‘Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping’ Streaming on YouTube
Mitchell & Webb will help those who help themselves to YouTube with 'Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping.'
Ever since it was announced that the smashing success of Ludwig had spawned a return of Mitchell & Webb for a brand-new Channel 4 series, Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping, we have been waiting for it to land American distribution and cross the pond. It seemed inevitable, considering that their previous sketch comedy series, That Mitchell & Webb Look, which aired on BBC America, was a cult fan favorite and part of why Ludwig did so well on BritBox in the U.S. when it debuted. That wait is over. However, there’s a catch. Mitchell & Webb are not going to BBC America, PBS, BritBox, or even Paramount+. (Pity Ghosts, y’all.)
Mitchell & Webb are instead doing synergistic harmonizing to achieve frictionless access with Webb meets web. In English, Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping has decided to skip an official American distributor completely in favor of streaming Season 1 episodes globally via its “official global destination” on YouTube. Season 2 will follow, releasing episodes simultaneously with the Channel 4 airings.
David Mitchell said in the press release: “I have spoken movingly on multiple occasions about how the internet is a huge mistake for humanity, so this is obviously all extremely depressing for me, and I’d be grateful for some privacy at this difficult time.” Robert Webb, on the other hand, seemed absolutely giddy. “I’ve always said that you can’t beat a damn good official global destination, and I’m so thrilled to have one of my own. This is a global destination with legs. And maybe heart. Certainly spleen and maybe one day a working liver.”
Along with Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping, the “official global YouTube destination” will also debut something that is almost, but not quite, not entirely unlike a television show. This new “original format” will be called Mitchell & Webb Talk About Some Sketches in a Pretend Room. Here is the press release synopsis:
An exclusive companion series in which David Mitchell and Robert Webb revisit, dissect, and discuss their recent sketch series. Produced by Gareth Edwards, their long-standing collaborator, the Pretend Room will explore how new sketches like Sweary Aussies, Bad Therapist, and Middle-Aged Man Island came into being, alongside diversions into geopolitics, a washing machine with a broken heart, and why Heaven might be full of dead wasps.
Here’s the generalized synopsis from Channel 4 for Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping Season 1:
David Mitchell and Robert Webb are returning to Channel 4 next month with a brand-new comedy sketch show, which sees them combine forces with a host of exciting and innovative future stars, marking a bold return to British sketch comedy with an innovative merging of comedy minds across generations.
Season 2 does not yet have a synopsis, either specific or generalized.
David Mitchell, Krystal Evans, Kiell Smith-Bynoe, Lara Ricote, Robert Webb, and Stevie Martin in 'Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping' Season 1 (Channel 4)
Mitchell & Webb’s core ensemble is notably drawn from both sides of the pond. They include U.K. comedians Kiell Smith-Bynoe (Ghosts) and Stevie Martin (Starstruck), Mexican-American comedian Lara Ricote (Guessable), and American Krystal Evans (Scot Squad). All four are credited as writers on the new series along with David Mitchell and Robert Webb.
The first two episodes of Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping Season 1 are out now on YouTube everywhere they weren’t already available to watch.
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You can stream the series premiere right here, or however you watch your YouTube.
