BBC AMERICA'S FIRST ORIGINAL COMEDY SERIES "ALMOST ROYAL" PREMIERES JUNE 21

A tale of two young (practically Royal) British aristocrats on their first trip to America

New York - May 12, 2014 - Just a hop, skip and a jump away from the throne, siblings Georgie (Ed Gamble) and Poppy Carlton (Amy Hoggart) were born into a life of privilege, splendor and royalty...almost. BBC AMERICA's first original comedy series, Almost Royal, follows the two young British aristocrats as they venture outside the palace and across the pond on their first trip to the U.S., where they interact with real-life, unsuspecting everyday Americans. Crowns and cricket are traded for tobacco and baseball, Buckingham is swapped for Beverly Hills, and instead of tea with the duke and duchess, it's a protein pump with Fabio and a ride along a Texan range. Georgie and Poppy are about to have their silver spoons plucked from their mouths and their thrones pulled right out from under them. BBC AMERICA's half-hour comedy series, Almost Royal, premieres with back-to-back episodes Saturday, June 21, 10:00pm ET following the Orphan Black season two finale.

Georgie and Poppy Carlton are heirs to Caunty Manor, a large country estate in Norfolk, England, where they have enjoyed privileged lives as distant descendants of the British Royal Family. They have agreed to have a camera crew follow them on an unofficial royal tour of the greatest country on earth - the United States of America; an eye-opening expedition that brings them face-to-face with the people of Los Angeles, Boston, Texas, New York, Nashville, Detroit and Washington, D.C. In fact, it was their father's dying wish that his children visit America, a country he loved dearly. As well as commemorating their late father, Lord Carlton, the road trip will provide the sheltered siblings with an opportunity to spread their wings and see the world. Georgie and Poppy have never worked a day in their lives, driven themselves anywhere or solved any problem more complex than telling their butler to tell their cook what they want for lunch.

The series is produced by Burning Bright Productions with Clive Tulloh (Eddie Izzard: Marathon Man, The Dame Edna Treatment) as executive producer and Seamus Murphy-Mitchell (Bug, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross) as series producer. BBC AMERICA's slate of British comedies has included Absolutely Fabulous, Twenty Twelve, The Inbetweeners, The Thick of It and The Office.

Almost Royal is a BBC AMERICA original series produced by Burning Bright Productions and distributed by BBC Worldwide.

Note to editors Twitter: @BBCAMERICA Hashtags: #AlmostRoyal Website: http://www.bbcamerica.com/almost-royal/

CAST AND PRODUCTION CREDITS

Georgie Carlton Ed Gamble

Poppy Carlton Amy Hoggart

Series Producer Seamus Murphy-Mitchell

Series Director Chris Faith

Executive Producer Clive Tulloh

Director Marcus Liversedge

Episodes: New York, Detroit, Washington, D.C.

CHARACTER GUIDE

GEORGIE CARLTON (Ed Gamble) is the most affable man one could meet. He's using the trip around America as a way to become more "manly" in order to take on the responsibilities of Caunty Manor and live up to his father's legacy. TWITTER: @GeorgeCarltonUK

POPPY CARLTON (Amy Hoggart) is looking forward to raising her profile on the trip around America. She has high hopes of finding fame as a pop-star/actor/author/lifestyle-guru/cookery presenter. Poppy has all of the self-delusion required to find fame without having a scrap of talent. TWITTER: @PoppyCarlton BBC AMERICA delivers U.S. audiences high-quality, innovative and intelligent programming. Established in 1998, it has been the launch pad for talent embraced by American mainstream pop culture, including Ricky Gervais, Gordon Ramsay, Graham Norton, and successful programming formats including ground-breaking non-scripted television like Top Gear and top-rated science-fiction like Doctor Who. Owned by BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, BBC AMERICA has attracted both critical acclaim and major awards including two Emmy(R) Awards, five Golden Globes(R) and eleven Peabody Awards. The channel attracts one of cable's most affluent and educated audiences and is available on cable and satellite TV in 80 million homes. It broadcasts in both standard and high-definition, with content available On Demand across all major digital platforms. Online,www.bbcamerica.com is the place to go to dig deeper into pop culture with a British twist.