Philomena Cunk, the deadpan mockumentary presenter played by Diane Morgan, is returning to television to examine the history of film in a new three-part series, Cunk on Cinema. The Guardian reports that the character, created by Morgan and Charlie Brooker, first appeared 13 years ago as a segment on Brooker's Weekly Wipe and has since grown into one of the most recognisable figures on British television. The new series follows earlier outings in which she covered Britain, the world and life itself.
In the interview, published to mark the launch, the pair discussed the new show alongside a wide-ranging conversation covering artificial intelligence, robot pets and unexpected celebrity encounters.
Why it matters
Cunk on Cinema arrives at a moment when both of its creators are in demand. Brooker is preparing a new Netflix detective series called Blackmere, which he describes as being in the spirit of Airplane! and The Naked Gun. He told The Guardian the title is a play on how Americans pronounce Black Mirror, and that he thought it would suit a police officer's name. He also admitted the name will probably irritate him, and that the decision was entirely his own.
Morgan, meanwhile, has drawn strong reviews for her sitcom Ann Droid, in which she plays a robotic care assistant. She also recently took part in five episodes of Prime Video's Last One Laughing. According to The Guardian, she noted that people assumed Cunk would be good preparation for the show because the character never laughs, but that in reality she does break during interviews and those moments are edited out.
A new target for an old character
The series turns Cunk's confused gaze on cinema, a subject the character treats as both humanity's finest achievement and a strange world of its own. The Guardian's interview describes her as looking as miserable and bewildered as ever while taking on her largest subject to date. The new run includes encounters with figures from the film industry, with Benedict Cumberbatch among those answering her questions. A trailer for the series has been released by the BBC, and Netflix is also bringing the character back for six new episodes after a two-year gap, according to Comic Book Resources.
The Guardian interview captures the dynamic between the two creators, with Morgan needling Brooker throughout. At one point she asks him to picture a blue horse, raising the condition aphantasia, in which a person cannot form mental images. Brooker, who wrote Black Mirror, said he does not literally see images in his mind and that it feels more as though his brain is describing things to him. Morgan replied that her own mental images are vivid and detailed. Brooker suggested that different people's brains operate in different ways, comparing them to different computer operating systems.
The conversation also touched on artificial intelligence. The Guardian's headline quotes Morgan suggesting that a smart speaker be taken into the garden and destroyed with a shoe. The interview also references a comparison between AI and mad cow disease, though the surrounding discussion is not detailed in the available material.
Robots, pets and a dinner with Kanye West
Brooker recounted an unusual meeting with Kanye West, which he said took place a couple of years ago over dinner. He told The Guardian the occasion was strange and left him concerned about the rapper's wellbeing. Brooker said West had requested the meeting after enjoying an episode of Black Mirror, specifically Metalhead, which features a robot dog and the actor Maxine Peake. Morgan responded by questioning why anyone would choose a robotic dog over a rescued animal, and Brooker answered that a machine would not die, explaining that he avoids keeping pets in London because he becomes upset in advance at the thought of losing them.
Morgan also described a recent viral moment in which she spoke with Jennifer Lopez at the Stella McCartney show in Paris. She said the conversation centred on Brett Goldstein, with whom Lopez had just made a film, and that she mentioned having done stand-up with him in the past. Brooker teased her over the exchange, asking whether that was the best she could manage.
The interview also covered the pair's early working lives, with both discussing their worst jobs, though the specifics are not included in the available reporting. Morgan's character has been described elsewhere as earnest and uneducated, and the new series places her opposite the film industry in the same format.
Cunk on Cinema is a three-part series. Blackmere, Brooker's detective comedy, is due on Netflix early next year.
