Michaela Coel confirms plans for Chewing Gum Series 3
- Michaela Coel has said she is working on bringing Chewing Gum back for a third series
- The creator had previously said the show had ended, but now new writers will assist her in penning Series 3
- The third series has yet to be officially commissioned, but Channel 4 are in talks with Coel
Michaela Coel's critically acclaimed sitcom Chewing Gum looks set to return for a third series.
The E4 comedy, created, written by and starring Coel, follows sheltered 22 year-old Tracey Gordon as she discovers love, sex and independence after growing up with a deeply religious, oppressive mother.
The star said last August that she had opted not to make any further series of the comedy, having reached a "creative peak" with Series 2. Posting on Twitter at the time, she said to fans: "Thank you to all of you. Chewing Gum has been amazing but it's only the beginning, more stories to tell, & my latter will be greater."
However, she has now backtracked on plans to end the show. She revealed the apparent change of direction today as part of a wide-ranging interview published in The Times.
Set on an East London council estate - similar to that where Coel grew up in real life - Chewing Gum has so far run for twelve episodes over the two series. Having lost her virginity at the end of Series 2, the character looks set to have taken strides in some respects in Series 3, but remain woefully naive in others.
British Comedy Guide understands that Series 3 has yet to be officially commissioned, but Channel 4 is in discussions with Coel and production company Retort about bringing the multi award-winning comedy back to TV screens.
Despite a packed 2017 schedule that saw her film a Black Mirror episode, appear in Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, and shoot Netflix musical Been So Long, Coel told The Times that simply acting in someone else's project was like a holiday in comparison to Chewing Gum: "I think acting is a lot easier than doing the writing and the production."
Coel also revealed in the interview with journalist Dominic Maxwell that Series 3 will see other writers brought in to pen episodes alongside her, "because I don't want to die".
She explained: "My sets are not peaceful. It's a beautiful catastrophe. I am running around like a headless chicken. I don't sleep because I am writing. It's manic. I love it - I don't know if I would want it any other way, but I've learnt from working with proper people like Charlie Brooker; they really prepare in advance."
Describing her working pattern as being that of a "control freak", she admits to continuing to rewrite the scripts whilst filming is under way: "You can always make it better, can't you? Other people draw a line and I can't."
Further details are expected to be confirmed at a later date.
A DVD box set of the first two series of Chewing Gum is currently scheduled for release in March.
Chewing Gum - The Complete Series 1 & 2
A huge critical success, this brilliantly engaging comedy stars actor, singer, poet, writer and award-winning playwright Michaela Coel as a religious, Beyonce-obsessed young woman who is fast realising that the more she learns about the world, the less she understands!
Coel's performance won her the British Academy Television Award for Best Female Comedy Performance in 2016 - with her writing for the show earning her a BAFTA award for Breakthrough Talent. This set contains both series.
Set on a tough London estate, Chewing Gum follows 22-year-old Tracey Gordon as she leaves behind the innocence of teenage dreams and attempts to navigate a brave new world of love, sex, and adult confusion!
First released: Monday 5th March 2018
- Distributor: Network
- Region: 2
- Discs: 2
- Minutes: 276
- Subtitles: English
- Catalogue: 7954782
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