New photography is today released for Mackenzie Crook’s upcoming BBC comedy ‘Small Prophets’, starring Crook and Sir Michael Palin.
The new series was filmed in and around Urmston and will launch on iPlayer and BBC Two in early 2026.
The six-part series will feature a host of comedy stars including Mackenzie Crook, Sir Michael Palin, Pearce Quigley, Lauren Patel, Sophie Willan, Jon Pointing and Paul Kaye, and these new images reveal the weird and wonderful new world Crook has conjured up.
Produced by BAFTA-winning Gill Isles Small Prophets was filmed and set in and around Manchester and incorporates visually stunning animation elements throughout as a story of the magical and the mundane unfolds in a suburban cul-de-sac.
We meet eccentric Michael Sleep whose darling partner Clea disappeared seven years ago. Since then, Sleep has lived a very ordinary life. He eats Shreddies, works in a DIY store, visits his dad Brian , and hopes for Clea to return. One day Brian shares an old recipe involving rainwater, horse manure and more than a little alchemy. With recipe in hand, Sleep sets out (albeit with some scepticism) to create Homunculi – magical prophesying spirits that can predict the future.
Sleep gets help from young work mate Kacey (Lauren Patel), an unlikely friendship that blossoms partly, but not wholly, through their mutual dislike of store manager Gordon . Their friendship adds to the frustration and intrigue of his nosy neighbours who are obsessed with trying to find out what the hell is going on in the garden shed. Meanwhile, Roy Clea’s brother has fallen on hard times. In desperation he has come back into Michael’s life to claim back the family home, convinced that his sister will never return.
