Pictured: Philomena Cunk on Earth
Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker is returning to Netflix in a double-blast with the newly confirmed Season 6 of the acclaimed anthology series as well as a mockumentary series. In a Netflix and BBC collaboration, Brooker will produce Cunk on Earth starring one of his longest-spanning characters – Philomena Cunk, played by Diane Morgan.
Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones’ indie Broke & Bones company is behind Cunk on Earth, which also produced the Death to 2021 Netflix special, where Morgan also appeared. Brooker is co-writing and exec producing, with Ben Caudell, Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris also writing and Jones and Ali Marlow also exec producing.
Pictured: Annabel Jones and Charlie Brooker
BBC Head of Comedy Tanya Qureshi, who is commissioning editor on the show, commented:
“A huge thank you to Diane and the incredibly talented team at Broke & Bones for braving everything from Ancient Rome to the wilds of Silicon Valley in this fantastic new series.”
Who is Philomena Cunk?
Diane Morgan as Philomena Cunk
Philomena Cunk, played by Diane Morgan, is a fictional character, who is a journalist, investigating anything and everything. She is presented deliberately dim-witted while interviewing real people, making awkward and funny moments as a result. Much like Borat Sagdiyev played by Sacha Baron Cohen.
Cunk first started appearing in Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe on BBC back in 2013 and had her own segments in the series while it ran until 2016. Later, Cunk was given her own series called Cunk on Britain, which ran from 2016 to 2018. Cunk also made brief appearances in Cunk & Other Humans on 2019 and in a Covid special of Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe in 2020.
The character also featured (to some degree) in Brooker’s annual recaps for Netflix titled “Death to”.
Besides Morgan, Cunk on Earth will have appearances by such stars as Kumail Nanjiani (Eternals, Obi-Wan Kenobi), Lisa Kudrow (Friends), Hugh Grant (Love Actually), Leslie Jones (Ghostbusters), Tracey Ullman (The Tracey Ullman Show) and Samson Kayo (Our Flag Means Death).
What will Cunk on Earth be about?
Here’s the official description of Netflix’s Cunk on Earth aka what will Philomena Cunk be investigating this time:
“From virtually nothing to virtual reality, Cunk will comically tell the story of our greatest inventions such as the wheel, the Mona Lisa and nuclear power. Along the way, she will ask experts hard-hitting questions about humanity’s progress, as well as standing near impressive old ruins, or inside museums.”
Do I need to watch previous Cunk episodes before this one?
No, every episode and appearance made by Cunk can be viewed separately, but they are also a good idea of what to expect from Cunk on Earth when it arrives on Netflix Here’s one episode as an example:
What’s the Netflix release date for Cunk on Earth?
Netflix hasn’t set a release date for Cunk on Earth, but it is likely to arrive on the streamer in either late 2022 or later sometime in 2023.
It’s worth noting that the series will release on the BBC first in the United Kingdom. It will likely come to Netflix down the line at some point but no confirmation as of yet.
