Rev. Series One will be available on DVD from all good retailers and our online Shop, from 21st November 2011.

The DVD is available now for pre-order and is retailing at approximately £12.93.

It’s hell being a vicar…

Meet The Rev. Adam Smallbone. He’s a Church of England Vicar, newly promoted from a sleepy rural parish to the busy, inner-city world of St Saviour’s in Hackney, East London. It’s a world he has no experience of. And it shows. It really shows.

Rev. is an authentic--albeit highly comic--portrait of the life of a modern, inner-city vicar. Heavily researched and supported by anecdotes from a number of working city vicars and church insiders it lifts the lid on how the modern church actually functions, and what life is really like in a dog collar.

Special Features

• Blogs, Rev- Tom Hollander’s Production Diary
• Behind the Scenes/Making of Documentary
• Out-takes
• Deleted scenes
• Photo Gallery
• Commentaries

• Episode Guide: S1
• Episode Guide: S2

• The Rev. General Gallery
• The Rev. Gallery (S1)
• The Rev. Gallery (S2)

• Dan's Media Digest reviews Rev. Episode 1
• Ben Dowell from The Independent talks about S2

Meet The Rev. Adam Smallbone. He’s a Church of England Vicar, newly promoted from a sleepy rural parish to the busy, inner-city world of St Saviour’s in Hackney, East London. It’s a world he has no experience of. And it shows. It really shows.

It is an impossibly difficult job being a good, modern, city vicar. And, equally, it’s a very hard job being married to one. Alex – Adam’s long-suffering wife – does her best to support him, but she’s got her own career as a solicitor to worry about. And she is no one’s idea of a conventional vicar’s wife.

Anybody can and does come into St Saviour’s – and into Adam’s life. From scheming MPs trying to educate their children on the cheap to Colin, a heavy drinking, unemployable lost soul who is Adam’s most devoted parishioner. Then there’s Mick, the local crackhead in need of £20 to visit his ‘dying mother’ in Southend… She’s died three times in the last 12 months. Every day throws up a new moral conflict for our vicar. Everyone always wants something from Adam – all the time. Even his supposedly supportive Lay-reader Nigel, a pedantic careerist with his eye on Adam’s job.

Adam’s door must always be open. From urban sophisticates with ulterior motives to the chronically lonely, the lost, the homeless, the poor and the insane. All are welcome at St Saviour’s and Adam can’t turn any of them away. Even if they’re clearly lying, mad or just very annoying.

In addition to caring for his flock Adam has to worry about the financial burden of running a huge, decaying building – with a smashed stained glass window – and a dwindling congregation. He has to contend with hopeless volunteers, ambitious church rivals, the sinister attentions of the Archdeacon and the romantic attentions of Adoha, a renowned ‘cassock-chaser’ and church regular.

Rev. is an authentic – albeit highly comic – portrait of the life of a modern, inner-city vicar. Heavily researched and supported by anecdotes from a number of working city vicars and church insiders it lifts the lid on how the modern church actually functions, and what life is really like in a dog collar.

According to John Plunkett of the Guardian, Rev. is to return to our screens for a second series on BBC2. He says that Peep Show co-creator Sam Bain is to join as script editor on the sitcom that has been praised by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

No more details are available just yet (including official confirmation from the BBC) and whilst we are reasonably sure that the original cast may be recontracted to appear in Series 2, this is by no means certain!

Plunkett says in the article:

The Archbishop of Canterbury will be pleased. BBC2's Tom Hollander sitcom Rev has been revved up for a second series, with Peep Show co-creator Sam Bain joining the show's backroom team.

The comedy, in which Hollander starred as a hapless inner city vicar, will return in late 2011 with Bain on board as the show's new script editor.

Rev debuted in a 10pm slot with 2.2 million viewers in June last year and came in for some praise from an unlikely TV reviewer – the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams – who said it was "really rather good".

The sitcom finished its six-part run with an audience of about 1.7 million in August.

The second series of the show, which won the South Bank Award for best comedy last year, will also see the addition of writer Fintan Ryan alongside lead writer James Wood and director Peter Cattaneo.

Bain said: "Rev was my favourite new show of 2010, it was a great achievement to carve such a funny show out of such challenging material. I'm excited to be part of the team and contribute my experience of writing about religious extremists and sexually frustrated men."

Kenton Allen, the chief executive of the programme's independent producer Big Talk Productions, added: "It's hugely flattering that Sam Bain is joining our amazing team on Rev.

"Sam will bring his inimitable wit and wisdom in equal measure. We're thrilled that Rev has managed to capture the attentions and talents of one of the nicest, most in-demand comedy writers in the business."

The original (Guardian) article is here

Although the BBC\Big Talk Productions hit comedy show Rev. (starring Tom Hollander, Olivia Colman and Lucy) failed to make it to the shortlist of the National Television Awards, Rev. has won the comedy award at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards for 2011.

Tom Hollander received the award on behalf of the show, which will be televised on 25th January 2011 on the UK's Sky Arts HD channel at 9pm.

TV site Broadcast Now said:

The awards, hosted by Melvyn Bragg, will have their first broadcast on Sky Arts at 9pm when viewers will also see Dame Judi Dench pick up the Dorchester Outstanding Achievement award for her 50-year career.

In the comedy category Big Talk Production’s Rev, which aired last year on BBC2, beat off competition from BBC4’s Getting On and online series Mid-Morning Matters with Alan Partridge.

Congratulations to all of team Rev.!

This article first published on the Big Talk website here

The following video clip follows Tom Hollander on the first day of shooting Rev.

Rev - Lucy plays Ellie Pattman

As the ambitious, and very attractive, headteacher of St Saviour's primary school, Ellie spends more time with Adam than she would like. Formidable and dynamic, she runs rings around Adam, who secretly fancies her.

If anyone were to tempt him to break one of the 10 commandments it would be Ellie. However, the warmest emotion his clumsy attempts at flirtation tend to elicit from her is pity – she'd much rather talk to his wife than Adam, as the pair share a similar cynicism and dry wit.

Lucy Liemann stars as the object of Martin Clunes's desire in the BBC's remake of the classic series Reggie Perrin. Other television work includes Moving Wallpaper, Agatha Christie's Poirot and The IT Crowd.

Her film credits include Are You Ready For Love?, Senseless and Mindflesh. She featured in The Bourne Ultimatum and has recently completed the feature comedy Huge, directed by her Moving Wallpaper co-star Ben Miller, due for release later this year.

Starring:

• Tom Hollander as Adam
• Olivia Colman as Alex
• Steve Evets as Colin
• Simon McBurney as Archdeacon
• Lucy Liemann as Ellie
• Ellen Thomas as Adoha
• Hugh Bonneville as Roland Wise
• Alexander Armstrong as Patrick Yam
• Colin Salmon as Leon
• Darren Boyd as Darren Betts

Created by:

• Tom Hollander and James Wood

Writers:

• James Wood
• Jonathan Harvey

Director:

• Peter Cattaneo

Producers:

• Kenton Allen
• Hannah Pescod

Executive Producer:

• Matthew Justice