Channel 4 has released first look images from Pushers, the first sitcom for Bridlington-born comic and panel show regular Rosie Jones.
Written by Jones and Peter Fellows, five first look images have been released for Pushers (previously announced as Disability Benefits) which is coming to Channel 4 next month. Produced by Merman Television and 2LE Media, Pushers is based on an award-winning Comedy Blap and stars Jones in her first ever sitcom.
Having had her state benefits cut to shreds after being made redundant, a young woman with very little left to lose begins to build an illegal drugs empire. But Emily (Jones) isn’t your average street-dealing dope peddler – she’s sharp, funny, biting, highly educated – and on top of all that, she has cerebral palsy. People have underestimated Emily her entire life. If they’re not patronising her for completing the most menial of tasks, they’re pretending she’s not there. What better disguise could there be for criminal activity than to be entirely written off by the same broken system which exists to protect the law?
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Joining the cast of Pushers alongside Rosie are Ryan McParland (Say Nothing, Halo) as Ewen, Jon Furlong (The Last Kingdom, Adolescence) as Sean, Lynn Hunter (The Personal History of David Copperfield, The Tuckers) as Pat, Rhiannon Clements (Vera, Power of Parker as Jo, Ruben Reuter (The Dumping Ground, The Syndicate) as Harry, Libby Mai (We Are Lady Parts, The Chelsea Detective) as Hope, Trevor Dwyer-Lynch (Coronation Street, The Moor) as Minibus Masir and Clive Russell (Game of Thrones, One Piece) as Emily’s dad Clive.
Pushers (6×30’) was commissioned for Channel 4 by Charlie Perkins, Head of Comedy and Laura Riseam, Comedy Commissioning Editor and co-produced by Merman Television and 2LE Media. Executive producers are Clelia Mountford for Merman Television and Michael Livingstone and Tom Thostrup for 2LE. The series producer is Charlie Laurie from Merman.
The series commission follows the award-winning Comedy Blap Disability Benefits, which was created by Jones, Fellows and Tom Thostrup and which won Best Newform Drama Series at the C21 International Drama awards last year. Channel 4’s Comedy Blaps have historically been a development breeding ground for several series commissions, including We Are Lady Parts, Stath Lets Flats, Home and Dead Pixels.
