Leaving the comforts of the Trailer Park for the chaos of Port Cockerton

Showcase commissions The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour

New series from the stars of Trailer Park Boys

TORONTO , Nov. 12 /CNW/ - What do you get when you pair three former Trailer Park Boys, guitarist Alex Lifeson from RUSH and some "magic" berries? You get the outrageous new Showcase series The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour (working title!). As announced exclusively on showcase.ca this morning, the half-hour comedy series has been greenlit for six episodes that will air on Showcase in 2010.

The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour is a genre-breaking and highly innovative mix of narrative and sketch comedy that builds on the success of Trailer Park Boys and follows in the proud tradition of such comedy classics as Monty Python's Flying Circus and the more recent British import The League of Gentlemen.

Transformed through innovative costumes and make up, Mike Smith , Robb Wells and JP Tremblay play many of the quirky characters in the series. The Drunk and On Drugs Happy Funtime Hour opens as the three boys 'wake up' after shooting has wrapped on their new TV series - a children's show filmed in the sleepy town of Port Cockerton called The Happy Funtime Hour. Production on the series was going smoothly until Alex Lifeson, hired to play a German scientist who teaches children about nutrition, goes too far and assumes the personality of his character after synthesizing a powerful and addictive hallucinogen from local berries. Chaos ensues as the cast unknowingly ingests the drug and begin to believe they really are the characters they are portraying on the show - including deranged pirates, playboys from a 1980's television show and a group of not-very-super, superheroes.

As the series unfolds, Robb, Mike and JP must deal with the bizarre cast of hallucinating children's show characters, a dysfunctional crime family that runs the town, and a dangerous cult, all while trying to piece together what has happened to them and get out of Port Cockerton alive.

"Trailer Park Boys' fans have been clamoring to find out what Robb, Mike and JP will do next and we are delighted to be able to say that they are once again teaming up with Showcase," said Christine Shipton , Senior Vice President, Drama and Factual Content, Canwest. "Their creativity and colourful imaginations will make this one of the most dynamic and entertaining series to hit Canadian airwaves."

"When we first came up with the idea for the show we knew that we couldn't really do this with any channel but Showcase," said Mike Smith .

"The series is definitely a departure from our previous work, but with bold characters and a storyline that pushes the envelope Drunk and on Drugs still has a huge dose of our trademark humour that I think our fans expect from us," adds Robb Wells.

"I think the new series will appeal to a very broad audience. It's definitely not like anything that's ever been on Canadian television before," said JP Tremblay.

The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour is written by Mike Smith , Robb Wells and JP Tremblay. They also serve as Executive Producers on the series alongside Louis Thomas. Ron Murphy has been tapped as Director and Producer is Paul Pope . The series is produced by Happy Funtime Productions 2007 Incorporated in association with Showcase and The Canadian Television Fund.

About Canwest Global Communications Corp.

Canwest Global Communications Corp. (www.canwest.com) is Canada's largest media company. In addition to owning the Global Television Network, operating 18 industry-leading specialty channels and having ownership in 5 specialty channels, Canwest is Canada's largest publisher of English language paid daily newspapers and owns and operates more than 80 online properties.

About Canwest Originals:

Canwest is the proud home of the most diverse slate of Canadian Original programs across the Dramatic, Lifestyle and Entertainment genres. As a steadfast supporter of the Canadian production community, Canwest is dedicated to bringing the best of the country to audiences nationwide - including shows such as; Copper, Family Restaurant, Homes Inspection, Ice Pilots: NWT, 16:9, Re-Vamped and the nation's number one entertainment newsmagazine Entertainment Tonight Canada .

About Canwest Media Inc.

Canwest Media Inc. is a subsidiary of Canwest Global Communications Corp. (www.canwest.com), Canada's largest media company. In addition to owning the Global Television Network, operating 18 industry-leading specialty channels and having ownership in 5 specialty channels, Canwest is Canada's largest publisher of English language paid daily newspapers and owns and operates more than 80 online properties.

For further information: Jessica Gold, Publicist, Canwest Broadcasting, [phone], [email protected]