Outnumbered (British TV series)

Outnumbered is a British sitcom starring Hugh Dennis as a father and Claire Skinner as a mother who are outnumbered by their three children (played by Tyger Drew-Honey, Daniel Roche and Ramona Marquez). Other regular actors and actresses have reprised roles as supporting characters throughout the five series, including Samantha Bond, David Ryall, Rosalind Ayres and Hattie Morahan.

This article is about the British TV series. For the computer learning program, see OutNumbered! For the Fox News program, see Outnumbered (American TV program).

Outnumbered
The title card from the first episode.
GenreComedy-drama
Sitcom
Created byAndy Hamilton
Guy Jenkin
Developed byHat Trick Productions
Written byAndy Hamilton
Guy Jenkin
Directed byAndy Hamilton
Guy Jenkin
StarringClaire Skinner
Hugh Dennis
Tyger Drew-Honey
Daniel Roche
Ramona Marquez
Samantha Bond
David Ryall
Rosalind Ayres
ComposerPhilip Pope
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series5
No. of episodes35 (+ 5 shorts) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersJimmy Mulville
Jon Rolph
ProducersAndy Hamilton
Guy Jenkin
Pat Lees
Production locationWest London
CinematographyMartin Hawkins
Rob Kitzmann
EditorsMark Williams
Mark Davis
Nigel Williams
Steve Tempia
Simon Reglar
Running time30 minutes
40 minutes (specials)
Production companiesHat Trick Productions
BBC
DistributorBBC
Release
Original networkBBC One
BBC One HD
Original releaseTV Series:
28 August 2007 – 5 March 2014
Specials:
27 December 2009 – 26 December 2016
External links
Website

There were five series, which aired on BBC One from 2007 to 2014.[1][2][3][4] A Christmas special aired on 26 December 2016.[5] More specials are planned after the success of the 2016 Christmas special.[6]

Produced by Hat Trick Productions, Outnumbered was written, directed and produced by Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin, although parts of the show are semi-improvised. The adult actors learn the scripts, while the children are given last-minute instructions by the writers instead.[7]

The programme has received critical acclaim for its semi-improvisational scripting and realistic portrayal of children and family life.[8] Ratings have been average for its time slot, but the series has won a number of awards from the Comedy.co.uk awards, the Royal Television Society, the British Comedy Awards and the Broadcasting Press Guild.[9] The first four series and the two Christmas Specials have been released on DVD. Plans for an American adaptation were announced in February 2009,[10] but as of December 2019 this has not materialised. The original series began airing in the US on BBC America on 30 July 2011,[11] as well as airing on PBS stations.

Plot
The main characters in Outnumbered, as they appeared in series four (left-to-right): Jake (Tyger Drew-Honey), Sue (Claire Skinner), Pete (Hugh Dennis), Karen (Ramona Marquez), and Ben (Daniel Roche).

Outnumbered is centred on the Brockmans, a middle-class family living in Chiswick, whose two parents are "outnumbered" by their three somewhat unruly children. The father, Pete (Hugh Dennis), is a history teacher at an inner city school and the mother, Sue (Claire Skinner), is a part-time personal assistant and is four years younger than Pete.[12] The three children are: Jake (Tyger Drew-Honey), the straight man of the family, whose teenage sarcasm and obsession with girls worries his mother,[13] Ben (Daniel Roche), who is hyperactive, a pathological liar, does unusual things, and is always coming up with hypothetical questions like "who would win in a fight between...",[14] and Karen (Ramona Marquez), who asks too many questions, frequently imitates a lot of what she sees on television and criticises nearly everything.[12][15]

Other regular characters include Sue's new age sister, Angela Morrison (Samantha Bond), and their elderly father Frank (David Ryall), referred to as "Grandad", who is in the early stages of dementia. He is a silent and deceased character in the 2016 special. The writers also use the popular sitcom device of the unseen character in the form of Veronica, Sue's demanding boss in series one. In series two, the device is used again, but in the form of Sue's new boss Tyson, who is revealed to be a conman who absconds in the final episode of the series. Series three introduces Rosalind Ayres as Pete's mum Sandra, referred to as "Gran", who is addicted to online gambling and has a growing hatred for Pete's father.

Other new characters in Series 3 include Kelly (Anna Skellern), on whom Jake has a crush, Angela's new husband Brick (Douglas Hodge), who is an American therapist, and his daughter Taylor Jean, who wants to live with her mum.[16] Also introduced is a campaigner against council plans to place speed bumps on the road (Alex MacQueen) who pesters the family.

By series 5, the Brockman children have changed considerably. Jake has developed a penchant for engaging with a suspect crowd of friends, and a general teenage cockiness. Ben has doubled in size and strength, but not his maturity. And the pre-teen Karen has become moody, sullen and developed a superiority complex.

Production

Outnumbered was the first collaboration between Hamilton and Jenkin since Drop the Dead Donkey ended in 1998.[12] It was commissioned by BBC controller Lucy Lumsden. The executive producer is Jon Rolph.[18] The 20-minute pilot was given to Lumsden, who then commissioned six episodes. The show is set in Chiswick, West London, and shot on location in Wandsworth.[12] The house used for external shots is in Dempster Road.[19] During the second series, the family receive a final demand for council tax from the fictional "Limebridge Council", sent to the fictional address of 19 Keely Road, London, W4 2CF.[20]

The writers use improvisation in order to achieve convincing performances from the child actors. Jenkin added:

You rarely get the feeling that children in sitcoms are real. They tend to be the same type of character – the smartarse who says adult things – and they are rooted to the spot, staring at the camera, because they've been told to stand in one place and say the lines. We decided to attempt to do something that hadn't been tried before, bounced some ideas around and we got very keen on this idea of involving improvisation very quickly.[12]

The fourth series began on 2 September 2011 at 9.00 pm on BBC One.[21] After the series had aired, Tyger Drew-Honey suggested that there would be no fifth series because he and the other child actors were growing out of their roles. BBC Television's Head of Communications, Sam Hodges, reassured fans of the series that "contrary to reports, talks are already under way regarding a new series".[22]

The fifth and final series was confirmed by BBC and began to air Wednesday 29 January 2014. The series comprised six episodes.[23]

In 2015, Tyger Drew-Honey hinted that the series could return for a Christmas special in 2016. This was officially confirmed by co-creator Andy Hamilton in September 2016. [24]

Episodes
Main article: List of Outnumbered episodes
Series Episodes Originally aired Average UK viewers
(in millions)
First aired Last aired
1 6 28 August 2007 5 September 2007 2.46
2 7 15 November 2008 27 December 2008 4.39
Special 27 December 2009 5.98
3 6 8 April 2010 20 May 2010 6.34
4 6 2 September 2011 7 October 2011 5.32
Special 24 December 2011 8.47
Special 24 December 2012 9.39
5 6 29 January 2014 5 March 2014 6.08
Special 26 December 2016 7.03

Ages of children
SeriesJakeBenKaren
1Year 7, age 11Year 3, age 7Year 1, age 5
2Year 8, age 12Year 4, age 8Year 2, age 6
2009 Christmas SpecialYear 9, age 13Year 5, age 9Year 3, age 7
3Year 9, age 13Year 5, age 9Year 3, age 7
4Year 11, age 15Year 7, age 11Year 5, age 9
2011 Christmas SpecialYear 11, age 15Year 7, age 11Year 5, age 9
2012 Christmas SpecialYear 12, age 16Year 8, age 12Year 6, age 10
5Year 13, age 17Year 9, age 13Year 7, age 11
2016 Christmas Specialage 20Year 12, age 16Year 10, age 14

Ratings

Episode ratings from BARB.[25]

Series 1
Episode No.AirdateViewers
(millions)		Official shareBBC One Weekly Ranking
128 August 20072.7218.8%N/A
229 August 20072.3417.6%N/A
330 August 20072.3715.8%N/A
43 September 20072.3917.5%N/A
54 September 20072.5819.2%N/A
65 September 20072.3719.6%N/A

Series 2
Episode No.AirdateViewers
(millions)		Official shareBBC One Weekly Ranking
115 November 20083.8316.2%N/A
222 November 20083.6314.6%N/A
329 November 20083.4813.6%N/A
46 December 20084.2317.7%N/A
513 December 20083.8814.5%N/A
620 December 20086.8732.0%10
727 December 20084.8621.4%N/A

Series 3
Episode No.AirdateViewers
(millions)		Official shareWeekly RankiPlayer viewings
18 April 20106.7024.8%6908,000[26]
215 April 20105.8220.8%9786,000[26]
322 April 20106.3723.7%9652,000[26]
46 May 20105.9022.6%10832,000[27]
513 May 20106.7526.6%9687,000[27]
620 May 20106.5126.2%9641,000[27]

Series 4
Episode No.AirdateViewers
(millions)		Overnight shareWeekly RankiPlayer viewings
12 September 20116.1123.8%[28]91,039,000[29]
29 September 20115.3719.5%[30]14806,000[29]
316 September 20115.4521.5%[31]11686,000[29]
423 September 20115.2119.9%[32]10622,000[29]
529 September 20115.0218.4%[33]16N/A
67 October 20114.7817.2%[34]17N/A

Series 5
Episode No.AirdateViewers
(millions)		Overnight shareWeekly RankiPlayer viewings
129 January 20146.8018.9%[35]111,398,000[28]
25 February 20146.0320.6%[36]121,885,000[28]
312 February 20146.0017.2%[37]141,779,000[28]
419 February 20145.4615.9%[38]121,659,000[28]
526 February 20146.0418.4%[39]13N/A
65 March 20146.1617.8%[40]91,404,000[41]

Specials
AirdateViewers
(millions)		Overnight shareBBC One Weekly RankingiPlayer viewings
26 December 20095.9824.5%[42]22N/A
24 December 20118.4728.1%[43]10572,000[44]
24 December 20129.3931.4%[45]10897,000[46]
26 December 20166.8723.2%[47]81,129,000[48]

Reception

Ratings

The first episode received 4.1 million viewers (25.5% of the audience share) when it began and finished with 2.8 million (19.5%) at the end, which is larger than the average 2.2 million (14%) normally attracted by television shows in its particular time slot.[49] The audience for the second episode fell by half a million viewers, while still being the highest ranking show in its time slot, with 18% of the audience share.[50] However, it maintained a constant audience throughout the first series, with the fourth episode attracting 2.7 million viewers (20% audience share).[51]

Critical reception

The show initially received a mixed reception, though after the second series reviews gradually shifted towards a fairly positive tone. The Daily Mirror found the mundane settings to be similar to the American sitcom Seinfeld, saying:

compared to the ridiculous carry-on of My Family, it's much more low-key and realistic. In fact it's so low-key, nothing actually happens, which could well be a nod to Seinfeld – the touchstone of all great sitcoms. The getting ready for school chaos is like Supernanny: The Movie only with nicer children. It's also taken a leaf out of Curb Your Enthusiasm's book with large chunks of improvisation – although the strongest language you'll find here is "ponk".[52]

Kevin Maher of The Times dismissed the programme, saying it was not funny or dramatic enough. He wrote:

Outnumbered was at its most meretricious. For every exchange between adult and child was hijacked by a crass sitcommy need for sotto voce punchlines and knowing winks to the wings. A protracted scene in which 45-year-old dad (Hugh Dennis) was unable to wrestle a live power drill from the hands of 7-year-old son Ben (Daniel Roche), and instead had to, ho-ho, pay him £5 for the privilege, was emblematic of the show's dubious capacity for fake pay-offs.[53]

Rod Liddle, writing in The Sunday Times, praised the show, although he was somewhat surprised, saying, "An exquisitely middle-class, middle-aged domestic situation comedy set in West London – and starring one of those bloody stand-up comics who now festoons every network, it really should be hated before it is even seen. Start liking this sort of programme and you are an ace away from enjoying Terry and June and having a house that smells faintly of weak tea, Murray Mints and urine. So, maybe it's just me, but Outnumbered is very funny indeed: despite its current bout of self-flagellation, the BBC still knows how to make people laugh. Comedy may be the very last thing the corporation does well."[54]

James Walton wrote in The Daily Telegraph that the domestic setting and more mundane storylines were a virtue, saying, "All of this feels both carefully observed and suspiciously heartfelt. More unusually, it's not contrived. Outnumbered sticks firmly with the mundane, yet manages to be funny about it. It doesn't avoid the sheer dullness involved in family life either – but, happily, depicts it with a winning mixture of exasperation and affection."[55] He did, however, criticise the scheduling of the programme saying, "Despite the very specific London setting, the series (shown in two batches of three, this week and next) will surely appeal to the parents of young children everywhere. As long, that is, as they're not asleep by 10.35pm."[55]

In 2008 review in The Times, Bryan Appleyard described Outnumbered as "the best British sitcom in years and among the best ever".[8]

Awards

Outnumbered was nominated for the 2008 "Broadcast Award" for "Best Comedy Programme",[56] but lost the award to The Thick of It.[57]

The show was given the "British Comedy Guide Editors' Award" in The Comedy.co.uk Awards 2007[58] and the "Best Returning British TV Sitcom" in The Comedy.co.uk Awards 2008, beating Peep Show by six votes.[59]

In 2009, it won the Royal Television Society Award for "Scripted Comedy",[60] and two Broadcasting Press Guild Awards in the same year: "Best Comedy/Entertainment" and the "Writer's Award".[61] Outnumbered also won three awards at the 2009 British Comedy Awards: Best Sitcom, Best British Comedy and Best Female Newcomer for Ramona Marquez.

The show has received four BAFTA TV Award nominations: Best Situation Comedy, the Audience Award, and Best Comedy Performance for Claire Skinner in 2009; and Best Male Performance in a Comedy Role for Hugh Dennis in 2010.

At the National Television Awards in 2011, Outnumbered was nominated for Best Comedy but lost out to ITV's Benidorm. It was nominated again the following year and won.

DVD releases

All five series and the three Christmas specials are available on DVD. The first Comic Relief special is available on the Series 2 DVD, the first Sport Relief special is available on the Series 3 DVD and the second Comic Relief special is available on the Series 4 DVD. It has been said that the second Sport Relief special will either be available on the next Christmas Special DVD or the Series 5 DVD (if they will be filmed or if they have been filmed). The DVDs have been published by 2 Entertain.

DVD Title No. of discs Year No. of episodes DVD release dates DVD extras
Region 2 Region 4
Complete Series 1 1 2007 6 17 November 2008 1 July 2010 Interviews with the cast and writers
Complete Series 2 2 2008 7 16 November 2009 2 September 2010 The Comic Relief special, out-takes and deleted scenes
Christmas Special 2009 1 2009 1 18 January 2010 — —
Complete Series 3 1 2010 6 15 November 2010 11 February 2011 The Sport Relief special and documentary
Complete Series 4 1 2011 6 21 November 2011 1 March 2012 Alternative scenes, deleted scenes, Comic Relief sketch
Christmas Special 2011 1 2011 1 9 January 2012[62] — —
Complete Series 1 & 2 3 2007 & 2008 13 16 November 2009 — Same as individual releases
Complete Series 1–3 5 2007–2010 20 15 November 2010 5 April 2011 Same as individual releases
Complete Series 1–4 6 2007–2011 26 21 November 2011 3 May 2012 Same as individual releases plus 2009 Christmas special
Complete Series 5 2 2014 6 10 March 2014 7 May 2014 Bloopers, deleted scenes and the 2012 Christmas Special
Complete Series 1–5 9 2007–2014 10 March 2014 7 May 2014 Same as individual releases

References
  1. "Outnumbered: Overview". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 22 August 2008.
  2. Wyatt, Daisy (15 January 2014). "Outnumbered to end after final fifth series". The Independent. London.
  3. BBC clocks up more Outnumbered | News | C21Media
  4. Methven, Nicola (16 July 2013). "Outnumbered WILL return for another series, Hugh Dennis reveals". Mirror. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
  5. Tyger Drew-Honey on Twitter: "#10yearsofOutnumbered. X… "
  6. "Outnumbered is coming back, reveals star Hugh Dennis". 13 September 2017.
  7. Deacon, Michael (1 April 2010). "Andy Hamilton on the secret to Outnumbered's success". The Daily Telegraph. London.
  8. Appleyard, Bryan (30 November 2008). "Outnumbered the British sitcom grows up". The Times. London.
  9. "Awards". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  10. Holmwood, Leigh (9 February 2009). "Fox to air US remake of Outnumbered". London: Guardian. Retrieved 10 February 2009.
  11. "Outnumbered on BBC America". Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
  12. "Press Office: Outnumbered". BBC. 17 August 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
  13. "Episode 6". Outnumbered. Series 1. Episode 6. 28 August 2007.
  14. "Episode and 4". Outnumbered. Series 1. Episode 1. 3 September 2007.
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  16. "Outnumbered Characters". British Comedy Guide. 28 August 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2008.
  17. "Claire Skinner". Woman's Hour. 1 September 2010. BBC Radio 4. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
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  19. "Outnumbered — Production Details". British Comedy Guide. Archived from the original on 19 January 2014. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
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  21. "Outnumbered Episode Guide". British Comedy Guide.
  22. "'Outnumbered' to return for fifth series? – TV News". Digital Spy. 6 January 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
  23. Connolly, Lynn. "BBC confirms that Outnumbered WILL be back for a fifth series!". Unreality Primetime. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
  24. "Outnumbered is coming back!". 15 September 2016.
  25. Top 10 Programmes – BARB
  26. "Monthly Performance Pack : April 2010" (PDF). Downloads.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  27. "Monthly Performance Pack : May 2010" (PDF). Downloads.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  28. "Monthly Performance Pack : February 2014" (PDF). Downloads.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  29. "BBC_iPlayer_performance_monthly_0911.pptx" (PDF). Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  30. "Big Brother launches with 2.6m on Channel 5". Digital Spy. 10 September 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  31. "Tashie Jackson's Big Brother eviction seen by 1.8m". Digital Spy. 17 September 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  32. "Ricky Gervais's 'An Idiot Abroad' tops 'X Factor'". Digital Spy. 24 September 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  33. "'Shirley' delights nearly 2.7m, 'Glee' loses viewers". Digital Spy. 30 September 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  34. "Maisy James's Big Brother eviction watched by 1.5m". Digital Spy. 8 October 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  35. "Celebrity Big Brother final attracts 3 million on Channel 5". Digital Spy. 30 January 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  36. "Outnumbered rises to over 4.8 million on BBC One". Digital Spy. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  37. "Midsomer Murders' Killing and Borgen crossover attracts 5.5 million". Digital Spy. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  38. "Brit Awards 2014 attracts lowest ratings ever". Digital Spy. 20 February 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
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  43. "'EastEnders', 'Merlin' help BBC One lead Christmas Eve ratings". Digital Spy. 25 December 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
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  47. "The Ratings Thread (Part 68) – Page 776".
  48. Slide 1
  49. "News – Outnumbered starts with great ratings". British Sitcom Guide. 29 August 2007. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  50. Dowell, Ben (30 August 2007). "Supernanny and Silent Witness take lion's share". London: Guardian. Retrieved 16 October 2007.
  51. Dowell, Ben (5 September 2007). "Hell's Kitchen goes off boil". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 16 October 2007.
  52. "Outnumbered". Daily Mirror. 28 August 2007. Archived from the original on 31 January 2009. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  53. Maher, Kevin (29 August 2007). "Last night's TV". The Times. London. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  54. Liddle, Rod (2 September 2007). "The cheap laughs are the best". The Sunday Times. London. Retrieved 2 September 2007.
  55. Walton, James (29 August 2007). "Last night on television: Silent Witness (BBC1)/Outnumbered (BBC1)". London: Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  56. "News — Broadcast Awards 2008 shortlist revealed". British Sitcom Guide. 10 December 2007. Retrieved 11 December 2007.
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  61. "Broadcasting Press Guild award winners". London: Guardian. 27 March 2009. Retrieved 27 March 2009.
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