''Tracey Ullman's Show'' is a British
sketch comedy
Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...
television series starring
Tracey Ullman
Tracey Ullman (born Trace Ullman; 30 December 1959) is a British-American actress, singer, dancer, screenwriter, producer, and director. Despite being frequently referred to as a comedian, Ullman considers herself a character actress. Critics h ...
. ''Tracey Ullman's Show'' premiered on
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
on 11 January 2016.
The programme marks her first project for the broadcaster in over thirty years, and her first original project for British television in twenty-two years.
The
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
announced that the programme had been recommissioned for a second series on 5 March 2016.
Following a "best bits" Christmas special in December 2016, the show's second series premiered on 3 February 2017. It comprises six episodes.
On 26 May 2017, the BBC announced that it had ordered a new topical half hour Tracey Ullman special, ''
Tracey Breaks the News'', for BBC One. The show is inspired by the
2017 United Kingdom general election
The 2017 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 8 June 2017, two years after the 2015 United Kingdom general election, previous general election in 2015; it was the first since 1992 United Kingdom general election, 1992 to be held ...
and aired on 23 June 2017.
After the success of the 2017 special, the BBC officially commissioned a
series
Series may refer to:
People with the name
* Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series
* George Series (1920–1995), English physicist
Arts, entertainment, and media
Music
* Series, the ordered sets used i ...
, subsequently replacing ''Tracey Ullman's Show''.
On 30 August, HBO announced that ''Tracey Ullman's Show'' would return for a third series starting 28 September 2018. The third series utilises material produced for ''Tracey Breaks the News''.
Furthermore, the aforementioned show has been recut and sold internationally under the ''Tracey Ullman's Show'' banner.
Premise
Each episode offers a glimpse of British life from dusk to dawn for many of its inhabitants (the everyday and the very famous). Locals, tourists, even those smuggling themselves into the country, are included. A typical episode consists of sketches ranging from one to three minutes with one sketch's storyline acting as the spine of the episode. Each episode features an original song penned by Ullman and composer
Richard Thomas (''
Jerry Springer: The Opera'').
For series 3, the show shifts away from its "a day in the life" premise to a more topical format, with impersonations of world leaders becoming the central focus.
Cast
Starring
*
Tracey Ullman
Tracey Ullman (born Trace Ullman; 30 December 1959) is a British-American actress, singer, dancer, screenwriter, producer, and director. Despite being frequently referred to as a comedian, Ullman considers herself a character actress. Critics h ...
as Various
Supporting
* Lucy Aarden as
Georgia May Jagger
*
Zahra Ahmadi
Zahra Ahmadi (; born 1982) is a British actress from Plymouth, England of Persian descent. She is best known for playing the original Shabnam Masood in ''EastEnders''.
Career
She is known for her role as Shabnam Masood in the British televis ...
*
Ben Ashenden
*
Emily Atack
*
Elizabeth Berrington
Elizabeth Berrington (born 3 August 1970) is an English actress and graduate of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art; she is best known for her roles as Ruby Fry in '' Waterloo Road'', Paula Kosh in '' Stella'', Mel Debrou in '' Moving Wa ...
*
Kevin Bishop
Kevin Brian Bishop (born 1980) is a British actor, comedian and writer. He is best known for his roles as Jim Hawkins (character), Jim Hawkins in ''Muppet Treasure Island'', Stupid Brian in ''My Family'', and Nigel Norman Fletcher in the 2016 rev ...
*
Ricky Champ
*
Jamie Demetriou
* Amanda Dickinson
*
Martha Howe-Douglas
Martha Howe-Douglas (born 19 September 1980) is an English actress and writer. She is known as a member of the Them There collective with which she wrote and starred in productions including '' Horrible Histories'', '' Yonderland'', and '' Ghos ...
* Rosie Dwyer
*
Jade Ewen
Jade Louise Ewen (born 24 January 1988) is a British singer, actress and a former member of the girl group Sugababes. She began her singing career in a girl group named Trinity Stone, which signed with Sony BMG in 2005 but disbanded in 2007 wit ...
*
James Fleet
James Edward Fleet (born 11 March 1952) is an English actor of theatre, radio and screen. He is most famous for his roles as the bumbling and well-meaning Tom in the 1994 British romantic comedy film ''Four Weddings and a Funeral'' and the dim- ...
*
Jason Forbes
*
Tony Gardner
Tony Gardner (born 10 January 1964) is an English actor and doctor. He sits on the national governing body of the actors' trade union Equity.
Early life and education
He attended St Augustine's Catholic College in Trowbridge.
Career
Gardne ...
*
Tala Gouveia
*
Derek Griffiths
Derek Griffiths (born 15 July 1946) is a British actor, singer and voice artist who appeared in numerous British children's television series in the 1970s to present and has more recently played parts in television drama.
Career
Griffiths was ...
*
Liam Hourican
*
Laurence Howarth
*
Katherine Jakeways
Katherine Jakeways is a British comedian, actress and writer. She has appeared in numerous television, radio and theatrical productions.
Career
Jakeways' television appearances include '' Extras'', ''Horrible Histories'', '' Sherlock'', '' T ...
*
Luke Kempner
*
Dave Lamb
* Joan Linder
* Omar Malik
* Georgia Maskery
* Johnny McKeown
*
Ben Miller as
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian - American retired business magnate, investor, and media mogul. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of List of assets owned by News Corp, local, national, a ...
*
Lucy Montgomery
*
Dominique Moore
Dominique Moore (born 12 January 1986) is a British actress. She is best known for her roles in the ''BAFTA'' winning ''Horrible Histories'', ''Hotel Trubble'' and ''Paddington Green (TV series), Paddington Green''. She starred in ''Horrible His ...
* Olivia Morgan
* Carlotta Morelli
* Aaron Neil
* Sue Elliott-Nicholls
*
Tracy-Ann Oberman
*
Laurence Rickard
*
Colin Salmon
*
Dan Skinner
Daniel Renton Skinner (born 25 January 1973) is an English actor and comedy writer, working in stage, film and television. Skinner often performs as the character Angelos Epithemiou, and is also one half of the ''Brian and Roger'' podcast.
Ear ...
*
Samantha Spiro
*
Alfie Stewart
*
Nico Tatarowicz
*
Daniel Lawrence Taylor
*
Gwen Taylor
* Brona C. Titley
*
Kim Wall
*
Ben Willbond
Production
Development
In late 2014, whilst promoting the film ''
Into the Woods
''Into the Woods'' is a 1986 musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine.
The musical intertwines the plots of several Brothers Grimm fairy tales, exploring the consequences of the characters' wishes and quests. T ...
'', Tracey Ullman revealed plans to write something new for television in the following year. "Every five years it comes to me to sort of do what I do again and I throw a load of stuff at the wall, and some of it works and some of it obviously doesn't, but that's the nature of television. I love TV."
Her American
Showtime series, ''
Tracey Ullman's State of the Union'', ran for three seasons, concluding in 2010. It was a departure and a return of sorts. Instead of playing just original characters (a staple of Ullman's comedy) the show saw her imitating real people (celebrities, politicians, etc.) something she hadn't done since her early days at the BBC with ''
Three of a Kind'', the show that made her a household name in Great Britain.
In 2014, Ullman was invited by
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
controller
Charlotte Moore, and head of comedy production Myfanwy Moore, to discuss the possibility of working on a new project together for the broadcaster.
The trio hit it off and came up with a concept: a multi-camera show in which Ullman plays "a multitude of diverse and distinct characters living in, or visiting, the busy global hub that is the UK."
Whilst visiting, Ullman noted the vast number of women now heading the broadcaster, a stark contrast to her early days at the BBC. "When I was there years and years ago, it was five men in bowties who talked about the war and ''
The Goons'' ... it was so male dominated."
[ However, some things remained the same: "The important things haven't changed, though. The BBC still provides an environment that allows you the freedom to create the best shows possible."][
Ullman revealed her long-held desire to return to British television in 2015. "I have lived in America for a really long time, but I was never away from England. I was always there, I just didn't work there. I wasn't offered anything there really. So when the BBC called me last year, I was really thrilled. I mean, I wanted to do something for England. The last thing I'd done was with ]Michael Palin
Sir Michael Edward Palin (; born 5 May 1943) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He was a member of the Monty Python comedy group. He received the BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award, BAFTA Fellowship in 2013 and was knig ...
. We did 'Tracey Ullman: A Class Act''">Tracey Ullman: A Class Act">'Tracey Ullman: A Class Act''in 1992, I think. We did a show about the class system in Britain and it was just wonderful fun. And from that HBO picked that up and I did [''Tracey Takes On...'']. So it started from a British show."
After hitting it big in the United States, her star began to wane in Britain. Ullman, who likes to study people for creating characters, says that she's enjoyed the anonymity when living in London. "I can observe people on the tube without them recognising me."
On 4 March 2015, a formal announcement was made, confirming the project, with Ullman saying that it was a 'privilege to be doing this,' and "I still feel as inspired to inhabit people as I did when I was six, standing on the windowsill in my mother's bedroom, putting on a show." Shane Allen, controller of comedy commissioning added: "It's about time the Americans gave her back. Tracey has been the missing gem in the British comedy crown for too long. Talent doesn't come much bigger and the BBC audience is in for a huge treat."[
A fan of ]Armando Iannucci
Armando Giovanni Iannucci (; born 28 November 1963) is a Scottish satirist, writer, director, producer and performer.
Born in Glasgow to Italian parents, Iannucci studied at the University of Glasgow followed by the University of Oxford. St ...
, Ullman assembled a writing team which includes ''Veep
''Veep'' is an American political satire comedy television series that aired on HBO from April 22, 2012, to May 12, 2019. The series was created by Armando Iannucci. The series follows Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), the fictional Vice Pres ...
'' scribes, Georgia Pritchett, Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley, with ''The League of Gentlemen
''The League of Gentlemen'' is a British surreal comedy horror series that premiered on BBC Two in 1999. The programme is set in Royston Vasey, a fictional town in northern England originally based on Alston, Cumbria, and follows the lives ...
s Jeremy Dyson acting as both series writer and script supervisor.[
The show marks the first time in a long time that Ullman has made a series without her producing partner and husband of thirty years, ]Allan McKeown
Allan McKeown (born John McKeown; 21 May 1946 – 24 December 2013) was a British television, film, and stage producer.
Early life
McKeown was born in Ealing, London on 21 May 1946. His parents Edith Mabel (née Humphries) and Albert Victor McK ...
, who died in 2013. "Emotionally it was great to get out after having worked with my husband for 30 years." The show is, however, produced by the BBC along with McKeown's production company, Allan McKeown Presents (now run by Ullman) "So he is still presenting me..."[
The show's first two series features a ]laugh track
A laugh track (or laughter track) is an audio recording consisting of laughter (and other audience reactions) usually used as a separate soundtrack for comedy productions. The laugh track may contain live audience reactions or artificial laught ...
, something Ullman was hesitant about using. "That's a very BBC thing to do. I hate things like that on a show. But when we played it, it kind of worked. It makes it sound like you're connecting with people. Comedy has gotten a bit cold lately, and neurotic and depressed. This is a nice BBC One family show. It's not too arch or bleak." All laughter is genuine and was captured via live screenings before a studio audience at BBC Radio Theatre.
Writing and filming
Writing on the series began in February 2015 with principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
commencing 29 June and wrapping in mid-August. The show was shot entirely on location due to no studio space being available in the UK. "But you can just be completely mobile now, and set up a video village anywhere", explained Ullman to Televisual magazine. Audience screenings and recordings took place in September 2015 at BBC Radio Theatre.
On 5 March 2016, the BBC announced that it had ordered a second series of the programme. In a press release, Ullman stated: "It has been a pleasure being back at the BBC, and I am thrilled to get the opportunity to write more shows with my brilliant team. The warm reception from the British public has meant a lot to me personally. I want to thank them and let Dame Judi Dench and Chancellor Angela Merkel know I couldn’t have done it without you girls. Here's to season two."
Filming on series 2 began on 27 June 2016 and wrapped on 19 August. On 2 July, BBC Comedy released a clip of Ullman made up as Angela Merkel reacting to the news that Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...
had chosen not to run for Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
. Comedian Ben Miller was confirmed as a guest star for a sketch in which he will play media mogul Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian - American retired business magnate, investor, and media mogul. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of List of assets owned by News Corp, local, national, a ...
with Ullman portraying wife and former model Jerry Hall. Audience screenings of the new sketches took place at BBC Radio Theatre on 10, 11 September and 31 October.[
According to the ''Radio Times'', Ullman was set to impersonate SNP leader ]Nicola Sturgeon
Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon (born 19 July 1970) is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) from 2014 to 2023. She has served as a member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) sin ...
, as well as an "eerily accurate" Clare Balding. Brexit
Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU).
Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...
is referenced in the second series. "It made it better, more poignant", says Ullman. Unlike series 1, each episode of series 2 opens with a parody of a BBC show before the opening title sequence.
''Tracey Breaks the News''
On 26 May 2017, the BBC announced that it had ordered a new topical half hour Tracey Ullman special, '' Tracey Breaks the News'' for BBC One. The show is inspired by and due to air shortly after the 2017 United Kingdom general election
The 2017 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 8 June 2017, two years after the 2015 United Kingdom general election, previous general election in 2015; it was the first since 1992 United Kingdom general election, 1992 to be held ...
. Impersonations expected are Angela Merkel, Nicola Sturgeon, as well as Ullman's first take on Prime Minister Theresa May
Theresa Mary May, Baroness May of Maidenhead (; ; born 1 October 1956), is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served as Home Secretar ...
and Melania Trump
Melania Knauss Trump (born Melanija Knavs, April26, 1970) is a Slovenian and American former model who is married to U.S. President Donald Trump. Since 2025, Melania Trump has served as the first lady of the United States, a role she previous ...
. Like ''Tracey Ullman's Show'', it will feature a mix of famous and everyday people all reacting to the aftermath of the general election along with the anniversary of the Brexit
Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU).
Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...
vote. It will include the reaction of not only the UK, but Europeans and Russians. "I'm excited the BBC has asked me to make a show at this time. We've decided to shake it up with a more topical format because things move so fast these days it's like every 10 minutes I'm voting for something. There's never been a better time to be imitating world famous political women, and I admire and thank them all: Angela Merkel, Nicola Sturgeon, and my home girl newbie Theresa May. I can't wait to get stuck in – thanks to the BBC and my brilliant team. It really is a privilege."[
]
Episodes
Reception
Critical response
Series one received generally favourable reviews from critics. Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
rated the series 70/100 based on 7 reviews. Several critics chided the BBC's decision to give the show a 'graveyard' time slot. Ullman responded that she didn't believe there was "appointment TV" anymore, and that people could watch whenever they wanted on catch up.
In the show's second series, a sketch involving Christian discrimination was lauded by Christian commentators. A sketch which turns the tables on victim blaming
Victim blaming occurs when the victim of a crime or any wrongful act is held entirely or partially at fault for the harm that befell them. There is historical and current prejudice against the victims of domestic violence and sex crimes, such as ...
in sexual assault cases received international critical acclaim after it went viral on social media (even in China). The sketch was viewed over 32 million times.
Celebrity reaction
Aside from her original characters, the show features Ullman impersonating an array of public figures: Theresa May
Theresa Mary May, Baroness May of Maidenhead (; ; born 1 October 1956), is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served as Home Secretar ...
, Judi Dench
Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Widely considered one of Britain's greatest actors, she is noted for her versatility, having appeared in films and television, as well as for her numerous roles on the stage ...
, Nicola Sturgeon
Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon (born 19 July 1970) is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) from 2014 to 2023. She has served as a member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) sin ...
, Maggie Smith
Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (28 December 1934 – 27 September 2024) was a British actress. Known for her wit in both comedic and dramatic roles, she had List of Maggie Smith performances, an extensive career on stage and screen for over seve ...
, and members of the British Royal Family
The British royal family comprises Charles III and other members of his family. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is considere ...
, Camilla Parker-Bowles
Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III.
Camilla was raised in East ...
and Carole Middleton.
She received considerable international attention for her portrayal of German Chancellor Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German retired politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She is the only woman to have held the office. She was Leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2005 and Leade ...
. On 23 June 2017, BBC One's ''The One Show
''The One Show'' is a British television magazine and chat show programme. Broadcast live on BBC One weekdays at 7:00 pm, it features topical stories and studio guests. It is currently co-hosted by Alex Jones, Roman Kemp, Ronan Keating ...
'' reached out to Angela Merkel's office and received a statement back regarding Ullman's impersonation: "Thank you very much for your email requesting a statement from Chancellor Merkel for the hilarious Tracey Ullman. I am very sorry, but due to the Chancellor's extremely busy schedule, she's in Brussels right now, and the G20 summit is just around the corner, she will not be able to send the requested statement."
Ullman contends that her impersonations are played with great admiration and affection. "I hope they take it in the right spirit!" Judi Dench reacted positively to Ullman portraying her as getting away with unethical public behavior because she is a national treasure. Dench's daughter, Finty Williams, posted a clip of Ullman playing her mother on Facebook
Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
with the caption, "brilliant, just brilliant." Critics also praised the impersonation, with one writer saying: "Her impersonation of Dench is so spot on that, for a second or two, you can't be sure she is not the real deal. Her performance easily transcends the make-up thanks to her mastery of posture, gesture and facial control as well as pitch-perfect vocals." In April 2017, while speaking to BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...
's '' Front Row'', Dench commented on Ullman's portrayal, saying that she doted on it, and dubbed Ullman as brilliant. "But I get into trouble now if I go into a shop with a bag over my arm ..A man came up to me in M&S the other day and said to me, 'I've got my eye on you'." Speaking to the ''Radio Times'', Dench further stated, "It's so anarchic, I love it. It's much more like me than anything else," although she detests being referred to as a "national treasure."
One person Ullman doesn't expect to have the same reaction as Dench is the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla Parker-Bowles. "For Camilla, I don't think I'm going to get any Facebook approval!"[ In Series One, she plays both grandmothers to the youngest heir to the British royal throne, Camilla Parker-Bowles and Carole Middleton. "It occurred to me that Prince George must get taken to different grandmothers, you know? We just imagined n earthyCamilla: Do you want to drown a kitten in a barrel or put your hand up a horse's uterus?"
Maggie Smith is portrayed as an actress who prefers to work from home (or not work at all). Smith's portrayal was inspired by an incident that reportedly took place on the set of '']Downton Abbey
''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. It first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United St ...
''. Ullman: " ..I heard a rumour that one day she was miserable on the show and they said, 'Maggie, what can we do? What can we do to make you more comfortable?' And she went, n Smith's voice'Write me a death scene.'"
In the show's second series, Ullman portrays current Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon
Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon (born 19 July 1970) is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) from 2014 to 2023. She has served as a member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) sin ...
as megalomaniac who is after more than just Scottish Independence. Westminster
Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...
's youngest MP, Mhairi Black
Mhairi Black (; born 12 September 1994) is a Scottish politician who served as Deputy Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons from 2022 to 2024, and as a Member of Parliament ( ...
assists Sturgeon in the series opener by torturing a captive JK Rowling. On Sturgeon, Ullman says: "I like her a lot and respect her steeliness. ..I would love her to meet onald Trumpand play golf with him and whup his ass. y co-writerJeremy Dyson imagined her as a Bond villain — we filmed for two days in Chislehurst Caves, it was freezing and I was wearing pink, four-inch high heels. But I felt very powerful, and the crew were very much under my command. I think she will like it — she seems to have a good sense of humour." Upon seeing her portrayal, Mhairi Black (impersonated by actress Olivia Morgan) was quoted as saying "It was all right. It was quite a bizarre scenario. But I thought it was quite clever and quite witty." In an interview for the '' Metro'' newspaper during the 2017 United Kingdom general election, Nicola Sturgeon was asked about Ullman's impersonation of her. "I've not seen all of them but I had to watch some because I've heard so much about it. I thought it was really funny." When asked if she should her in all the "Brexit drama", Sturgeon responded: "I definitely think she should! She's got the outfit and everything!"
Beginning with the show's 2016 Christmas special, "The Best of Tracey Ullman's Show", Ullman plays a workaholic Clare Balding
Clare Victoria Balding (born 29 January 1971) is an English broadcast journalist and author. She currently presents programmes for BBC Sport and Channel 4, and previously for BT Sport. She also formerly presented ''Good Morning Sunday'' on BBC ...
. "I like Clare. She was captain of the volleyball team at school. I watched her present the Olympics and she's incredible. She's really passionate when talking about horses, and she talks really fast... 'Beautiful filly, beautiful filly...' She never stops, you never feel uncomfortable with her, she knows how to talk to everybody. And I got this feeling that she was like, 'Oh, don't worry, I'll work the Christmas holidays, I can do that show, I'll work Boxing Day as well, nothing like the holidays.' She never stops."[
In series 2, Ullman portrays a very bitter ]Germaine Greer
Germaine Greer (; born 29 January 1939) is an Australian writer and feminist, regarded as one of the major voices of the second-wave feminism movement in the latter half of the 20th century.
Specializing in English and women's literature, she ...
. Greer, who in recent years has come under fire for her controversial transgender
A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth.
The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
views, complains about being silenced by the media to anyone who will listen in the series. "I think Germaine Greer has become intellectually homeless, so I play her at a bus stop looking homeless. n my versionshe was this great sex symbol and she likes to talk about s****ing Martin Amis
Sir Martin Louis Amis (25 August 1949 – 19 May 2023) was an English novelist, essayist, memoirist, screenwriter and critic. He is best known for his novels ''Money'' (1984) and '' London Fields'' (1989). He received the James Tait Black Mem ...
in the 60s, but what's she done recently? She's constantly blaming old age: 'You try being old! It's the biggest sin of all.'"[
]Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian - American retired business magnate, investor, and media mogul. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of List of assets owned by News Corp, local, national, a ...
's daughter Elisabeth Murdoch came up to Ullman and told her that the family approved and liked what she was doing with the show's sketches about their family. "He's always had a good sense of humour, Rupert," said Ullman to WNYC
WNYC is an audio service brand, under the control of New York Public Radio, a non-profit organization. Radio and other audio programming is primarily provided by a pair of nonprofit, noncommercial, public radio stations: WNYC (AM) and WNYC- ...
's Leonard Lopate.
Awards and nominations
Home media
DVD
International distribution
HBO has picked up the American rights to the show; the first season began airing 28 October 2016. The network began broadcasting the show's second season 20 October 2017. On 30 August, American HBO announced that it would begin airing a third season of the show on 28 September 2018. It made its international premiere in the United States prior to its HBO launch at the 2018 Tribeca TV Festival. The event was held on 21 September 2018, with Ullman taking part in a Q&A session hosted by actress Meryl Streep
Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Known for her versatility and adept accent work, she has been described as "the best actress of her generation". She has received numerous accolades throughout her career ...
. Aside from HBO in the United States, the show's international distributor, the UK-based DRG, announced that it had also sold the show's third season to HBO Europe and ITV Choice in Asia as of September 2018. As of March 2020, the series is currently available via the digital video subscription service BritBox
BritBox is a British Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Video on demand#Subscription models, video on demand Streaming television, streaming service founded by BBC Studios and ITV plc, ITV which operates in eight countries across Australi ...
.
References
External links
*
*
* at HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tracey Ullman's Show
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BBC television comedy
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2010s British satirical television series
Cultural depictions of Angela Merkel
Cultural depictions of Donald Trump
British English-language television shows
HBO original programming
Television shows set in England
Television shows set in Northern Ireland
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Tracey Ullman