Why Little Britain will (probably) never return to TV

Matt Lucas has all but ruled out a comeback for Little Britain.

The iconic show, which ran on BBC Three and BBC One between 2003 and 2007, starred Matt and fellow comedian David Walliams in a number of regular sketches.

And while Matt says there are some characters he’d love to reprise, he thinks its unlikely the show would work in 2017.

“One of the reasons [Little Britain] was so successful is because it was a reflection of its time,” Matt explained. “I don’t think we would get away with Little Britain today.

“In some ways, we are more conservative now but in other ways, we are more liberal.”

The comic told ITV’s Lorraine: “If you did [Little Britain] now the way we did it then with jokes about transvestites… Well, we have a different appreciation now of the struggles of the transgender community.

“If you did Little Britain now the same way we did it then, we’d get a lot of complaints!”

However there was one glimmer of hope for fans of the sketch show, with Matt concluding of a possible return: “Never say never.”

Earlier this year, David Walliams echoed Matt’s thoughts on Little Britain’s humour in 2017.

Reflecting on the hit series, which last aired a decade ago now, David continued: “We wrote it together and it started as a pilot on BBC Radio 4. It became an instant success when it went onto television.

“I don’t think we’d get away with things we did on the show now.”

But the current Britain’s Got Talent judge said he’d love to work with Matt again: “I wouldn’t be where I am today without him.

“He moved to America and it made it more complicated but I’m sure we will one day.”