Lorraine Bracco Joins New BBC Three Comedy JERK

Tim Renkow (Bobby and Harriet Get Married) and Lorraine Bracco (Sopranos, Goodfellas) star as Tim and his loud, proud mother, in BBC Three comedy series, Jerk.

Tim has cerebral palsy, which means that people judge him and his crumpled tissue of a body. But usually they judge him wrongly. Because what they don't realise is that inside that severely disabled, fragile body is a bit of an asshole.

Tim knows he makes people uncomfortable - he does it on purpose. He knows his cerebral palsy means he can get away with saying what others can't. But that's his problem: time spent taking aim at life's easier targets means Tim takes his eye off its bigger prizes: the job, the girl and the visa.

Like FAKING IT as a refugee, making a disabled nemesis and offending his new colleagues at a greeting cards company, Tim becomes the master of his own downfall and it's left to his friends Ruth, his indifferent care worker, played by Sharon Rooney (My Mad Fat Diary), and Idris, played by Rob Madin (BBC Comedy Feeds), to get him out of all the disastrous situations he gets himself into.

Tim Renkow says: "I loved working with such a talented group of people - they even managed to make this reprobate look presentable. There was such a great atmosphere on set. It was like a family, except everyone really liked each other."

Lorraine Bracco adds: "It was such a pleasure getting to work with the uniquely hilarious talent that is Tim Renkow. It was a treasure to experience Tim's world with him. I felt lucky."

Shane Allen, Controller, BBC Comedy Commissioning: "Jerk is by turns jaw dropping and hilarious. Tim is the ultimate kamikaze comedy REBEL who takes risks and no prisoners. The entire ensemble on the show are knockout. Strap in for one of the most distinctive and outrageous sitcoms on air this year..."

Alex Smith, Roughcut's Head of Comedy (and Jerk Exec Producer) said: "Roughcut is thrilled to unleash Tim onto the world. This is a brave and mischievous show with a unique lead; a young man who's his own worst enemy and knows because of his cerebral palsy he can get away with almost anything. Tim Renkow is a fearless standup, who thrives on pushing the line of uncomfortable jokes. The transition from his stand-up talent to sitcom was hugely satisfying for Roughcut to collaborate on."

Jerk will be available as a boxset on BBC Three and will also air on BBC One. It is a 4 x 30' comedy series written by Shaun Pye, Tim Renkow and Stu Richards and a co-production between Roughcut TV and Primal Media. The series is Executive Produced by Ash Atalla and Alex Smith for Roughcut TV and Mat Steiner for Primal Media. It is produced by Roughcut's Rebecca Murrell and directed by Tom McKay. The Commissioning Editor for BBC Comedy is Alex Moody. The series piloted as A Brief History Of Tim in BBC Three's 2016 Comedy Feeds, showcasing emerging new talent.

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