Flight of the Conchords' Jemaine Clement says they are working on hour-long TV special

'We're going to film a little something this year'

Saturday 06 January 2018 10:33

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The Flight of the Conchords are coming back for a one-off hour-long special

Despite still have a feverish fanbase, Flight of the Conchords have previously remained coy about returning to television.

However, speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Jemaine Clement revealed some tantalising new information: the duo are coming back for a single hour-long special.

"We're going to film a little something this year,” he told the publication. ”We’re going to shoot an hour thing.”

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Flight of the Conchords are touring the UK for the first time in seven years

Clement was responding to questions about Flight of the Conchords’ upcoming UK tour, which will see himself and Bret McKenzie play across the country.

The actor — who was speaking at FX's Television Critics Association press day — added that HBO may be involved once more and teased possible new musical numbers could feature.

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

Show all 7

1/77 TV shows that started out on the radio

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

The Mighty Boosh

Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt's ultra-surreal sitcom spawned out of three stage shows and a six-episode radio series which aired in October 2001; first on BBC London Live, then BBC Radio 4, and later BBC 7. Much like the TV show, The Boosh focused on a pair of zookeepers at Bob Fossil's Funworld: Howard TJ Moon (Barratt), jazz lover and sensitive soul, and Vince Noir (Fielding), the egotistical style-obsessive.

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

Red Dwarf

The intergalactic sitcom first spawned from BBC Radio 4's Son of Cliché in the mid-1980s, written by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor; specifically, a series of five sketches titled Dave Hollins: Space Cadet, with followed the adventures of a hapless space traveller (voiced by Nick Wilton) marooned in space and his companion computer Hab (voiced by Chris Barrie). Grant and Naylor were inspired to turn the sketches into a TV series after watching the film Dark Star, adding the characters of Arnold Rimmer and the Cat; the name Dave Hollins was changed to Dave Lister after a football player named Dave Hollins shot up in popularity.

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

That Mitchell and Webb Look

The comedy duo's TV debut actually came with 2001's The Mitchell and Webb Situation, which only ran for a single six-episode series. 2006's That Mitchell and Webb Look, however, acts as an adaptation of an earlier radio sketch show titled That Mitchell and Webb Sound, which aired on BBC Radio 4 from 2003-2007. Sketches that featured on both radio and TV include Ted and Peter, the snooker commentators, and The Surprising Adventures of Sir Digby Caesar-Salad.

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

Little Britain

The wildly popular sketch show initially found life on BBC Radio 4, running from 2000-2002; the TV version adapted much of the radio version's material, though with a greater emphasis on recurring characters and catchphrases.

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

The League of Gentlemen

From the dark, twisted minds of Jeremy Dyson, Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton, and Reece Shearsmith came The League of Gentlemen; it began as a stage show in late 1994, taking its name from the Jack Hawkins film of the same name. After winning the Perrier award for comedy at Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1997, the radio series On the Town with The League of Gentlemen first debuted on BBC Radio 4. When it was adapted into TV, the fictional town of Spent became Royston Vasey.

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Whose Line Is It Anyway? is best known in its long-running American version, but the show, of course, actually had its roots in the UK; it began first as a BBC Radio 4 programme created by Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson, with Clive Anderson as host, and John Sessions and Stephen Fry as regulars. Channel 4 snapped up the show, running for a total of 10 series, before it was cancelled due to a slump in ratings. It found immediate new popularity, however, when it started airing on ABC in the US.

7 TV shows that started out on the radio

The Day Today

Armando Iannucci and Chris Morris' spoof of the world of current affairs broadcasting started on BBC Radio 4 as On the Hour, which also starred Morris as an overzealous and self-important anchor; Steve Coogan, Rebecca Front, Doon Mackichan, Patrick Marber, and David Schneider also appeared. The Day Today adapted much of the radio series, most importantly the very first appearance of Alan Partridge, here a hapless sports correspondent.

HBO has since commented on the news, saying that, while no deal has been put in place, we can expect something soon. “The deals are not fully in place,” they told AV Club. “We’ll hopefully have news soon and will be back in touch.”

Meanwhile, Clement has been busy working on the second season of Legion, the Dan Stevens, Aubrey Plaza and Jean Smart starring X-Men show.

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