Central pilots Facebook prank show

Comedy Central UK has greenlit a pilot for a comedy reality show fronted by Facebook prankster Ben Phillips.

Ben Phillips

Ben Phillips Blows Up is being produced by Channel X and will air on the main Comedy Central channel in the UK in the spring.

The 1×22’ pilot will feature Phillips and his circle of friends playing a prank on his long-suffering mate Elliott, only for it to backfire.

The development deal with Comedy Central includes the rights to Phillips’ back-catalogue of content, which will be housed alongside new original content in the CC Shorts online hub.

The channel said the commission is part of a broader push to increase the volume of non-scripted original UK comedy in its schedule. It follows commissions including a second season of Drunk History from Tiger Aspect and Avalon’s Russell Howard & Mum: USA Road Trip.