Wikipedia

Crackanory

Crackanory is a storytelling television series aimed at adults and inspired by the popular children's series Jackanory. It is broadcast on the UKTV channel Dave. Each episode features tales narrated by contemporary comedians and actors, containing a mix of live-action, original music and animation, all read from the same oversized chair, in a set consistent and reflective of the story.[1] The first series attracted widespread critical acclaim and over half a million viewers to Dave.[2] There are a number of reoccurring themes through the series, with the fictional company Tripec Plastics, the town of Specsham, and "fat Nicola from accounts" being frequently referenced.

Crackanory
GenreComedy
Directed byRichie Pengelley
ComposerWaen Shepherd
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series4
No. of episodes26
Production
Executive producerArnold Widdowson
Running time30 minutes
Production companyTiger Aspect Productions
Original release
NetworkDave
Release13 November 2013 (2013-11-13) –
9 February 2017 (2017-02-09)

First series

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Episode 1

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Episode 2

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Episode 3

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Episode 4

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Episode 5

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Episode 6

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Live action actors in the series included Alex Macqueen, Cariad Lloyd, Katherine Jakeways, James Bachman, Martha Howe-Douglas, Nick Mohammed, Vera Filatova, Cassie and Connie Powney

Second series

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A second series was broadcast in 2014 and featured comedian Rik Mayall, who had recorded a story prior to his death. (He had performed George's Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl on the original Jackanory.) Channel boss Steve North called it a "complete privilege" to work with Mayall.[3]

Episode 1

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Episode 2

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Episode 3

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Episode 4

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Episode 5

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Episode 6

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  • Simon Callow "Let Me Be the Judge" by Kevin Eldon
  • Ruby Wax "I'm Still Here" by Ali Crockatt and David Scott

Live action actors in the second series included Simon Farnaby, Rosie Cavaliero, Michael Fish, Alice Lowe, Elis James, Victoria Wicks, Lucy Montgomery, Dominic Coleman, Tom Meeten and Sara Pascoe.

Third series

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The third series, commissioned by UKTV, was broadcast in December 2015 and was sponsored by the Amazon-owned digital audio service Audible.[6] The guest story readers for the six-part series included Christopher Lloyd, known for his roles in long-running sitcom Taxi and as Doc Brown in the Back to the Future trilogy.[7]

Episode 1

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Episode 2

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Episode 3

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Episode 4

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Episode 5

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Episode 6

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Live action actors in the third series included Janine Duvitski, Amy Hoggart, Ray Panthaki, Kerry Howard, Marcia Warren, Kerry Godliman and Steve Oram.

Fourth series

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The fourth series, also commissioned by UKTV, was broadcast in January and February 2017. Each half-hour episode contained one, not two stories, unlike in previous series. UKTV commissioning executive Tanya Qureshi stated that, "We are thrilled to be bringing back the award-winning Crackanory for a fourth time on Dave. It has become one of our landmark brands and the ambitions of the show continue to grow with each new series. We’re hugely excited to see the storytelling format evolve into a single narrative per episode, and to reveal the talented narrators who will be taking a seat in the iconic Crackanory chair."[8]

Episode 1

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Episode 2

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Episode 3

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Episode 4

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Episode 5

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Episode 6

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Episode 7

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Episode 8

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Live action actors in the fourth series include Moya Brady, Tom Bennett, Neil Bell, Matthew Steer, Sophia Di Martino and David Gant

References

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  1. ^ Solutions, Powder Blue Internet Business. "Crackanory : Reviews 2013 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". Retrieved 5 August 2016. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  2. ^ "Crackanory gets second series from UKTV". 4 March 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  3. ^ Guide, British Comedy (1 July 2014). "Crackanory Series 2 line-up revealed". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  4. ^ "Rik Mayall's episode of Crackanory to air on Dave next month". Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  5. ^ "Sue Perkins ices the Crackanory cake with a Bake-Off in-joke". Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  6. ^ "UKTV teams up with Audible for third series of Crackanory - News - UKTV Corporate Site". Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  7. ^ Guide, British Comedy (25 July 2015). "Christopher Lloyd joins Crackanory Series 3". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  8. ^ Solutions, Powder Blue Internet Business. "Crackanory gets a fourth series : News 2016 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)
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