This week sees the launch of a new animated comedy series from the makers of Goodness Gracious Me, Kumars and The Office on Channel 4.

Bromwell High will start on Friday 19th August and has been developed by London's Hat Trick productions. It is written by Richard Osman, Richard Pinto and Sharat Sardana (Goodness Gracious Me, The Kumars at No 42).

The series-producer, Anil Gupta, was also the executive producer of the massive comedy The Office and was named the fifth most powerful Asian in British media by AIM.

Bromwell High is set in an under-funded, overcrowded, graffiti-scarred, secondary school in London. It follows the exploits of three exceptionally naughty teenage schoolgirls, one maverick headmaster and a bunch of desperate, underpaid teachers.

Keisha Marie is hefty and cheerfully aggressive with more brawn than brain and a big voice to match her big personality; Latrina is South London's answer to Lolita; and then there's Natella, a brainy born leader who uses her stunning intellect to manipulate both pupils and staff.

The press release states: 'The girls are the last word in streetwise charm - precocious but likeable, with an uncanny knack of undermining all forms of authority and getting away with it.

'The trio are a new breed of young 'laydeez', spending their time snatching credit cards, flirting with the bus conductor and causing havoc as soon as they enter the school gates.'

Executive producers Jimmy Mulville says: "Just after the birth of my first son Joe, the writers Richard, Richard and Sharat sent me the very first script of Bromwell High. I decided it was one of the funniest scripts I had ever read. Six years later I watched the final version of the first episode, and it was a great feeling. When you watch the show you really empathise with the characters and at times forget that it is animation."

Caroline Leddy, Head of Comedy at Channel 4, says: “Bromwell High is ridiculously funny, deliciously filthy and absolutely cutting edge. It's a riot."


MAIN CHARACTERS

Keisha Marie – voiced by Gina Yashere
More brawn than brain. Big voice and big personality - Keisha is the hefty and cheerfully aggressive member of the trio. She shoots first and asks irrelevant questions later. She suffers from Attention Deficit Disorder and is always on the look out for new adventures; preferably ones involving a high quotient of anti-establishment activity and physical violence.

Latrina – voiced by Nina Conti
South London’s answer to Lolita.
She’s got a bod for sex and a head for more sex. Latrina is essentially poor white trash blessed with the kind of blond bombshell good looks that drive men wild. She finds the notion of the seduction very simple and that of contraception very hard.

Natella – voiced by Jo Wyatt
If Einstein had been a pint-sized schoolgirl…
Natella is the youngest and most intelligent of thirteen siblings. In any normal school Natella would certainly be top of the class - so at Bromwell High (happy home of the underachiever) - her cerebral prowess is a nothing short of astonishing.

Iqbal – voiced by Simon Greenall
Headmaster/Levantine gangster whose exact origins are unknown. Gregarious and larger than life, Iqbal is not a conventional teacher in any sense. He won the school in a poker game and is still getting to grips with his responsibilities.