Philomena Cunk To Return to Netflix in New Special ‘Cunk’s Quest for Meaning’

Netflix is set to welcome back Philomena Cunk for another groundbreaking documentary (comedy) following Cunk on Earth, which landed on the streamer back in 2023. Cunk’s Quest for Meaning will be debuting on Netflix globally outside the United Kingdom and Ireland as a Netflix Original at some point in 2024. 

Described as a “one-off extended special,” the 75-minute documentary will see Cunk travel to America and other locations to look into the meaning of life by covering aspects of science, arts, and philosophy, looking into complex subjects like “Quantum Physics, Existentialism, Nihilism, and Hedonism” with all the seriousness and detail you’d have come to expect if you caught Cunk on Earth.

Philomena Cunk is a fictional character that’s been played by Diane Morgan for over a decade, with the character most commonly associated with the Charlie Brooker comedy show Newswipe. The character has had multiple series so far, the most recent being Cunk on Earth, which landed on Netflix globally (excluding the UK, where it aired on the BBC) in January 2023 and became one of our hidden gem picks for the year.

According to the BBC press release, only Netflix outside of the United Kingdom will receive the new special in 2024, but that doesn’t mean that Netflix UK won’t get it at some point. Instead of being a Netflix Original title, it’ll likely land in a similar fashion to Cunk on Earth that was licensed to Netflix UK six months after it dropped as an Original globally.

Cunk said the following on the new special:

“To be honest I thought we could cover the meaning of life in a 30-minute episode, but the producers said we might need a bit longer and that I could probably go to America if we did a special. I’m very excited to be going to America for free.”

The BBC also released a first-look image for the new special:

The show is executive produced by Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones of Broke & Bones, who work with Netflix extensively under an overall deal. Brooker will serve as the main writer for the series. This is just one title on the way from the duo with their slate also including the upcoming seventh season of their groundbreaking show, Black Mirror. In addition, they’ve just recently wrapped on the new limited series Toxic Town, which is expected to release in 2024.

While waiting for Cunk’s Quest for Meaning, you can watch more Diane Morgan on Netflix via the three seasons of After Life, created by and starring Ricky Gervais. Fans of The Sandman will also catch her in season 1 of that show, where she voiced Gryphon in the animated episode.

For more on what’s coming soon to Netflix – keep it locked here on What’s on Netflix. Are you looking forward to Cunk’s Quest for Meaning? Let us know in the comments down below.