Meet The Richardsons is returning for two more series, British Comedy Guide can exclusively reveal.

In total, twenty more episodes of the Dave channel's semi-improvised mockumentary - in which Lucy Beaumont and her husband, fellow comic Jon Richardson, portray a heightened version of their marriage and raising their daughter Elsie - have been ordered.

Series 4 airs next year, following two previously announced holiday specials that will go out this summer, following the couple as they make a UK-based travel show with Sally Lindsay.

Beaumont, who writes the series with Tim Reid (Car Share), said: "Oh my gosh, I can't quite believe we are going to do more series of a show that has made Johnny Vegas become my stepdad, Jon lose a hamster, my mum scrap with Beverley Callard and David Tennant walk off set. Who knows where Series 4 will take us? (I won't be sat daytime drinking with Leeds fans as Jon would like.)"

Richardson added: "The pedant in me would like to point out that by the time you get to Series 4, you aren't really 'meeting' the Richardsons anymore, so much as being stuck in a relationship with them whether you like it or not.

"The optimist in me obviously wants to say how thrilled he is and how much he hopes people enjoy the new episodes, but I don't have an optimist in me, so perhaps it's best I keep my mouth shut. Thank you Dave, and thank you to Lucy and Tim for continuing to generate ideas which see me humiliated in front of my idols."

Created by Lee Hupfield (Star Stories) for the now-defunct ITV Studios production company Second Act, further episodes of Meet The Richardsons will be made by King of Sunshine Productions. Hupfield and Eddie Stafford (Jon Richardson: How To Survive The End Of The World, Johnny Vegas: Carry On Glamping) return to produce and direct for the fledgling, Manchester-based company.

The first episode of the third series, which aired in March, was watched by an audience of 792,000 when 28-day catch-up viewing and same-week repeats were taken into account. To date, the most recent series can claim a reach of 2.5 million individuals.

Guest stars on the show have included Alan Carr, Jack Dee, Sally Phillips, Russell Howard, Rob Beckett, Craig Charles, Justin Moorhouse, Matt Forde, Dane Baptiste, Jessica Knappett, Janice Connolly and Reid appearing as himself.

Speaking on the Standard Issue podcast last month, Beaumont said that having moved away from Hebden Bridge, she hoped that they would return there for future episodes.

Series 3 concluded with Beaumont's mother Gill almost-marrying Johnny Vegas and followed Beaumont and Richardson making a panel show for Channel 4.

Meet The Richardsons was commissioned for UKTV by Iain Coyle, head of comedy entertainment, and ordered by Cherie Cunningham, Dave channel director. Sohail Shah and Paul Sandler executive produce for King of Sunshine Productions.

"I'm delighted that we've got a whole truck full of Meet The Richardsons coming down the line," said Coyle. "This show just gets better and better every series."

Cunningham added: "Spending time with Jon and Lucy in Meet The Richardsons is the pick me up we all need. This irreverent and relatable comedy manages to consistently find the funny in married life - we can't wait to see what more they have in store for us."

Richardson begins his postponed live stand-up tour Knitwit on 2nd September in Stockport, while Beaumont appears at the Bath Festival on 20th May as part of Women On Top: The Big Night Out, on a bill that also includes Isy Suttie, Helen Thorn, Anna Whitehouse and Jessica Jones.