladys *

Emma Fryer Emma Fryer is a British stand-up comedian, actress and writer from Coventry, best known for playing Tania in BBC Three's ''Ideal'', Janine in E4's '' PhoneShop'' and Gaynor in BBC Two's ''Home Time'', which she co-wrote with Neil Edmond. In 20 ...

as Nellie *

Barry Humphries John Barry Humphries (born 17 February 1934) is an Australian comedian, actor, author and satirist. He is best known for writing and playing his on-stage and television alter egos Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson. He is also a film prod ...

as Mr. Armstrong, the local headmaster *

Ellie Kendrick Eleanor Lucy V. Kendrick (born 8 June 1990) is an English actress best known for playing Anne Frank in the BBC's 2009 miniseries ''The Diary of Anne Frank'', Ivy Morris in the first series of the 2010 revived '' Upstairs Downstairs'', and Meera ...

as Constance

Pilot

The pilot episode was filmed partly on location in the village of

Finchingfield Finchingfield is a village in the Braintree district in north-west Essex, England, a primarily rural area. It is approximately from Thaxted, farther from the larger towns of Saffron Walden and Braintree. Nearby villages include Great Bardfield ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, shooting exterior scenes in the square, the school and the church yard.

Episodes

References

External links

* * * {{Sky1 2010s British sitcoms 2013 British television series debuts 2013 British television series endings Comedy Showcase Sky sitcoms