Meera Syal revives British-Indian comedy for BBC

London: Indian-origin actress and writer Meera Syal will be reuniting with the team of a hit BBC British-Indian comedy show for a one-off special. 'Goodness Gracious Me' was a popular sketch show aired on BBC from 1998-2001, after starting life on BBC Radio 4 two years earlier.

It will be revived as part of BBC2's 50th-anniversary celebrations later this year. Besides Syal, the comedy featured actors Sanjeev Bhaskar, Nina Wadia and Kulvinder Ghir as they explored the collision of British and Indian cultures through characters such as Smeeta Smitten, the Competitive Mothers and Mr Everything Comes From India.

"To celebrate 50 years of comedy on BBC2, the original cast of the award-winning 'Goodness Gracious Me' are back for a special one-off edition of the ground-breaking British Asian sketch show featuring new characters alongside some favourites from the original series in a wealth of brand new sketches," read a BBC advertisement inviting audience members for the filming.

Husband-wife couple Bhaskar and Syal, Britain's most well-known Indian-origin actors, went on to star in 'The Kumars at No 42' playing chat show host Sanjeev and grandmother Ammi.