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Dreaming Whilst Black

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Dreaming Whilst Black
GenreComedy
Written byAli Hughes & Adjani Salmon
Directed byKoby Adam, Joelle Mae David & Sebastian Thiel
Starring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producers
  • Adjani Salmon
  • Dhanny Joshi
  • Thomas Stogdon
  • Tanya Qureshi
ProducersNicola A. Gregory
Gina Lyons
Production companies
  • Big Deal Films
  • A24
Original release
NetworkBBC Three

Dreaming Whilst Black (stylised as Dreaming Whilst B\@*k) is a British comedy television series written by and starring Adjani Salmon. Originally a webcast, a television pilot (2021) developed into a series, which was broadcast on BBC Three from 24 July 2023. A second series was commissioned in February 2024.

Synopsis

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Kwabena works in recruitment but dreams of being a filmmaker with his video producer friend from film school Amy, who has just returned from three years in Nigeria.[1]

Amy offers to pass Kwabena's script, Jamaica Road, on to the development team at the production company where she works.

Kwabena's lives with his cousin Maurice and Maurice's wife, Funmi, who is heavily pregnant. The couple are reading up on the latest tips on pregnancy, and researching practices including hypnobirthing.

The first season follows Kwabena's attempts to negotiate the filmmaking sector, his necessary forays into the gig economy, and his developing relationship with Vanessa, a woman he meets by chance at a bus stop.

Amy has her own problems, feeling passed over for promotion and frequently enduring clumsy comments from her colleagues.

Cast

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Episodes

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Series overview
SeriesEpisodesOriginally released
Pilot119 April 2021 (2021-04-19)
1624 July 2023 (2023-07-24)

Pilot (2021)

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TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.K. viewers
(millions)
"Pilot"Sebastian ThielAdjani Salmon & Ali Hughes19 April 2021 (2021-04-19)N/A

Series 1 (2023)

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No.Title [2]Directed byWritten byOriginal air date [2]U.K. viewers
(millions)
1"The Dream"Sebastian ThielAdjani Salmon & Ali Hughes24 July 2023 (2023-07-24)N/A
2"The Reality"Koby AdomAdjani Salmon & Ali Hughes24 July 2023 (2023-07-24)N/A
3"The Friends"Koby AdomAdjani Salmon & Ali Hughes31 July 2023 (2023-07-31)N/A
4"The Birth"Joelle Mae DavidAdjani Salmon & Ali Hughes31 July 2023 (2023-07-31)N/A
5"The Pitch"Joelle Mae DavidAdjani Salmon & Ali Hughes7 August 2023 (2023-08-07)N/A
6"The Premiere"Jermain JulienAdjani Salmon & Ali Hughes7 August 2023 (2023-08-07)N/A

Production

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Development

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The web series of Dreaming Whilst Black began in 2018. A television series pilot aired on BBC Three in 2021, and it was awarded a BAFTA Craft Award for "emerging talent: fiction" in 2022 and the Royal Television Society's 2022 Breakthrough Award.[3] The pilot was directed by Sebastian Thiel with producers for Big Deal Films, including Gina Lyons, Thomas Stogdon, Dhanny Joshi, Nicola Gregory and Salmon.[4]

The full series is co-produced by A24 and Big Deal Films.[3] Co-written by Ali Hughes, producers on the series include Natasha Jatania, Laura Seixas, Max Evans, Chadley Richards and Salmon.[5]

A second series was commissioned in February 2024.[6]

Casting

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The cast includes Demmy Ladipo and Rachel Adedeji from the original pilot.[7] The series cast also includes Babirye Bukilwa, Martina Laird, Roger Griffiths and Jo Martin.[8] In June 2023, Will Hislop, Jessica Hynes, Akemnji Ndifornyen, Isy Suttie, Peter Serafinowicz, Steve Furst, and Ovie Soko were revealed as part of the cast.[9]

Broadcast

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The series was broadcast on BBC Three from 24 July 2023.[10] In the United States, the series was broadcast on Paramount+ from 8 September 2023, and Showtime from 10 September 2023.[11]

Reception

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Critical reception

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The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval score based on 17 reviews.[12]

Michael Hogan in The Daily Telegraph praised the "humour and heart" of the series, which "confidently balances serious points about discrimination, health inequality and history".[13] Dan Einav in The Financial Times noted the satire of the creative industries' "superficial application" of buzz phrases such as "diversity" and "inclusivity" with Salmon a "natural, charming leading man".[14]

Accolades

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The series was nominated in the Best Casting category, and Ashley White was nominated in the Best Editing - Entertainment and Comedy category at the 2023 Royal Television Society Craft & Design Awards.[15]

For his work on the series, Adjani Salmon was shortlisted for the BAFTA Breakthrough Award in November 2023.[16]

In February 2024, the series won at the Broadcast Awards in the International Programme category as well as being nominated for the Best Comedy Programme award.[17] The series was nominated for Best Comedy at the 2024 Broadcasting Press Guild Awards.[18]

In March 2024, the series was nominated for Scripted Comedy and Salmon was nominated in the Male performance in a comedy programme category at the 2024 British Academy Television Awards.[19]

References

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  1. ^ Latif, Leila (21 July 2023). "We don't make up racist jokes': Adjani Salmon on creating TV's hottest new comedy". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Dreaming Whilst Black Episode Guide - British Comedy Guide". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b Whittock, Jesse (27 September 2022). "Dreaming Whilst Black': A24 Boards Full Season Of Adjani Salmon's BBC Three Web Comedy". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  4. ^ "TV | Dreaming Whilst Black". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  5. ^ "Online | Dreaming Whilst Black". Comedy.co.uk. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  6. ^ Goldbart, Max (5 February 2024). "Dreaming Whilst Black' Greenlit For Season 2 By BBC & Showtime". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  7. ^ Cormack, Morgan (24 July 2023). "Dreaming Whilst Black star: 'There's a misconception the show is about race'". Radio Times. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  8. ^ Cormack, Morgan (24 July 2023). "Dreaming Whilst Black review: Comedy so good, you want to savour it". Radio Times. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  9. ^ Yossman, K.J. (27 June 2023). "'Dreaming Whilst Black': BBC, A24 & Big Deal Films Series Adds Jessica Hynes, Akemnji Ndifornyen and More (EXCLUSIVE)". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  10. ^ Vassell, Nicole (24 July 2023). "Dreaming Whilst Black: a satirical comedy so lifelike it practically wrote itself". Independent.co.uk. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  11. ^ Goldbart, Max (2 August 2023). "'Dreaming Whilst Black': Showtime Acquires Buzzy BBC Comedy From Big Deal Films & A24". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
  12. ^ "Dreaming Whilst Black". rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  13. ^ Hogan, Michael (24 July 2023). "Dreaming Whilst Black is a refreshingly nimble take on the black British experience". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  14. ^ Einav, Dan (21 July 2023). "Dreaming Whilst Black TV review — whimsical comedy tackles film industry's relationship with race". The Financial Times. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  15. ^ "RTS CRAFT & DESIGN AWARDS 2023". RTS. 4 December 2023. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  16. ^ Dalton, Ben (30 November 2023). "Bella Ramsey and Adjani Salmon among Bafta Breakthrough line-up". Broadcast Now. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  17. ^ "Black Ops wins at Broadcast Awards 2024". Comedy.co.uk. 9 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
  18. ^ "Broadcasting Press Guild Awards 2024 nominees". Comedy.co.uk. 29 February 2024. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  19. ^ Richardson, Hollie (20 March 2024). "Bafta TV awards 2024 nominations: full list". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
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