Citizen Khan

Citizen Khan is a British sitcom produced by the BBC and created by Adil Ray. Five series have been shown so far. It was set in Sparkhill, East Birmingham, described by its lead character, a British Pakistani man Mr Khan (Ray), as "the capital of British Pakistan". Citizen Khan follows the trials and tribulations of Mr Khan, a loud-mouthed, patriarchal, cricket-loving, self-appointed community leader, and his long suffering wife (played by Shobu Kapoor) and daughters Shazia (Maya Sondhi 2012–2014, Krupa Pattani 2015–2016) and Alia (Bhavna Limbachia).[1] In Series One, Kris Marshall starred as Dave, the manager of Mr Khan's local mosque.[1] The first name of Mrs Khan is Razia; however, Mr Khan's first name is never revealed.

Citizen Khan
Series 4 & 5 Title Card
GenreSitcom
Created byAdil Ray
Developed byAnil Gupta
Richard Pinto
Adil Ray
Written byAnil Gupta
Richard Pinto
Adil Ray
Directed byNick Wood
StarringAdil Ray
Shobu Kapoor
Bhavna Limbachia
Maya Sondhi
Abdullah Afzal
Kris Marshall
Matthew Cottle
Krupa Pattani
Theme music composerKam Frantic
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series5
No. of episodes34 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerMark Freeland
ProducerPaul Schlesinger
Production locations
Running time25–28 minutes
Production companyBBC
DistributorBBC Worldwide
Release
Original networkBBC One (2012–16)
BBC One HD (2012–16)
Picture formatHDTV 1080i
Audio formatDolby Digital
Original release27 August 2012 (2012-08-27) –
23 December 2016 (2016-12-23)
Chronology
Related showsBellamy's People
Down the Line
External links
Citizen Khan at the BBC
Production website

The title of the show is a play on the title of the Orson Welles film Citizen Kane.[2] The character Mr Khan had already featured in the BBC Two comedy series Bellamy's People,[3] on BBC Radio 4's Down the Line[1] and on his own online series on the BBC Comedy website.[4] On 27 September 2012, the BBC announced that Citizen Khan had been commissioned for a second series.[5] On 2 December 2013, BBC controller Charlotte Moore announced that Citizen Khan had been renewed for a third series which began airing on 31 October 2014.[6] On 11 December 2014, BBC comedy controller Shane Allen announced that a fourth series had been commissioned.[7] On 14 October 2015, the official Facebook page of Citizen Khan confirmed through a video of Mr Khan that the fourth series would begin on 30 October 2015. On 20 January 2016, it was confirmed the show would return for a fifth and final series which started airing on 4 November 2016.

Although Adil Ray is a Muslim, the show has divided opinion on whether its humour is a mockery of followers of that religion. Ray maintains that Mr Khan is a comic character who is intended for families of any ethnic background to relate to, as with other British family sitcoms.[8]

Broadcast and reception

The first episode of Citizen Khan was first broadcast on BBC One on 27 August 2012, in a late timeslot of 10:20pm. It received what Digital Spy referred to as an "impressive" 3.41 million viewers and 20.9% of the audience.[9]

The Independent's Hasnet Lais stated "Credit must be given to Adil Ray for not sparing any sacred cows and shining light on the conundrum of some British Muslim women under the patriarchal cosh."[10]

The BBC received over 700 complaints[11] following the airing of the first episode with a further 20 complaints to Ofcom. Some British Muslims claimed that the show "ridicules" and "insults" Islam. The BBC claimed it had evidence the complaints were part of a lobbying campaign and countered it saying a number of people, including those of Muslim communities, praised the show and referred to its audience figures as a "very positive start."[12]

The Independent's Arifa Akbar commented negatively on its many clichéd jokes and character traits and drawing many comparisons with 1970s-style sitcoms.[13] Mark Jones of The Guardian was more optimistic, describing it as "an affable enough debut, deserving a wider audience than this post-watershed slot is likely to attract."[14]

The Islam Channel broadcast a special show entitled Politics and Media: Citizen Khan – Racist stereotypes or harmless fun? Presenter John Rees discussed whether the BBC comedy was stereotyping Muslims, or whether it was fun and could be laughed about by Muslims.

By the second episode, broadcast on 3 September, Citizen Khan clips had gone viral. Opinion outside the United Kingdom was also been mixed, resulting in many heated debates. Outside of the UK, the Pakistani newspaper The News International criticised the BBC's use of Pakistani flags in the Khan's home, and Mr Khan's younger daughter quickly putting on a hijab and pretending to read the Qur'an. The Pakistan News Watch website countered "shows like Citizen Khan are essential in multicultural societies and help put all communities on an equal footing – if everyone can have a laugh at everyone else's expense, then no one can claim superiority."[15] The debate continued for a third week, with the Yorkshire Post publishing an article by Pakistani journalist Sabbiyah Pervez appealing to her own community to "stop being so defensive and learn to laugh at itself."[16]

The BBC ordered a seven-episode second series on 27 September 2012 due to good ratings.[5] On 18 September 2013, the BBC announced that the second series would air on Friday nights in the prime time 9.30pm slot from 4 October.[17]

In an interview with The Guardian, Adil Ray stated "What I've intended to do with Citizen Khan is a good thing – to make Mr Khan a good character, to make him universal and a communication between different communities."[18]

Series 3 of Citizen Khan gained an audience of around 5 million per episode, including iPlayer views. Ahead the Series 4 debut in October 2015, Vicky Power of The Daily Telegraph stated "It's harmless, friendly fun for the whole family."[19] Series 4 of Citizen Khan made its debut on 30 October 2015. The series attracted a record 3.3 million viewers.[20]

Citizen Khan has been exported to Australia, India, Russia, Bulgaria and New Zealand, spawned Christmas specials and prompted a UK-wide "live" tour of regional theaters. Speaking to The Daily Telegraph in 2015 ahead of the launch of series 4, Adil Ray stated that fans of the show realise it is a "big laugh out loud comedy, not a reflection of every Muslim or Pakistani family in the country."[21]

From Series 4, the role of Shazia Khan was taken over by Krupa Pattani replacing Maya Sondhi.

Ray reported that he received death threats for the show, including one threatening a riot.[8] He has stated that his influences came from comedies such as Only Fools and Horses and Fawlty Towers that were aimed at family audiences, and he desires for families of all backgrounds to be able to see elements of Khan's character in their father figure.[8] Ray has claimed that for every complaint he had over a scene in which Khan's daughter Alia hurriedly covers her head in the presence of her father, he received ten from Muslims, Catholics and Jews relating to the experience of a child behaving similarly.[8]

In April 2016, the show was condemned in parliament by Rupa Huq, the Labour MP for Ealing Central and Acton, who called its portrayal of a Birmingham Muslim family "quite backward".[22]

Awards

Appearances

The character of Mr Khan has made appearances at Children in Need 2014 (in which he appeared as a guest in the EastEnders pub), The Queen Victoria, Comic Relief 2015,[27] (in which he joked he was hoping to be considered for Jeremy Clarkson's job at Top Gear), the FA Cup Final 2015 (supporting local Birmingham team Aston Villa),[28] and in October 2015, took over the train announcements at Birmingham New Street station for an hour.[29] On Friday 18 November 2016, the cast of Citizen Khan made an appearance on Children in Need in a live sketch, Citizen Khan v Citizen Kane, in which they were joined by comedian Russell Kane and his family for a dance off. On 11 March 2017, Adil Ray appeared as Mr Khan on Let's Sing and Dance for Comic Relief as a judge.

Episodes
Main article: List of Citizen Khan episodes
Series Start date End date Episodes Broadcast time Notes
127 August 20121 October 2012610:30pmN/A
24 October 20138 November 201369:30pm+1 Christmas special
331 October 201412 December 201468:30pm+1 Christmas special
430 October 201511 December 201568:30pm/7:30pm+1 Christmas special
54 November 201623 December 201668:30pm+1 Christmas special

Characters
The main cast of series 5 (left to right) Naani, Mo Malik, Amjad Malik, Mr. Khan, Shazia Khan, Mrs Khan, Nadiya Malik and Alia Khan
  • Episode count is as of 23 December 2016 (Series 5, Episode 7)
Character Actor Years Series Episode Count
Mr Khan Adil Ray 2012–16 1.1–5.7 34
Mrs Razia Khan Shobu Kapoor 2012–16 1.1–5.7 33
Alia Khan Bhavna Limbachia 2012–16 1.1–5.7 34
Shazia Khan Maya Sondhi 2012–14 1.1–3.7 20
Krupa Pattani 2015–16 4.1–5.7 14
Amjad Malik Abdullah Afzal 2012–16 1.1–5.7 34
Riaz Nish Nathwani 2012–16 1.1–5.7 27
Mrs Malik Harvey Virdi 2012–16 1.1–5.7 14
Naani Adlyn Ross 2012–16 1.2–5.7 15
Dave 1 Kris Marshall 2012 1.1–1.6 6
Dave 2 Matthew Cottle 2013–16 2.2–5.7 16
Keith Phil Nice 2012–2014, 2016 1.5–3.7, 5.7 12
Omar Felix Dexter 2012–13 1.1–2.7 13

Ratings

Total viewers include overnight views plus views on BBC iPlayer, BBC HD and recorded catch-up services. Official accurate figures are released 10 days after original transmission by BARB. For instance, Citizen Khan Series 2 Episode 1 attracted overall figures of 4.53m, a consolidated share of 15.1% including 1.17 million BBC iPlayer requests.

Series Episode No Airdate Overnights (millions) Share BBC iPlayer requests Source
1
127 August 20123.4120.9% 852,000[30]
23 September 20122.7819.3% 1,032,000[31]
310 September 20122.5515.8% 865,000[30]
417 September 20122.2916.4% 795,000[30][32]
524 September 20122.8019.7% N/A[33]
61 October 20122.5919.2% 660,000[34][35]
2
14 October 20132.9414.3% 1,055,000[36][37]
211 October 20132.6911.7% 854,000[37][38]
318 October 20132.6613.0% N/A[39]
425 October 20132.8514.1% N/A[40]
51 November 20132.8613.9% N/A[41]
68 November 20132.3110.8% 745,000[42][43]
720 December 20133.0714.6% 843,000[44][45]
3
131 October 20142.8613.5% 978,000[46][47]
27 November 20143.0514.0% N/A[48]
321 November 20142.7812.7% N/A[49]
428 November 20142.4811.6% N/A[50]
55 December 20142.9513.5% 737,000[51][52]
612 December 20142.7112.4% N/A[53]
719 December 20142.9214.2% N/A[54]
4
130 October 20153.3317.5% N/A[55]
26 November 20152.6412.9% 671,000[56][57]
320 November 20153.0514.8% N/A[58]
427 November 20152.5212.2% N/A[59]
54 December 20152.2410.8% N/A[60]
611 December 20152.3411.7% N/A[61]
718 December 20152.7313.9% N/A[62]
5
14 November 20162.8813.8% 785,000[63][64]
211 November 20162.7712.7% N/A[65]
325 November 20162.5412.6% N/A[66]
42 December 20162.6212.5% N/A[67]
59 December 20162.3311.9% N/A[68]
616 December 20162.2912.1% N/A[69]
723 December 20162.6513.6% N/A[70]

Distribution

DVD
Series Release name No. of discs UK release date
(region 2)		 NZ release date
(region 4)		 AU release date
(region 4)		 Classification Notes
1 Citizen Khan – Series 1 1 22 October 2012[71][72] 3 April 2013[73] 29 May 2013[74] PG No extras.
2 Citizen Khan – Series 2 1 11 November 2013[75][76] 4 June 2014[77] 30 April 2014[78] 12 No extras. Does not include Christmas Special.
3 Citizen Khan – Series 3 1 22 December 2014[79][80] TBA TBA PG Includes 2013 Christmas Special, Deleted Scenes and Outtakes
1–3 Citizen Khan – Series 1–3 3 TBA TBA 12 Includes 2013 Christmas Special, Deleted Scenes and Outtakes
4 Citizen Khan – Series 4 1 21 December 2015[81] TBA TBA 12 Includes 2014 Christmas Special and Outtakes
5 Citizen Khan – Series 5 1 16 January 2017 TBA TBA PG 2015 Christmas special, others TBA

Broadcasts

Premiering on 12 July 2013, the series airs on Comedy Central India in India.[82] In the United Kingdom, reruns of the show air on Gold.[83]

Digital

Series 1, 2 & 3 are available to buy on iTunes in both Standard Definition and High Definition,[84][85][86] "A Khan Christmas" and "A Khan Family Christmas" have also been made available to buy.[87][88]

Series 1 to 5 are available to stream on Amazon Prime.

See also

These are programmes with a similar premise.

References
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