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Observant, pro-Israel Jews aren't shown on TV says Hapless creator

Comedy creator Gary Sinyor says he wants to show a diverse community

May 16, 2023 16:34
rabbi-jeremy-lawrence
3 min read

British Jewish comedy tends to be coy about religion, unlike shows made for our American cousins,

The most publicly Jewish sitcom in the UK, Friday Night Dinner, doesn’t mention challah or kiddish wine and the only person who says "Shabbat shalom" is the non-Jewish neighbour.

But Hapless, now returning to our screens for a second series, doesn’t do coy. The new season of the comedy, about a journalist for a Jewish newspaper, has just dropped on Amazon Prime and tackles BBC antisemitism, Israel, Jewish education and the ‘Y*d army’ debate - all with a big dose of humour.  

The show's creator and director Gary Sinyor first found success with another Jewish story – the hit 1992 film Leon the Pig Farmer and since then, has wanted to keep Judaism and Jewish characters at the forefront of his work.