Greg Davies Says Comedy Series Should Get Mandatory Two Season Orders

If Greg Davies was running TV, new comedy shows would get a two-season order.

The comedian and writer, who fronts fronts the hit series Taskmaster in the UK and writes and stars in sitcom The Cleaner for the BBC, was asked what he would change about the business during a the closing session of the Berlinale Series Market, and responded he would like to see new comedies given more time to hit their stride, adding that all-time classics such as Seinfeld needed multiple seasons to establish themselves.

“I think that people should commission things for at least two seasons,” he said during the panel, which was about the international world of TV comedy.

Davies’ notes were delivered with a characteristic dose of humor, but his point about giving comedy time to grow struck a chord. An industry audience gave his call for double-season orders for comedy a spontaneous round of applause.

“The amount of classic comedies that only found themselves in season two [is significant], he said. “If you go to America, and you look at Seinfeld, one of the greatest sitcoms of all time, it wasn’t until season four that people realized how great that was. That is what I would change: It should be a mandatory two seasons.”

During the conversation, which was hosted by Deadline’s Jesse Whittock, Davies said he is currently working on the scripts for season three of The Cleaner. He adapted the German show for UK audiences and also stars in the popular series, which is on the BBC.

The Studio Hamburg UK comedy follows a crime scene cleaner, who interacts with a single character in each episode, similar to the radio chamber plays from many years back in the UK. It has featured an array of guest stars including Helena Bonham Carter, Asim Chaudry and Alex Lawther among many others. Davies said he started off writing episodes of The Cleaner with a specific guest star in mind, but has changed his approach.

“I would write thinking of a certain star and then if they said ‘No,’ or if they were too busy would be horribly disappointed,” he said. “Less and less we’re thinking of specific people now. We’re just writing the character and hoping someone good comes to it afterwards.”

Davies also said he’d like to see comedy on TV moving beyond whatever is the latest trend, creating space for new ideas. “Often you’ll see a certain type of comedy being favored and I think there’s room for all types of comedy and all genres of comedy,” he added. “Allowing original creators to bring forward an original idea is the way forward.”