Friends star David Schwimmer cast in new C4 comedy Morning Has Broken
The American actor will take on the role of a US TV executive in the comedy about an ailing breakfast television show fronted by a monstrous character played by Julia Davis
Friends star David Schwimmer is to join the cast of the new Julia Davis and Nick Mohammed sitcom, Morning Has Broken.
Scwimmer will play a US TV executive in the Channel 4 comedy – details of which were first revealed by RadioTimes.com in July 2014 – alongside Davis who takes on the role of Gail Sinclair, the ‘Queen of Daytime,’ and star of ‘Good Morning… with Gail Sinclair.’
Schwimmer's character is an American producer brought in to try and save the floundering show with Davis’s co-writer Nick Mohammed playing one of Gail’s fellow breakfast anchors.
The actor said: ""I've been a massive fan of Julia's for years, and I'm thrilled to be able to finally work with her and Nick on this fantastic comedy."
"After eight glorious years of high ratings and winning awards, things begin to go wrong for Sinclair when the programme begins to lose viewers and tensions break out within the production team," said C4.
Co-writer and star of Morning Has Broken, Julia Davis, said she is “looking forward to experimenting with friends whose work I love.”
Rachel Springett, commissioning editor for comedy at Channel 4, added: “Julia is undoubtedly one of our most talented comedic writers and actresses and it’s a testament to the quality of her writing that she can attract such a big star. We are thrilled to have David Schwimmer star alongside Julia in this exciting new series for the channel.”
The six-part comedy was formally announced by the broadcaster at an event last night alongside confirmation that the Greg Davies comedy Man Down is getting a third series.
Man Down star Roisin Conaty’s self-penned sitcom GameFace has also been commissioned for a full run by E4.
In it Conaty plays Marcella, "a character with a distinct comic voice and original world view, who despite being ever optimistic can’t quite get her life on track", according to the broadcaster.
The pilot episode, which aired in April 2014, introduced us to Marcella on the morning of her birthday: a day that ends at her old school delivering a speech about her highly successful (and entirely made up) career.
The six-part series will follow Marcella as she tries to navigate the changing landscape of her thirties all the while reflecting the absurdity and inanity of modern life.
Conaty said: “Writing narrative comedy has always been a dream of mine and I was so pleased with the response to the GameFace pilot. Now it's got a full series I'm giddy about having the chance to explore the world and characters in more detail.”
