Absolutely Fabulous cast reunite for first time since 2016 (2024)

The stars of classic British sitcom Absolutely Fabulous will reunite for the first time since 2016 for a one-off special.

Stars Jennifer Saunders, Dame Joanna Lumley, Julia Sawalha and Jane Horrocks will reminisce about their time working on the 90s show during the new one-off programme, which will tell the story of how it was made.

Absolutely Fabulous: Inside Out will also pay tribute to June Whitfield, who died in 2018 at the age of 93 and is known for her role as Mother in the series.

Ab Fab, as it is known among fans, first appeared on UK screens in 1992 and ran until 2003, followed PR boss Edina, played by Saunders, and retired model Patsy, played by Dame Joanna, as they attempted to relive their youth in 60s London by chasing 90s fads and indulging in heavy drinking and drugs.

Their hedonistic lifestyle constantly led to personal crises which were eventually solved by Eddie's daughter Saffy, played by Sawalha.

Horrocks featured as Eddie's foolish personal assistant Bubble.

Absolutely Fabulous made a three-episode return between 2011 and 2012 to celebrate its 20th anniversary and in 2016 a film based on the series was released.

Saunders, who created and starred in the comedy, said she was thankful for the 'kind and helpful' programme.

She said: 'I loved making Ab Fab but I can't remember a great deal, so much of this retrospective is a revelation to me.'

Dame Joanna added: 'It was a fabulous wander down memory lane by actresses who only have the faintest grip on reality. Really thrilling, and I hope vastly entertaining. I loved every second.'

Kirsty Hanson, who commissioned the documentary for comedy channel Gold said the show 'helped break the mould for female-led comedy' and added fans are 'in for a real treat'.

Actors will be joined on the show by the sitcom's costume designers and famous fans to tell behind-the-scenes secrets and present never-before-seen clips.

The documentary, produced by Expectation, will air on Gold later this year.

The sitcom's comedy mostly rode on the fractiousness between Edina and her uptight daughter Saffron, played by Julia. Eddy often found herself torn between her best friend Patsy and the disapproving Saffy.

The show also featured Jane as PR maven Eddy's madcap assistant Bubble, and the late June Whitfield as Eddy's mother.

June's last appearance in the franchise was, like the rest of the cast, in the 2016 big screen adaption, in which Eddy and Patsy were forced to flee the country after nearly killing Kate Moss.

June died in December 2018, two years after Jennifer insisted she was 'done' with Ab Fab.

Despite a positive reaction to the film, and rumblings of a sequel, she told the Daily Mail in late 2016: 'I'm not doing anything more with Ab Fab. That's it. That. Is. It. I can't see the point of doing anything else with it, really.'

Yet, in October 2018, she told an audience at Cheltenham Literature Festival that the idea of continuing Ab Fab was 'always on my mind, always'.

She said: 'I am thinking at the moment of writing a little something. It has to be age-appropriate otherwise we'd have to be in wheelchairs basically. I think Julia is old enough to be my mother now.'

She also touched upon political correctness at the time, saying: 'I think it is harder to write what we used to write because there is just always someone tutting in the back of your mind. 'Oh what do you think? Don't you think someone might be offended?' It is very tiring!'

In June 2021, Jennifer once again said that the new 'woke' mind-set has changed comedy and people now 'talk themselves out' of telling any jokes that might be considered controversial.

'Yes I think it has changed comedy like what we used to make. I think we would probably talk ourselves out of most of it now,' she said during a talk at the Garrick Theatre. 'It would be like, 'We won't have a good answer so let's not do that.'

'I think people do talk themselves out of stuff now because everything is sensitive in a funny way and what could be made to seem sensitive and it stops a lot of the fun maybe like jokes. I remember jokes. Silly jokes and stuff.'

Joanna said at the end of 2020 that the future of Ab Fab was entirely in Jennifer's hands and to 'wait and see'.

The show was developed from a sketch Jennifer wrote with her long-term comedy partner Dawn French in 1990, titled Modern Mother And Daughter.

The basis of the sketch became the premise for Ab Fab, which ran for three series until its supposed two-part finale The Last Shout in 1996. However, it was rebooted for a fourth run in 2001 and a fifth season was made in 2004.

Several one-offs followed, with the last TV episode to date airing in the summer of 2012, focusing on Eddy hosting Micheal Douglas at her house for the London Olympics.

The film followed in 2016 and this is, to date, the last fans have had of the franchise.