Bad Education (TV series)
A sitcom about the worst teacher in British education.
Bad Education is a British television sitcom set in a dysfunctional secondary school, broadcast on BBC Three from August 2012 to October 2014. The series was written by Jack Whitehall, who starred as Alfie Wickers, described as 'the worst teacher ever to grace the British education system'. It was adapted into a 2015 film and revived for a fourth series in January 2023, followed by a fifth and final series in January 2024.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Sitcom
- Creator
- Jack Whitehall
- Writer
- Jack Whitehall; Freddy Syborn
- Director
- Elliot Hegarty; Freddy Syborn
- Composer
- Vince Pope
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Language
- English
- Series
- 5
Facts from the source article.
Premise
The sitcom centres on Class K, a group of misfits at the fictional Abbey Grove School, a failing secondary school in Watford or Tring, Hertfordshire, and their incompetent teachers. In the first three series, the focus is on Alfred 'Alfie' Wickers, a posh, newly graduated history teacher who repeatedly tries to impress his crush, fellow teacher Rosie Gulliver, by appearing 'cool'—coaching the football team, organising a weapons amnesty, and fielding a candidate for school elections. He relies on Class K for help, though they are often unsupportive. The class includes shy Joe, wannabe hard man Mitchell, paraplegic Rem Dogg, sexually promiscuous Chantelle, camp Stephen, intelligent Jing, hot-tempered Cleopatra, and school bully Frank. Alfie also contends with eccentric headmaster Shaquille 'Simon' Fraser and a series of deputy heads: authoritarian Isobel Pickwell, cruel Professor Celia 'Pro Green' Green, and his own father Martin Wickers. The three series span a single academic year. In series 4, former pupils Stephen and Mitchell return to teach a new Class K under headteacher Bernadette Hoburn, with Fraser now working in the canteen. The new pupils include Usma, Blessing, Inchez, Harrison, Warren, and Jinx.
Production
The first series began airing on 14 August 2012, and at launch broke BBC Three's record for highest viewing figure for a first episode of a comedy, previously held by Horne & Corden. A second series was announced on 23 August 2012 and premiered on BBC iPlayer on 27 August 2013, a week before its television air date of 3 September, as part of BBC Three's plan to premiere all scripted comedy online. The first episode of the second series received 1.5 million requests before its television airing. A Christmas special aired on 17 December 2013. A pilot for a U.S. adaptation, titled An American Education, was ordered by ABC with Whitehall set to reprise his role; filming began in Los Angeles in January 2014, but ABC passed on the pilot on 22 May 2014. The third series aired from 16 September to 21 October 2014. In late 2014, Whitehall confirmed the show would not receive a fourth series. On 27 February 2015, a feature film was confirmed; filming took place in Cornwall, with most of the main cast reprising their roles. The Bad Education Movie was released on 21 August 2015 in the UK. On 11 May 2022, the BBC confirmed a reunion special to celebrate the show's tenth anniversary, broadcast on 15 December 2022, followed by a new six-part series written by a team of breakthrough writers.
Cast and characters
Alfred Prufrock 'Alfie' Wickers, played by Jack Whitehall, is a newly qualified history teacher of Class K who struggles for authority and has a crush on fellow teacher Rosie Gulliver (Sarah Solemani), a socially-conscious Biology teacher. He is good friends with headteacher Shaquille Banter 'Simon' Fraser (Mathew Horne), an eccentric and incompetent headteacher who invests school money in unprofitable schemes. Alfie clashes with deputy heads: strict disciplinarian Isobel Pickwell (Michelle Gomez), who fakes her death; Professor Celia 'Pro Green' Green (Samantha Spiro), who begins a relationship with Alfie's father Martin Wickers (Harry Enfield); and Martin himself, who replaces Green as deputy head after they marry. Class K pupils include Chantelle Parsons (Nikki Runeckles), a sexually-suggestive pupil; Jing Hua (Kae Alexander), the most intelligent pupil who helps expose Pickwell's fraudulent expenses; Joe Poulter (Ethan Lawrence), Alfie's closest ally; Mitchell Harper (Charlie Wernham), the tough guy who shares a banterous friendship with Rem Dogg; and others such as Rem Dogg, Frank, Cleopatra, and Stephen.
Reception
Rotten Tomatoes gave Bad Education a 71% rating, with a critic noting the script is patchy and the story too silly but enough laughs to make it a hit with the target audience. The Guardian called the series funny and occasionally in creditably poor taste, but accused Whitehall of phoning it in. The revival series received a mixed reception: Radio Times praised the decision to say goodbye to Whitehall's character and highlighted the strength of Williams and Wernham as a double-act, the writing, and the reinvention of Horne's character, while The Guardian's Jack Seale gave the series two stars, calling it juvenile and a pointless revival, but slightly better than the original.
More in Television Series by Tiger Aspect Productions
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced