Wikipedia

Queen of Oz

Queen of Oz is a British television sitcom developed by and starring Catherine Tate as the scandalous Queen Georgiana, a disgraced member of a fictional British royal family sent to rule Australia.[1] The first series, consisting of six episodes, co-written by Tate and Jeff Gutheim, produced by Michele Bennett and directed by Christiaan Van Vuuren, premiered on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on 16 June 2023,[2][3][4] and in Australia on ABC TV and ABC iview on 21 June 2023.

Queen of Oz
Genre
Developed by
Written by
Story byBorga Dorter
Directed byChristiaan Van Vuuren
Starring
Country of origin
  • United Kingdom
  • Australia
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producers
  • Catherine Tate
  • Jeff Gutheim
  • Helen Bowden
  • Ben Caudell
  • Borga Dorter
  • Jordan Barker
  • Jason Stephens
  • Robert Taylor
ProducerMichele Bennett
Production locationAustralia
Running time26–29 minutes
Production companyLingo Pictures
Original release
NetworkBBC One
Release16 June (2023-06-16) –
21 July 2023 (2023-07-21)

Plot

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The sitcom follows Princess Georgiana (Catherine Tate), the black sheep of a fictional British royal family who has spent her spoilt life partying and being plastered all over the tabloids. In the wake of her latest scandal, her mother, the Queen, takes the unprecedented step of abdicating her Australian throne in favour of her daughter, hoping that some real responsibilities will make her come to her senses.[1]

Cast

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Main

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Recurring

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  • Rodger Corser as Teddy Anderson: A zookeeper and philanthropist related to a Danish prince, who meets Georgiana when she visits his zoo and later gets betrothed to her.
  • Daniel Lapaine as Frederick: Georgiana's prince brother and the heir to the British throne, who has a hostile relationship with his sister and, despite being loved by the public, is a sanctimonious and pompous man, only eager to please his parents.[10]
  • David Roberts as Richard Steele: A media magnate who likes to put celebrities in the spotlight by covering and creating endless scandals on Steele News.[9]
  • Lynette Curran as Sylvia: Teddy's mother, who is quite batty and gets scared whenever someone enters a room, and has a therapy dog.

The series also has numerous cameos by radio and television presenters including Carol Vorderman, Greg James, Zoe Ball, Patrick Kielty, Emma Alberici, Dave Hughes, Amanda Keller, Brendan Jones and Sarah Macdonald.[11] Series director Christiaan Van Vuuren makes a cameo appearance as tech billionaire John Frusctaine in the fifth episode.

Episodes

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No.Title [12]Directed byWritten byOriginal air date [12]UK viewers
(millions)
1"There's a New Queen in Town"Christiaan Van VuurenCatherine Tate & Jeff Gutheim16 June 2023 (2023-06-16)1.40[13]
After her latest public scandal, Princess Georgiana is sent off to Australia to become their new monarch, along with her new staff, Bernard, Zoe, Matthew, Weiwei and Anabel.
2"Ginger Eyebrows"Christiaan Van VuurenCatherine Tate & Jeff Gutheim23 June 2023 (2023-06-23)0.85[14]
Georgie's excitement about appearing on a new Australian $5 note is ruined by a very unflattering portrait. She tries to get the bank to change it, but it would cost millions, so it remains her portrait. Meanwhile, she attempts to charm media magnate Richard Steele (David Roberts) by inviting him to join her on the hunt, after a spot of dinner, alongside his mother.
3"Royal Tinder"Christiaan Van VuurenCatherine Tate & Jeff Gutheim30 June 2023 (2023-06-30)0.71[15]
Prince Frederick (Daniel Lapaine), the heir apparent to the British throne and Georgie's golden child brother, arrives unexpectedly from London with some distressing news from their parents: Georgie needs to get married. After visiting an animal sanctuary, she meets the owner, who turns out to be related to a Danish prince, and decides if she has to marry someone, it should be him.
4"They Used to Oink at Me"Christiaan Van VuurenCatherine Tate, Jeff Gutheim, Zoe Norton Lodge & Aschlin Ditta7 July 2023 (2023-07-07)0.39[16]
After meeting Teddy's batty old mother Sylvia, Georgie stumbles into her former school bully Jessica, and decides to organise a dinner for her so that she can revel in Jessica's life struggles since they last spoke. Georgie ruins the dinner by reigniting their feud and causing Jessica to go into labour. When Jessica later threatens to leak the dinner to the press, Georgie apologises, and Jessica relents that life hasn't been easy for her either.
5"Emu Meat"Christiaan Van VuurenCatherine Tate & Jeff Gutheim14 July 2023 (2023-07-14)N/A
All the talk at Macquarie House is about the upcoming wedding, and Georgie wants to get away from it all, so Marc is forced to take her to his family, who are hosting a surprise party for Marc's cousin. Back at the house, Matthew (whose real name was revealed to be Craig), Zoe, Anabel, Weiwei and Bernard realise Georgie is gone, so they also have a party with drinking games (in which Bernard would not partake). The Queen also promised to talk to Sylvia, but Anabel leaves the party and recounts her place in the line of succession, constantly forgetting names. Later, Georgie falls asleep in with Bernard, after a long long day.
6"I'm Not Marrying a Gorm"Christiaan Van VuurenCatherine Tate & Jeff Gutheim21 July 2023 (2023-07-21)N/A
On the day of the royal wedding, the Australian public is ecstatic to see two royals married, and later on, Georgie gets Teddy to change his middle name from Gorm. The team are working around the clock to make the wedding special, and when the time comes, the horses meant to be carrying the carriage get herpes, and so Georgie is taken in an SUV, to be walked down the aisle by her annoying brother Freddie, much to Georgie's dismay. however, before she says I do, Teddy collapses, and later dies due to a Tahini Wrap prepared by Weiwei he took a bite of, which contains sesame seeds, and no epinephrine of his epi-pen, partially due to Georgie's "self-medicating". However, when Georgie thinks she has truly hit rock bottom, the public support her and the team, and they celebrate the good PR, but "think about Teddy" at the same time.

Production

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Conception and development

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Catherine Tate first began developing the idea for the sitcom in 2017, after being approached by Canadian producer Borga Dorter.[17][18] Initially, it was supposed to be set in Canada and was unsuccessfully pitched to local broadcasters as Queen of Canada.[19] Tate then decided to move the setting to Australia after touring there with The Catherine Tate Show in late 2018.[17]

 
Tate co-wrote the series with American screenwriter Jeff Gutheim

Queen of Oz was one of a number of commissions announced at the BBC's annual Edinburgh International Television Festival panel on 25 August 2022.[2][3][20] It was reported that the six-part sitcom, written by Tate and Jeff Gutheim and directed by Christiaan Van Vuuren, will be produced by the Australian production company Lingo Pictures and filmed at the end of 2022.[21] Producer Michele Bennett described Queen of Oz as a "fabulously witty series" and a "riotous take on royalty in Australia".[1]

Filming

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Swifts mansion, where much of the series was filmed

The production began in Australia in September 2022.[22] In October, the talent agency MCTV specified that the filming was taking place in Sydney.[23] Much of the series was filmed on location at Swifts, a 19th century mansion in Darling Point, which doubled as the fictional Macquarie House, Queen Georgiana's official Australian residence.[24] Some scenes of the second episode were shot in the middle of the Australian bush.[25]

At the end of November, several members of the production team made social media posts with the phrase "That's a wrap", indicating the end of filming.[26][27] Additional scenes, including the street interview-style footage, were shot in February 2023, with post-production eventually ending in April.[22]

Release

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In the UK, all six episodes were released on BBC iPlayer on 16 June 2023, with the first episode airing on BBC One later that day.[4][28] On 7 July, the fourth episode was moved to BBC Two because of Wimbledon.[16] In Australia, the series premiered on ABC TV and ABC iview on 21 June 2023.[24]

Reception

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Critical response

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In her three-star review, Lucy Mangan of The Guardian said that Queen of Oz is "a solidly written" and "well-constructed" series with "lots of callbacks within each episode, and nicely drawn relationships among the main and peripheral characters".[29] Although she didn't find the show "spectacularly funny", she concluded that it is "extraordinarily watchable" and praised the performances of Tate, Rob Collins and Robert Coleby. She described the main character as "truly and refreshingly monstrous" and called her a middle-aged version of Lauren Cooper crossed with Nan and Princess Margaret.[29]

A four-star review from Kylie Northover of The Sydney Morning Herald also praised Tate's performance, while describing it as a "mostly silly fun" show that "occasionally veers into darker comedy while still feeling, at times, old-fashioned".[24] Ben Pobjie of the same newspaper found that Queen of Oz is "really a damn good show", describing Tate's acting as "brilliant" and claiming that she and the show's co-writers have "crafted the scripts superbly" resulting in what is "surely the best new local comedy of the year".[30]

In a less favourable, one-star review from The Daily Telegraph, Anita Singh called the series "desperate and lazy", criticising Tate and her central character for not being "remotely likeable" and favouring "far funnier" supporting performances, especially from Niky Wardley.[31] In a three-star review, the Daily Mail's Sarah Vine said "there is some good stuff here, not least the supporting cast of characters, which are funny and well-written", and proclaimed that Tate "remains one of the few TV comedians who still dares to push people's buttons".[14]

Accolades

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Year Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
2023 The Comedy.co.uk Awards Best New TV Sitcom Queen of Oz Won [32]
Australian Screen Editors Ellie Awards The Solid State Award for Best Editing in Comedy Mathew Evans (Episode: "I'm Not Marrying a Gorm") Nominated [33]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Brand new Catherine Tate comedy Queen Of Oz commissioned for BBC One and BBC iPlayer". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  2. ^ a b McArdell, Ian (26 August 2022). "Queen of Oz – BBC announce new Catherine Tate comedy". CultBox. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  3. ^ a b Moss, Molly. "Doctor Who star Catherine Tate to front new BBC comedy Queen of Oz". Radio Times. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Queen of Oz". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  5. ^ "Niky Wardley – Creative Artists Management". cam.co.uk. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  6. ^ Tan, Derek (28 October 2022). "Robert Coleby is the Queen's private secretary". BrisVO. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  7. ^ "William McKenna". Creative Representation. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  8. ^ a b Queen of Oz (TV Series 2023– ) - Full Cast & Crew - IMDb, retrieved 5 January 2023
  9. ^ a b "BBC One - Queen of Oz, Series 1, Episode 1". BBC. 16 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  10. ^ "Daniel Lapaine". Independent Talent. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  11. ^ Knox, David (15 June 2023). "Emma Alberici returning to ABC screens". TV Tonight. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  12. ^ a b "Queen of OZ - British Comedy Guide Episodes". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  13. ^ Price, Stephen (23 June 2023). "Queen Of Oz enjoys noble launch". Broadcast. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  14. ^ a b Bennett, Steve. "Queen Of Oz loses a third of its viewers : News 2023 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  15. ^ Kahn, Ellie. "Riches launches with 1.3m". Broadcast. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  16. ^ a b Bennett, Steve. "Queen Of Oz has now lost two-thirds of its viewers : News 2023 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  17. ^ a b Yossman, K. J. (6 June 2023). "'Doctor Who' Star Catherine Tate Swaps the Tardis for Tiaras as Disgraced Royal in New BBC Comedy 'Queen of Oz'". Variety. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  18. ^ "Catherine Tate's Doctor Who return delayed her sitcom Queen of Oz". Radio Times. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  19. ^ "Catherine Tate on Queen of Oz - "She's spoilt, entitled and deeply unpleasant which of course makes her a great character to play"". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  20. ^ Goldbart, Max (25 August 2022). "BBC Greenlights Catherine Tate Comedy 'Queen Of Oz', 'Mayflies' Starring Martin Compston, Show From BAFTA Winners Paul Coleman and Sian Gibson & Season Four Of 'Man Like Mobeen' – Edinburgh TV Festival". Deadline. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  21. ^ Brown, Brigid. "Catherine Tate Is Set to Star in 'Queen of Oz' Comedy Series | Anglophenia | BBC America". www.bbcamerica.com. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  22. ^ a b "BBC Radio 5 Live - Patrick Kielty, Catherine Tate, Marcus Brigstocke and Dino Fetscher". BBC. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
  23. ^ MCTV (5 October 2022). "Queen of Oz". MCTV Talent Agency. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  24. ^ a b c Northover, Kylie (15 June 2023). "Australia, meet your (probably hungover) new queen". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
  25. ^ "'It must be awful to be constantly scrutinised' : Interviews 2023 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  26. ^ "Lemac Film & Digital". Facebook. 23 November 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2022. That's a wrap on "Queen of Oz", a co-production between the ABC and BBC, the comedy series that has been shooting in Sydney
  27. ^ "TRC Lighting". Facebook. 22 November 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2022. That's a Wrap on 'Queen of Oz'! 👑 We had a great time with a great bunch of people!!
  28. ^ "Meet the cast of Queen of Oz". Radio Times. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  29. ^ a b Mangan, Lucy (16 June 2023). "Queen of Oz review – Catherine Tate is truly monstrous in her new BBC sitcom". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
  30. ^ "Australia, are you being served by a Britcom? Finally, thankfully, yes". The Sydney Morning Herald. 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  31. ^ Singh, Anita (16 June 2023). "Queen of Oz, BBC One, review: whisper it – it's time to stop pretending Catherine Tate is funny". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  32. ^ "Comedy.co.uk Awards 2023 shortlist". British Comedy Guide. 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  33. ^ "Australian Screen Editors Ellie Awards". 21 May 2023. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
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