Dave shares first look at Red Dwarf special The Promised Land

Red Dwarf The Promised Land

The iconic sci-fi series is returning!

Red Dwarf fans rejoice, because there's a brand new feature-length special coming to Dave: The Promised Land.

The Boys from the Dwarf are making a triumphant return to our screens this year, and we can't wait to see it.

Craig Charles, Chris Barrie, Robert Llewellyn and Danny John-Jules are all reprising their beloved roles as we head back into space.

It seems like The Cat (Danny John-Jules) might play a big role in the new episode, if the official synopsis is anything to go by.

The synopsis reads, "Three million years ago… David Lister, a vending machine repairman, was sentenced to eighteen months in suspended animation for smuggling his pregnant cat aboard the mining ship Red Dwarf."

It adds, "While Lister remained in stasis, a radiation leak killed the rest of the crew. Safely sealed in the hold, the cats evolved into humanoid form. The cats now roam deep space in a fleet of their own…"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkVOYnVRJMs

 

"The special will see the posse meet three cat clerics (Tom Bennett, Mandeep Dhillon, Lucy Pearman) who worship Lister as their God.

"Lister vows to help them as they’re being hunted by Rodon, the ruthless feral cat leader (Ray Fearon) who has vowed to wipe out all cats who worship anyone but him."

A 20 second teaser has given us an idea of what to expect from the compelling special.

Whilst it's a short clip we can see explosions, new characters and plenty of drama, including Lister saying, "We have to stick together".

The Red Dwarf Twitter account also shared a first look at Rimmer (Chris Barrie) in The Promised Land.

It joked, "You vs the hologram she told you not to worry about."

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Red Dwarf first aired in 1988 and ran for eight series. It developed a dedicated fan following along the way.

After that it disappeared for a while before coming back for special three-part series in 2009 called Back to Earth.

Its last series aired on Dave in 2017, so we're sure fans will be delighted to see it back after a three year break.

The special was filmed at Pinewood Studios recently, with the special expected to air on Dave "soon".

Red Dwarf: The Promised Land will air on Dave in 2020.

Lucy Buglass
Senior Staff Writer

Lucy joined the WhatToWatch.com team in 2021, where she writes series guides for must-watch programmes, reviews and the latest TV news. Originally from Northumberland, she graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a degree in Film Studies and moved to London to begin a career writing about entertainment.


She is a Rotten Tomatoes approved film critic and has a huge passion for cinema. She especially loves horror, thriller and anything crime-related. Her favourite TV programmes include Inside No 9, American Horror Story, Stranger Things and Black Mirror but she is also partial to a quiz show or a bit of Say Yes to the Dress