My Family

Robert Lindsay has shared his anger at the axing of BBC One series My Family.

The actor has reacted to the cancellation of the long-running sitcom in which he stars alongside Zoe Wannamaker.

Lindsay told TV Times magazine: “It’s got so many fans and the BBC has treated it appallingly.

“The ratings were great, but they ruined it by putting it out after the 9pm watershed.

“It’s a genuinely good family show – as my dad used to say, you can watch it quite safely with your grandchildren.”

The series will finish following the screening of the eleventh season that begins later this month.

Source: whatsontv

The Sun today reports that My Family actor Robert Lindsay has landed a new role in a comedy series based on spy service MI5. Here’s the paper’s article in full…

MY Family star Robert Lindsay has landed a plum role in a new comedy – playing the head of MI5. SPY stars Smack The Pony’s Darren Boyd as hapless single dad Tim, who has been recruited to work for the secret service.

Tim is struggling to hide his job from son Marcus, played by Jude Wright. Lindsay, whose BBC One sitcom was recently axed, plays Tim’s “irrepressible” MI5 boss.

Adding to the chaos in Tim’s life will be his acidic ex-wife Judith (Dolly Wells), her enthusiastic new boyfriend Philip (Tom Goodman-Hill) and his anti-social friend Chris (Mathew Baynton).

Romance could also be on the cards for Tim in the form of fellow spy Caitlin (Rebekah Staton) – while the family also has to contend with psychopathic and obsessive social worker Paula (Rosie Cavaliero).

Head of Comedy Lucy Lumsden said: “In SPY we have an exciting young cast and a brilliant new writer in Simeon Goulden. “It is the first of several new British comedies aimed at a family audience.”

Executive producer Jimmy Mulville added: “The writing, the characters and the situations in SPY mark it as one of the funniest and strangest takes on the family comedy.

“Dysfunctional doesn’t begin to do it justice!”

SPY will be screened on Sky 1 this autumn. The 11th and last series of My Family will be shown on BBC One later this year.

It’s the end of an era as My Family has been given the boot by the BBC after over a decade on air.

The show has been on air for eleven years but it has confirmed that its eleventh and final series will air this spring.

The family is spearheaded by parents Ben and Susan Harper, played by the fabulous Robert Lindsay and Zoe Wanamaker, however since the children Nick, Janey and Michael played by Kris Marshall, Daniela Denby-Ashe and Gabriel Thomson respectively, have all left home BBC1 boss Danny Cohen said, “Now they have fled the nest we feel it’s time to make room for new comedies.”

Since its launch in 2000, My Family became one of the BBC’s best loved sitcoms with American creator Fred Barron importing US techniques such as “team-written” episodes.

A source said of the show’s ending, “Getting rid of My Family will allow us to quit while we’re pretty much ahead and free up space in the schedule for new stuff,” while comedy chief Cheryl Taylor added, “Now almost a generation of British children have grown up with the Harper brood, we’re looking to the future with new families and new comedies that we hope will prove equally popular  We look forward to Zoe and Robert continuing to being part of our comedy family in the years to come.”

As the source said, “My Family has done great business but all good things come to an end.”