Comedy news: The Thick Of It heads West (Wing) for new U.S show

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The darling of the modern political satirical shows, The Thick of It, is set to head Stateside after being snapped up by a major U.S. TV network.

The show, which is a parody of British politics, impressed a number of U.S. cable networks since its Oscar nomination earlier this year and is widely seen as a rival to The West Wing – which has reached cult status on both sides of the Atlantic.

However with a British election looming the show’s producers had been reluctant to admit U.S. interest until the fourth series – which was commissioned by the BBC earlier this week – had been confirmed.

Speaking to Hollywood sources The Thick Of It’s director Armando Iannucci said: “The Oscar nomination helped put The Thick Of It on the international map. Since then there has been a lot of interest from many areas in U.S. TV about whether what we have done in the British political scene could be reproduced in a new format.”

“It seemed only natural that we would cross the pond eventually, and being given the chance to take on The West Wing on their own turf was an opportunity we could not turn down.”

One of the plot themes which has been discussed involves Chris Addison reprising the role of a bumbling British diplomat who happens to stumble upon a renegade Republican 'Tea Party' which is planning to sabotage a mid-term election result, with dire consequences for the British government.

The new series is not expected to be aired until the Autumn at the earliest, when President Obama is set to head back to the polls for a contentious mid-term election campaign on the back of an unpopular health care bill.