TV

BBC reveals the real reason Not Going Out aired ‘sex ed’ episode a week late

Fans thought it was down to the rude themes

Comedy series Not Going Out continued on BBC One last night, with episode two aired in the slot originally set for episode three.

Last week, the BBC baffled telly fans by deciding to switch up the schedule and pull the second episode, airing the third installment in its place.

Some thought it might have been down to the subject matter tackled in part two, Facts of Life, which saw Lee fretting over the twins being taught all about sex at school.

Lee Mack plays an alternate version of himself (Credit: BBC/Avalon/Pete Dadds)

Read more: John Challis has slammed ITV’s decision to axe all its comedy sitcoms

Speculation over the thinking behind the scheduling continued last night on Twitter, as fans of the show finally got to see Lee (Lee Mack) make a fool of himself as he tried to take his kids’ education regarding the birds and the bees into his own hands.

One fan wrote: “A return to form for #NotGoingOut tonight. One of the best, funniest and most well-paced episodes in years. I can see why, given its content, it was postponed from Bank Holiday Monday last week (when kids might watch TV post-watershed)!”

Another asked: “#NotGoingOut so perhaps Easter Monday was seen as the sort of time kids are more likely to be up watching, so they deferred this episode to tonight?”

A third demanded, “Why was this not shown on Easter Monday? We [must] have answers!” and another Twitter user, who wondered if it might have had something to do with the recent bombings in Sri Lanka, replied: “I’m guessing because the sex toys in the adult sex shop had names like ‘ballistic’ and ‘nuclear’. They might have thought it insensitive after the Sri Lanka explosions.”

Someone else asked: “Does anyone know why this weeks episode of #NotGoingOut wasn’t shown last week, and is shown this week instead?”

ED! reached out to the BBC to find out why the episode was postponed and, as it turns out, it had nothing to do with the themes, as many viewers thought.

Lee and Lucy, played by Sally Bretton (Credit: BBC/Avalon/Pete Dadds)

Read more: Peter Kay looks happy in rare public appearance

A spokesperson for the broadcaster told ED!: “The billed episode was not as the programme makers intended and required a final edit before broadcast.”

Mystery solved! Episodes of a sitcom like Not Going Out are all self-contained, which meant the change didn’t impact the audience’s enjoyment of the narrative.

– Not Going Out continues on BBC One next Monday (May 6th) at 9pm

Did you enjoy watching Facts of Life? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think.


Nancy Brown
Associate Editor