Mysteries will be solved and questions answered when viewers enter Vic Reeves’ Ministry Of Curious Stuff – the brand new CBBC comedy sketch show which will be broadcast in the new year.
Written by Vic Reeves and Steve Burge (Shooting Stars), the programme is set in The Ministry of Curious Stuff – a fantastical depository of information, and occasional misinformation, run by Vic and his inquisitive and extraordinary team of researchers.
Each episode sees the team answering three questions posed by CBBC viewers, launching a fact-finding mission full of sketches, songs, animations and Vic’s unique flights of fancy. Will dinosaurs ever come back? Can you dance in space? Can you marry a house? Only Vic and his team have the answers…
Vic is joined by his able team of researchers - Captain Lengthwidth (Dan Renton Skinner – Angelos from Shooting Stars), Mr Frazernagle (Jack Carroll), Mr Lovett (Tyger Drew-Honey – Jake from Outnumbered), Miss Tea Party (Beth Rylance) and Miss Wannamaker (Rhyanna Alexander Davis) – to answer viewers’ questions and to prove that sometimes the voyage of discovery is just as fascinating as the final answer.
Jamie Rea, executive producer for CBBC, said: “Vic is one of Britain’s most admired and influential comedians, renowned for his surreal sense of humour and comic imagination, and we’ve been really fortunate that he has been so involved in the writing and development of the series.
“It’s a really big production, with a lavish set, and lots of comedy sketches, songs and animations of the kind usually associated with comedy for adults. It’s another show that proves that CBBC doesn’t patronize its audience – and the result is a programme that will hopefully help you discover some amazing facts whilst making you laugh out loud, whatever your age.”
The Ministry Of Curious Stuff is a CBBC in-house production and is executive produced by Jamie Rea and series produced by Rob Hyde.
CB2
Interview with Vic Reeves
Comedian Vic Reeves tells us more about the Ministry, the fascinating facts he’s uncovered, and why he decided to get involved in a children’s programme…
Vic, how would you describe the Ministry of Curious Stuff?
The Ministry of Curious Stuff is the place to go if you have an odd or weird question that you need an answer for, such as ‘Do flying monkey soldiers exist?’, ‘Are twins magic?’, or ‘Can you dance on the moon?’. Dead important questions like that. We do our best to find the answer. It’s a very curious place and there are lots of weird characters joining us along the way.
Tell us about your team at the Ministry…
Yes, I have a full team of researchers helping me answer questions in The Ministry. My good friend and colleague Captain Lengthwidth assists me. Mr Frazernagle, Miss Teaparty, Miss Wannamaker and Mr Lovett are my researchers and they know every curious fact in the whole world. Very knowledgeable people indeed.
What’s the most curious thing you’ve found out in the series?
We had some brilliant facts, like the fact you can drink coffee made from weasel poo. And there was a monkey soldier who once fought in the war. He was even awarded medals.
What made you get involved in a children’s show?
The glory!
What was your favourite programme when you were growing up?
It was definitely Land Of The Giants. Captain Lengthwidth liked Rentaghost!
What do you think your children will think of the programme?
They love the songs especially. My daughters have already been singing the Stinky Town song which appears in one of the episodes.
If you could tell us one thing that would make us want to watch the programme, what would it be?
You can see me dressed as a Kung Fu Monkey Warrior and as a girl who catches fairies!
Curious facts from The Ministry Of Curious Stuff
The Ministry of Curious Stuff team answers the questions CBBC viewers have always wanted to know the answer to – and come up with some fascinatingly curious (and sometimes stinky) facts, such as:
- In 2008, zookeepers at Chessington Zoo had to apologise for the smell coming from the gorilla enclosure after feeding them sprouts
- Uromancy is a method of predicting the future by looking at the bubbles in wee
- In Asia, kumalak is a method of fortune telling by looking at forty one different bits of sheep poo
- If you were to trump in a spacesuit, it would stay with you until you took it off
- Civet coffee is made from beans that have been passed by civets – a weasel-like creature
- Baby elephants often eat their own mother’s poo
- Inuits in Greenland enjoy eating rotten seabird meat that has been buried under a rock for months
- Casu Marzu is a cheese infested with maggots that is enjoyed in Sardinia
