Thank god, Cunk On Life is coming to explain the world to us

From "boring ants" to "long-necked horse monsters," we can't wait to have Philomena Cunk make the world make sense again.

By William Hughes | December 18, 2024 | 9:10pm

Photo: Jonathan Browning/Netflix

TV News Cunk On Life

Thank god, Cunk On Life is coming to explain the world to us

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Philomena Cunk is, dare we say it, one of the greatest documentary presenters on the planet, a statement we’re comfortable making despite the fact that Cunk is also a long-running comedy character played by British performer Diane Morgan. Willing to ask hard questions (“If gravity’s real, why doesn’t it work on kites?”), and to blink uncomprehendingly at hard answers, Cunk got a full workout on the world stage with 2022’s truly excellent Netflix/BBC co-production Cunk On Earth. Now, she’s back to bedevil the well-meaning academics of the globe with a new “extended special,” Cunk On Life, which just got a brand new trailer ahead of its January 2 debut on Netflix.
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And while it can’t find time to fit in a quick toss to the release of Belgian techno anthem “Pump Up The Jam,” the new trailer does encapsulate so much of what makes Cunk such a great interrogator of our world, whether she’s flummoxing astrophysicist Brian Cox with questions about his name, subverting the expectations of stolid documentary filming, or slipping in comedic mouthfuls like “long-necked horse monsters.” As created by Black Mirror‘s Charlie Brooker, the Cunk shows are some of the best running examples of a very British sort of deadpan, with Morgan nailing the faux-philosophic tone so well that you have to hang on her every word in case an absolutely absurd punchline goes flying by. Our only real disappointment with Cunk On Life is that it’s only a special, not a full series; meanwhile, if you need more of a taste of the character ahead of its release, Cunk On Earth is still just sitting there on Netflix, waiting to blow your mind.