BBC axed Christmas particular of comedy Mandy eventually minute over jokes about Putin
The Christmas special of BBC hit comedy Mandy will now be shown at the end of 2026, TWO YEARS after it was made
Diane Morgan as Mandy in the BBC2 Christmas special, which features the killing of a Vladimir Putin body double
The festive special of Diane Morgan’s comedy Mandy which was mysteriously pulled from the TV schedules just days before it was due to air, will not be shown until this Christmas.
The one-off episode, which has a plot featuring Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, was dropped by BBC bosses just three days before it was due to air on December 22. And because the Philomena Cunk actress had filmed it while making the fourth series back in January 2025, it means it will be almost two years old by the time anyone gets to watch it.
The BBC claims the reason the show was axed from its slot was because “there were parts of it we wanted to update” – even though it had been finished and ready for many months.
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When the decision was made, there was speculation it was linked directly to President Trump – because he had just announced his intention to sue the BBC for $10billion over the way it edited his Capitol Hill speech from 2021 for Panorama.
But one source insisted that Trump has no part in the show, saying: “It is nothing to do with President Trump, who is not referred to at any point in the episode.” Nevertheless, the decision to drop the show came just after the US President filed his defamation lawsuit against the Corporation.
The content actually focuses on Russian leader Putin, who reportedly gets garrotted with a cheese wire by Morgan’s character Mandy. His severed head is then brought back to the UK, where – according to one report – an Army chief is seen to “use Putin’s head for something spicy on his private parts”. The twist is that it ends up not being Putin after all, but his body double.
One source said the BBC simply baulked at the prospect of causing more offence, even if it was with international villain Putin. “The BBC were already at loggerheads with one major world power, they didn’t fancy causing outrage in the Kremlin at the very same time.”
The BBC said, “The Mandy Christmas Special has been moved to 2026,” and have declined to comment further. The one-off episode, entitled The Mandy Who Knew Too Much, was billed as being a funny take on the character trying her hand at international relations. The synopses read: “Mandy rarely dabbles in global diplomacy, especially over Christmas when it’s so cold out and there’s good telly on, but when she does, you can bet that she makes a real difference to the balance of power in the world.”
Speaking about the fourth series, which aired on BBC2 in the summer, Diane, 50, said fans could expect “more of the same Mandy madness, with perhaps less gurning but more sheer bloody violence and catastrophe.” She said that the character’s charm came from the fact that she never evolved or learned from her mistakes. “Mandy is still being forced to do jobs that she doesn’t like and isn’t any good at. Which I think everyone can relate to.”
Comedies have been known to influence international relations in the past. In 2014, a movie called The Interview featured scenes showing the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un. When it came out, the film sparked threats of military action against the US and also led to Sony Pictures being hacked by a cybercrime group linked to North Korea.
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