David Farnor | On 02, May 2020

Nish Kumar is heading to Quibi for a new news series.

The short-form streaming platform, which launched at the start of last month, has invested heavily and scripted and unscripted content – all divided up into mobile-friendly short chunks – that’s fronted by star names. Liam Hemsworth and Christoph Waltz, Sophie Turner and Anna Kendrick, Corey Hawkins and Will Forte, Andy Garcia and Eva Longoria and Tituss Burgess and Will Arnett are among the famous faces Quibi is hoping will woo subscribers. Now, Nish Kumar is joining the pack.

The streamer has ordered Hello America, a topical comedy series that will see the comic tackle news headlines in his own, inimitable style. Broadcasd from London and featuring rotating cast of correspondents, it will dissect US politics and current events from a global perspective.

The commission goes some way to cementing Kumar’s status as UK TV’s answer to The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart – he is most known as the host of The Mash Report, which airs weekly on BBC Two and is currently on its fifth season. While he has appeared on a number of other comedy shows, he has also had his own special as part of Netflix’s Comedians of the World, which gave him exposure worldwide.

“I am so excited to get started on this show,” Kumar said in a statement. “If for no other reason than I am tired of having to explain how to use Houseparty to my parents and that ‘lockdown’ doesn’t mean occasionally going to the shops when you feel like it.”

The series will be produced by Jax Media, with Kumar, Tony Hernandez and Séamus Murphy-Mitchell serving as executive producers.

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