The BBC has decided to air a previously axed Christmas special of Diane Morgan's comedy Mandy. The episode, titled The Mandy Who Knew Too Much, was pulled from the BBC's Christmas schedule last year, allegedly for Trump-related reasons.
The episode was supposed to air late on December 22 at 10.25pm but was swiftly taken off the air. The BBC reportedly wanted to update parts of the episode before its release, and due to the time needed to make these changes, the episode was pushed back to 2026. The BBC has reiterated that the episode will air this Christmas.
Episode description and delay
A description of the episode, which was filmed in January 2025, read: “Mandy rarely dabbles in global diplomacy, especially over Christmas when it’s so cold out and there’s good telly on, but when she does, you can bet that she makes a real difference to the balance of power in the world.”
Diane Morgan claimed during an interview with The Independent that she couldn’t say much about the episode being pulled, other than that the decision was made “because of world events.” “I think they decided it was for the right reasons,” she said. “It was a complete accident. I’m never one of these comedians that tries to be topical – it’s just not what I do. It’s completely out of keeping with me.”
Fan speculation and content
As a result, fans speculated online that Donald Trump’s intended lawsuit against the BBC around this time may have caused the disruption. However, some reports indicated that Trump was not referenced in the episode but the comedy seemingly did reference Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The sitcom allegedly featured graphic scenes of violence involving a body double of Putin and a cheese wire.
Diane Morgan's new comedy
Last month, Diane returned to the BBC with new comedy Ann Droid, starring alongside The Royle Family's Sue Johnston and Paul Ready (Motherland) who plays her son Michael. It sees her play a social humanoid robot who forms an unlikely friendship with a widow. The first episode pulled in four million viewers in its first seven days, with a second series reported to be in development.
