±«Óãtv

The critically acclaimed ±«Óãtv Four comedy series from ±«Óãtv In-house Comedy, Twenty Twelve, has been commissioned for a second series by Richard Klein, Controller, ±«Óãtv Four and Cheryl Taylor, Controller, Comedy Commissioning.

Written and directed by People Like Us writer John Morton, Twenty Twelve stars Hugh Bonneville, Jessica Hynes, Olivia Colman, Amelia Bullmore, Karl Theobald and Vincent Franklin as the Olympic Deliverance team, paddling hard below the waterline to make the London 2012 Olympics happen. The series prompted Lord Coe KBE to comment: "It's great that a comedy view of what we're trying to do is being given".

In the second series the pressure mounts as the Olympic Deliverance team try to navigate their way through such delicate issues as how to handle the Algerian team's demand for a mosque in the Olympic village, how to carry out a Legacy Audit on the rival bids for the Stadium when no-one knows what a Legacy Audit is, and budgetary concerns such as how to deliver value for money when there isn't any money.

The only thing that's certain is that the clock, at least when it's working, will continue to tick inexorably downwards as this small group of men and women paddle even faster in their efforts to deliver the greatest show on earth.

Ian Fletcher, Head of Deliverance (Hugh Bonneville), says: "Obviously I think damage has already been done to the smooth running of our department by allowing the ±«Óãtv cameras in. Personally, I don't want it to continue. But upstairs says it's going to. So that's all good."

Executive producer Jon Plowman said: "We are really delighted that we have been granted permission to follow the Olympic Deliverance team again as they near the climax of their deliverance."

Richard Klein, Controller, ±«Óãtv Four said: "Twenty Twelve is deliciously topical, wickedly funny and sometimes uncannily close to real life. It has quickly captured the imagination and shows that, above all, the British don't take themselves too seriously!"

Twenty Twelve is written and directed by John Morton and produced by Paul Schlesinger. The executive producer is Jon Plowman. It is a ±«Óãtv In-house comedy production. The first three episodes of series one delighted a consolidated average audience of 800,000 per week.

Notes to Editors

±«Óãtv in-house Comedy prides itself on working with the very best in comedy talent – established and new – both on and behind the screen, and is responsible for some of the county's most watched and loved comedies across radio, online and all four ±«Óãtv TV channels.

Come Fly With Me finished its magnificent first run on ±«Óãtv One to huge audiences – over 18m for the first episode alone – and we are currently working on a brand new project for ±«Óãtv Two with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant starring Warwick Davis called Life's Too Short.

The multi-award-winning Miranda has been recommissioned for a third series for ±«Óãtv One and Psychoville will be back on ±«Óãtv Two later in the year, along with a new series from Stewart Lee and a new series of Roger & Val with Dawn French and Alfred Molina.

Also returning is ±«Óãtv Two's critically acclaimed The Thick Of It which won three BAFTAs in 2010.

Last year Mongrels unleashed its animal magic on ±«Óãtv Three and will return later this year, along with new series of Two Pints and Ideal.

And on ±«Óãtv Four Hugh Bonneville and Jessica Hynes are currently starring in Twenty Twelve, a brilliant new comedy about the Olympics.

Radio Comedy goes from strength to strength with stand-out shows such as Bleak Expectations and the ever popular Newsquiz.

The listening figures across the board are reaching new heights.

Online, in-house comedy continues to grow – the comedy website increasing its views by 350% in 18 months. We are now working with over 100 new writers on this platform.

We are extremely proud of all our output across the three platforms and are thrilled by the 10 major awards including BAFTAs, RTS and Comedy Awards we have won this year.

KT