Douglas Is Cancelled is a newsroom comedy drama written by Doctor Who and Sherlock showrunner Steven Moffat, which is coming to ITVX and ITV1 in the UK. It stars Downton Abbey’s Hugh Bonneville as a respected newsreader Douglas Bellowes who is on the brink of being cancelled despite being at the top of his game. But when he makes an ill-advised comment at a wedding, it seems his privileged life is about to come crashing down around him.
Former Doctor Who star Karen Gillan plays Douglas’ younger, sharper and more savvy co-anchor Madeline, who he may or may not be able to trust. "Working again with a director like Ben (Palmer), on Steven’s acidly witty script, with an ensemble of this calibre, is as daunting as it is exciting," says Hugh, while Karen adds, "To torment a man, let alone a man named Douglas, for four episodes — armed with the writing of Steven Moffat — is a great privilege that I’m going to enjoy every minute of."
Here’s everything you need to know about the series Douglas Is Cancelled…
Douglas Is Cancelled release date
Douglas Is Cancelled is a four-part series that will premiere on ITV1 and ITVX in 2024. When we hear of a release date, we will of course let you know on here.
Douglas is Cancelled plot
Douglas (Hugh Bonneville) is a middle-aged, and greying, news anchor who is living his best life as a national treasure. But then he makes an ill-advised joke at his cousin’s wedding and a fellow guest threatens to expose him on social media. What follows is an online storm and Douglas’ actions are scrutinized and blown out of all proportion. How will he escape the controversy, and will he fall prey to "cancel cultur"’? And can he really rely on his media-aware co-presenter Madeline (Karen Gillan) to help him out?
Douglas is Cancelled cast — Hugh Bonneville as newsreader Douglas
Leading the cast as Douglas is Hugh Bonneville, who is best known for his roles as Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham, in Downton Abbey and Henry Brown in the Paddington films. He’s also starred in I Came By, The Gold, W1A and Tipping the Velvet. He played Roald Dahl in the film To Olivia and narrates the series The Greatest Auction.
Karen Gillan as Madeline
In Douglas Is Cancelled, Karen Gillan plays Douglas’ savvy news co-host Madeline.
Karen has previously played the Doctor’s companion Amy Pond in Doctor Who, during the Steven Moffat era, and stars as Nebula in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers: Endgame and Thor: Love and Thunder. Karen has also starred in Selfie, Jumanji, The Call of the Wild and Late Bloomers.
Ben Miles as Toby
Ben Miles plays a character called Toby. We'll add some more information on him when we find out. He’s currently starring in Napoleon and has also starred in The Crown, The Capture, Andor, Dracula, Coupling and Hijack.
Who else is starring in Douglas Is Cancelled?
The series also stars Alex Kingston (A Discovery of Witches, Doctor Who), Nick Mohammed (Ted Lasso, The Martian) and Simon Russell Beale (Thor: Love and Thunder). We'll add more cast as they're announced.
Is there a trailer?
No not yet but when ITV release a Douglas Is Cancelled trailer, we’ll update this page.
Behind the scenes and more
Douglas Is Cancelled is being filmed in London in early 2024. The show has been created by famous screenwriter and executive producer Steven Moffat (Doctor Who, Dracula, Sherlock) and is produced by leading independent production company Hartswood Films (Sherlock, The Time Traveler’s Wife, Dracula, Coupling) in association with SkyShowtime and BBC Studios Distribution.
Steven Moffat will executive produce the series alongside his wife and fellow executive producer Sue Vertue (The Devil’s Hour, Inside Man, The Time Traveler’s Wife, Sherlock) on behalf of Hartswood Films. Ben Palmer (Urban Myths, Breeders, The Inbetweeners) is directing the series which is produced by Lawrence Till (Silent Witness, The Young Offenders, Shameless).
Steven Moffat says: "I just sat down and wrote this — didn’t even tell anyone what I was doing. And now it’s all happening, thanks to the amazing Sue Vertue (renowned tv producer and in a rare moment of weakness, my wife). I can’t quite believe we’ve managed to get the mighty Hugh Bonneville involved as Douglas and that we’ve lured my old friend Karen Gillan back from Hollywood, to play Madeline. And like that’s not enough, we’ve got Ben Miles, Alex Kingston, Nick Mohammed and Simon Russell Beale. It’s the kind of cast that makes you terrified about stepping into the room."
