Frankie Boyle's New World Order
Frankie Boyle's New World Order is a British comedy television programme created, written and presented by Frankie Boyle. Premiering in 2017 on BBC Two, it followed his BBC iPlayer-exclusive "Autopsy" shows. After a few minutes of stand-up, he makes two statements and discusses them with his guests. Boyle summarises each debate in a short monologue to camera. The programme finishes with Boyle sitting against the desk delivering a final longer monologue to camera.
| Frankie Boyle's New World Order | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Also known as | New World Order |
| Genre | Satire Talk show |
| Created by | Frankie Boyle |
| Written by | Frankie Boyle |
| Directed by | Barbara Wiltshere |
| Presented by | Frankie Boyle |
| Starring | Sara Pascoe Miles Jupp Katherine Ryan Mona Chalabi Kiri Pritchard-McLean Sophie Duker Jamali Maddix |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 6 |
| No. of episodes | 41 (6 specials + 5 clip show episodes) |
| Production | |
| Producers | Tom Baker, Christopher Barbour |
| Running time | 30 minutes (Election special 40 minutes, Review of the year specials 45 minutes) |
| Production company | Zeppotron |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC Two |
| Original release | 8 June 2017 – 27 December 2022 |
Throughout its six series, regular guests included Sara Pascoe, Katherine Ryan, Mona Chalabi, Miles Jupp, Sophie Duker and Kiri Pritchard-McLean. The show also had annual specials that review news of the year. The show was cancelled in 2023.[1]
Production
Following on from his BBC iPlayer-exclusive "Autopsy" shows, New World Order airs as prime time TV on BBC Two. It follows a very similar structure to Boyle's "Autopsy"; instead of the studio audience voting in agreement or disagreement with the thesis, however, Boyle summarises the debate in a short monologue to camera. The show premiered on 8 June 2017.[2]
The show returned for a review of the year on 29 December 2017 as Frankie Boyle's 2017 New World Order.[3] The second series of seven episodes started on 18 May 2018. The data journalist Mona Chalabi became a regular in this series.[4] Another end-of-year review show, Frankie Boyle's 2018 New World Order, was broadcast on 27 December 2018.[5] A third series began on 29 March 2019. Ryan was not in this series, having left the show.[6] An end-of-year review show, Frankie Boyle's 2019 New World Order, was broadcast on 30 December 2019. A fourth series that debuted on 3 September 2020 was followed by a 2020 review show on 1 January 2021. In September 2021, Boyle announced that the show would return for a fifth series the following month, recorded in Glasgow.[7]
Boyle spoke about the writing and filming process for series six in July 2022. He said that he would workshop material for the series in the Glee Club, Glasgow from July to the recording—this includes the closing monologues, co-authored by Charlie Skelton. He planned around 40 "warm-up shows" to practice jokes. Boyle said: "there's often a bit at the start where there's three big jokes that lead you in", to "try and get [the audience] on board and create some confidence with them".[8]
Boyle announced in March 2023 that the BBC had cancelled the series, saying that this was "not surprising in the current climate, I suppose".[9] A writer for Chortle commented that the BBC was potentially shifting prioritisation away from panel shows and towards scripted comedy, and that New World Order's viewership had declined over time. However, the writer and The Independent's Louis Chilton connected it to criticisms that the BBC was avoiding content that was critical of the current government.[1][10]
Episode list
Series 1 (2017)
As with the Autopsy shows, Sara Pascoe and Katherine Ryan were regulars for the first series.
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 June 2017[fn 1] | Sara Pascoe and Miles Jupp[fn 2] | Lucy Prebble and Nish Kumar | "The Political System Hates Us" |
| "The Media Is A Huge Obstacle To Meaningful Democracy" | ||||
| 2 | 16 June 2017 | Sara Pascoe and Katherine Ryan | Rob Delaney and Mona Chalabi | "Theresa May Has Been Given A Strong Mandate To Fuck Off" |
| "Donald Trump Will Save The World" | ||||
| 3 | 30 June 2017 | Benjamin Zephaniah and Dane Baptiste | "Hope Is Dead" | |
| "Brexit Will Be Christmas For Racists" | ||||
| 4 | 14 July 2017 | Romesh Ranganathan and Desiree Burch | "We Are All About To Disappear in a Ball of Nuclear Light" | |
| "Our 'Lives' Are Being Ruined By Technology" |
Special (2017)
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 29 December 2017 | Sara Pascoe and Katherine Ryan | Miles Jupp and Mona Chalabi | "2017 Is The Year No One Will Look Back on Fondly, Because We'll All Be Dead" |
Series 2 (2018)
The series returned with Boyle, Pascoe and Ryan joined by the data journalist Mona Chalabi for the first half of the series. For the second half, Miles Jupp took over as a regular in place of Ryan. Chalabi was absent from the second half of the series.
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 May 2018 | Sara Pascoe, Katherine Ryan and Mona Chalabi | David Baddiel and Joe Lycett | "In 4 Years' Time, Labour Will Lose Britain's Last Ever General Election" |
| "We Have 12 Hours Left To Abolish The Monarchy" | ||||
| 2 | 25 May 2018 | Akala and Ahir Shah | "Britain Is Entering A Golden Age of Racism" | |
| "Donald Trump Will Be The World's First Crowdfunded Assassination" | ||||
| 3 | 1 June 2018 | Holly Walsh and Jack Carroll | "The Tory Party Will Put A Dying Britain Out of Its Misery" | |
| "All Social Media Will Achieve Is To Cause The Aliens Who Find Our Remains To Hate Us" | ||||
| 4 | 8 June 2018 | Sara Pascoe and Miles Jupp | Doug Stanhope and Richard Osman | "Humanity Doesn't Deserve The Mercy of an Apocalypse" |
| "Everyone Older Than Me Can Fuck Off" | ||||
| 5 | 15 June 2018 | Romesh Ranganathan and Desiree Burch | "Elites Aren't All Bad... Is One of the Things You'll Soon Learn in a Re-Education Camp" | |
| "The Final Weeks of Life on Earth Will Seem More Like 1000 Years" | ||||
| 6 | 22 June 2018 | Roisin Conaty and Lucy Prebble | "Democracies Hate Voters" | |
| "Science Won't Save Us" | ||||
| 7 | 29 June 2018 | Unseen & Best Bits (series 2 compilation episode) | ||
Special (2018)
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 27 December 2018 | Miles Jupp and Mona Chalabi[fn 3] | Angela Barnes and Jamali Maddix | "2018 – The Year When Aretha Franklin Had A Better Year Than You" |
Series 3 (2019)
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29 March 2019[fn 4] | Sara Pascoe[fn 5] | Lucy Prebble, Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Jason Williamson | "Brexit. Something something. The EU something something. Probably." |
| 2 | 4 April 2019 | Richard Osman, Desiree Burch and Afua Hirsch | "Artificial Intelligence Will Solve All Our Problems, Starting with the Problem of Being Alive" | |
| "Free Speech Is Vital. Without It I Would Struggle To Describe My Hate Crimes to My Children" | ||||
| 3 | 11 April 2019 | Sara Pascoe and Miles Jupp | Kiri Pritchard-McLean, Jen Brister and George Monbiot | "It's Time Patriarchy Stepped Back into The Shadows of Power, And Pretended To Give Some Authority To Women" |
| "Why Worry About Climate Change When The Earth Is A Pointless Ball of Shit?" | ||||
| 4 | 18 April 2019 | Kiri Pritchard-McLean, Grace Blakeley and Eshaan Akbar | "At Last, We Are Finally Approaching The End of the First Stage of the Preliminary Phase of the Opening Chapter of Part One of Brexit" | |
| "Luckily We Have Reared Children So Awful They're Getting The Planet They Deserve" | ||||
| 5 | 25 April 2019 | Rob Delaney, Sara Barron and Sophie Duker | "Donald Trump Is Just A Human Being Who Wants To Be Loved, By His Daughter" | |
| "Like Every Other Panel Show, Let's Discuss Guy Debord's Theory Of 'The Spectacle'" | ||||
| 6 | 2 May 2019 | Jon Richardson, Fern Brady and Kerry Godliman | "Let's Look Forward to a Summer of Blue Skies, Riots And Domestic Terror" | |
| "War! Heugh. What Is It Good For? Growing The Economy And Being Torn Apart at a Sub-Atomic Level" | ||||
| 7 | 9 May 2019 | Unseen & Best Bits (series 3 compilation episode) | ||
Special (2019)
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 30 December 2019 | Sara Pascoe and Miles Jupp | Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Jamali Maddix | "2019: A Year In Which Epstein Didn't Kill Himself" |
Series 4 (2020)
This series was filmed without a studio audience, with a revised socially-distanced set due to COVID-19.
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 September 2020 | Sara Pascoe, Miles Jupp and Sophie Duker | Guz Khan and Sara Barron | "Covid 19 Will Eventually Bring The People Of Britain Closer Together, In Our Mass Graves" |
| "The US Election Will Decide Who Rules The Burning Embers Of America From A Morphine Drip In A Concrete Silo" | ||||
| 2 | 10 September 2020 | Sara Pascoe, Sophie Duker and Jamali Maddix | Dane Baptiste and Jen Brister | "Black Lives Matter Glosses Over The Complexities Of A World Where We All Need To Come Together And Kill Whitey" |
| "We're Living Through Whatever Is The Opposite Of A Golden Age Of Political Talent" | ||||
| 3 | 17 September 2020 | Sara Pascoe, Miles Jupp and Kiri Pritchard-McLean | Dr Isabel Millar | "Ghislaine Maxwell Didn't Kill Herself" |
| ""Reality" Is "Dead"" | ||||
| 4 | 24 September 2020 | Miles Jupp, Sophie Duker and Jamali Maddix | Victoria Coren Mitchell and Romesh Ranganathan | "We Have No Need To Fear Technology, Is Something You'll Be Convinced Of By Drugged Nano-Porridge In A Robot Concentration Camp" |
| "Now That It's Too Late To Stop It, Should We Just Stop Talking About The Climate Apocalypse? Discuss." | ||||
| 5 | 1 October 2020 | Miles Jupp, Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Jamali Maddix | Grace Blakeley and Blindboy Boatclub | "The Union Is Over And England Will Be Fine On Its Own, Unless There's A Massive Recession For Some Reason" |
| "Capitalism Is Dead" | ||||
| 6 | 8 October 2020 | Sara Pascoe, Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Sophie Duker | Armando Iannucci and Rosie Jones | "The US Election Is The System Trying To Explain To Us That It Doesn't Work" |
| "The Future Looks Promising, So Long As We All Manage To Transcend Matter In The Next Three Months" | ||||
| 7 | 15 October 2020 | Unseen & Best Bits (series 4 compilation episode) | ||
Special (2020/2021)
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 January 2021 | Miles Jupp, Sophie Duker & Kiri Pritchard-McLean [11] | Holly Walsh, Rob Delaney and Ken Cheng | "The Funniest Thing To Happen In 2020 Was The Prince Andrew Interview In 2019" |
Series 5 (2021)
Filmed in front of a live studio audience in Glasgow.
| Episode | Original broadcast | Regulars | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 October 2021 | Miles Jupp, Sophie Duker and Kiri Pritchard-McLean | Erika Ehler and Rob Delaney | "We're Living in the Blooper Reel at the End of British History" |
| "Billionaires Deserve to Die on Mars" | ||||
| 2 | 1 November 2021 | Miles Jupp, Sophie Duker and Ahir Shah | Susie McCabe and Lowkey | "Imagine Voting for Keir Starmer" |
| "Being in the Taliban Looks Like a Laugh" | ||||
| 3 | 8 November 2021 | Miles Jupp, Desiree Burch and Kiri Pritchard-McLean | George Monbiot, Katie Gallogly-Swan and Rosie Jones | "The Earth Is Dead and We've Killed It" |
| 4 | 15 November 2021 | Miles Jupp, Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Jamali Maddix | Susie McCabe and Olga Koch | "Soon, the Shithole That Is the UK Will Break Up into Four Separate Shitholes" |
| "Technology: Helping Humanity to Record Its Death Spasms as It Goes Hurtling Into the Abyss" | ||||
| 5 | 22 November 2021 | Miles Jupp, Sophie Duker and Ahir Shah | Munya Chawawa and Sara Barron | "Thank God We're Entering the Final 50 Years of Boris Johnson's Government" |
| "Prince Andrew Isn't Even the Worst Royal" | ||||
| 6 | 29 November 2021 | Miles Jupp, Sophie Duker and Kiri Pritchard-McLean | Rob Delaney | "Let's Sit Back and Enjoy the Death of the United States" |
| "Soon COVID, the Economy, and Climate Will All Be Sorted Out by the Destruction of Humanity in an All-Consuming Apocalypse" | ||||
| 7 | 29 December 2021 | Unseen & Best Bits (series 5 compilation episode) | ||
Special (2021)
| Episode | Original broadcast | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 29 December 2021 | Sophie Duker, Miles Jupp, Jamali Maddix and Susie McCabe | "On the Bright Side, We're Only Seven Variants from Communism" |
Series 6 (2022)
Filmed in front of a live studio audience in Glasgow.
| Episode | Original broadcast | Guests | Propositions discussed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 October 2022 | Sophie Duker, Josie Long, Susie McCabe and Richard Osman | "Whoever is Prime Minister When This Show Goes Out Should Resign" | |
| "The Monarchy Has No Place in a Decent Society, Which is Why It Works So Well in Britain" | ||||
| 2 | 1 November 2022 | Sophie Duker, Rosie Jones, Jamali Maddix and Ahir Shah | "If It's Any Consolation, the Sun Will Explode in 4 Billion Years and None of This Will Matter" | |
| "Nothing Can Stop Labour Winning the Next Election, and the Name of That Nothing is Keir Starmer" | ||||
| 3 | 8 November 2022 | Alex Brooker, Desiree Burch, Nish Kumar and Laura Smyth | "Britain? More Like Shitain." | |
| "Billionaires Are Just Like the Rest of Us - Living on a Planet Fucked by Billionaires" | ||||
| 4 | 15 November 2022 | Rob Delaney, Jamali Maddix, Susie McCabe and Kiri Pritchard-McLean | "I Can Imagine a Future Where Humanity Solves the Climate Crisis Because I Am on Powerful Medication" | |
| "To America's Leaders After the Next Election I Say This: 中国是一个美好的国家" | ||||
| 5 | 22 November 2022 | Desiree Burch, Sophie Duker, Josie Long and Thanyia Moore | "Now is the Time to Protest in the Streets, Because They're Warmer Than Your Houses" | |
| "If You're Feeling Cold This Winter Don't Worry, You'll Soon Be Nice and Warm in a Crematorium Oven" | ||||
| 6 | 29 November 2022 | Christopher Macarthur-Boyd, Jamali Maddix, Susie McCabe and Kiri Pritchard-McLean | "England Will Win the World Cup and the Subsequent Wave of Nationalism Will Usher in 40 Years of Fascism" | |
| "We're Fucked" | ||||
| 7 | 6 December 2022 | Unseen & Best Bits (series 6 compilation episode) | ||
Special (2022)
| Episode | Original broadcast | Guests | Propositions discussed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 27 December 2022 | Sophie Duker, Miles Jupp, Jamali Maddix and Kiri Pritchard-McLean | "2022 Was a Great Year, for Anyone Who Got 2022 in the 'World's Shittest Year' Sweepstake" |
Most appearances
Up to and including 27 December 2022 (excludes the 5 "Unseen & Best Bits" episodes).
|
24 appearances
22 appearances
15 appearances
11 appearances
8 appearances
|
6 appearances
4 appearances
3 appearances
|
Reception
The show was nominated for the best Entertainment Performance BAFTA in 2020.[12]
The Independent's Louis Chilton commented on the show's legacy upon its cancellation, which he deemed "a profound disappointment". Chilton said that it was "one of the few shows on TV that was sincerely and unapologetically left-wing", with criticisms of Keir Starmer and tacit agreement for revolution, though centrist guests could also air their views. Chilton praised the show's "diverse roster of rotating guests", which included guest lineups that were entirely female or non-white, and gave opportunities to lesser-known comedians.[1]
Footnotes
- Election special, 40 minutes
- Katherine Ryan was unable to attend the recording of this episode.
- Sara Pascoe was unable to attend the recording of this episode.
- This episode was broadcast on Friday rather than series three's regular Thursday slot. It is possible that this episode was intended as a Brexit special as 29 March 2019 was originally announced as the date of the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union.
- Miles Jupp was unable to attend the recording of these episodes due to starring in the play The Life I Lead.
References
- Stolworthy, Jacob (23 March 2023). "Frankie Boyle says he isn't 'surprised' as BBC axes New World Order". independent.co.uk. Archived from the original on 25 March 2023.
- Dowell, Ben (25 May 2017). "Frankie Boyle' new BBC political comedy to air right after UK Election 2017 polls close". Radio Times. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- "Frankie Boyle's 2017 New World Order comes to BBC Two – Media Centre". BBC.
- "BBC Two – Frankie Boyle's New World Order". BBC.
- Butler, Mark (27 December 2018). "Frankie Boyle's New World Order: guests, what to expect and when it's on BBC Two tonight". i. Retrieved 27 December 2018.
- Edwards, Eve (26 March 2019). "Frankie Boyle New World Order 2019". Reality Titbit. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
- Richardson, Jay (23 September 2021). "Frankie Boyle's New World Order returning for Series 5". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
- Richardson, Jay (14 September 2022). "Frankie Boyle's New World Order back but Monarchy special in doubt". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
- Frankie Boyle [@frankieboyle] (23 March 2023). "Ah well, there's to be no more New World Order on the BBC. Not surprising in the current climate, I suppose. Just very grateful to have had six series of working with the funniest people in the business" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 25 March 2023 – via Twitter.
- "Frankie Boyle's New World Order axed". Chortle. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
- "Frankie Boyle's New World Order Frankie Boyle's 2020 New World Order". British Comedy Guide.
- "BAFTA TV Awards 2020 winners LIVE - full list of winners as they're announced". Radio Times. Retrieved 14 February 2021.