Need something fresh – and potentially exciting – to watch on the telly? The First Team is a brand-new sitcom coming to BBC Two in late May. It tracks the off-pitch (mis)adventures of three young ballers and their struggles with the other leading figures at their club. For a start, there’s mercurial Italian gaffer Cesare, an eccentric American chairman and resident hard-man Petey Brooks. Oh, the ineffectual coach Chris Booth isn’t helping things either.
The First Team: Who’s In It?
Taking centre stage are Shaquille Ali-Yebuah, Jack McMullen and Jake Short as the three players. The First Team will also star Paulo Sassenelli (Cesare), Will Arnett (the American chairman), Theo Barklem Biggs (Petey Brooks) and Chris Geere (Chris Booth).
But that’s not all the talent on show.
The cast also includes Tamla Kari (The Inbetweeners, The Musketeers); Vadhir Derbez (How To Be A Latin Lover); Phil Wang (8 Out of 10 Cats, Taskmaster); Neil Fitzmaurice (Peep Show, Mount Pleasant); and Yetunde Oduwole (Enterprice).
Who’s behind The First Team?
The First Team is an original series that will comprise six 30-minute episodes – to begin with. It is produced by Fudge Park, while award-winning pairing Iain Morris and Damon Beesley take the writing credits. It’s the duo’s first series as co-writers since achieving a smash hit with The Inbetweeners – both the telly series and the feature fillums.
Who else is involved? Well, the series’ executive producers are Emmy Award®-winning producer Tom Werner (Roseanne, That ‘70s Show) and Caroline Leddy (Inbetweeners, Derry Girls). Sam Pinnell (Flowers, Derry Girls, Motherland) is the producer.
If it matters to you, Controller of BBC Comedy Shane Allen and Controller of BBC Two Patrick Holland commissioned this. Gregor Sharp is the BBC Commissioning Editor.
“You haven’t explained it well enough and I want to know more!”
Fine. Here’s the official trailer (if you can’t see it above)…
