About 'Ideal'

Ideal is a BBC Three sitcom written by Graham Duff. The comedy centres around Moz, a small-time drug dealer, and his varied regular 'clients'. Moz (played by Johnny Vegas) has no ambitions beyond spending a quiet life dealing cannabis to a small group of friends and acquaintances. All the scenes take place in his flat (number 20), and occasionally the other flats on that floor.

The first series of Ideal concerned itself with introducing viewers to the world of Moz and his oddball clients. It was the second series where the sitcom really started to get going, and boy were there pressing issues to be resolved. Moz's long term girlfriend, Nicki, was about to give birth, but the father could be any one of three men! Meanwhile Moz's days as a dealer were under threat as PC, the local copper was in line for a promotion - if that went through his supply would be cut off (as his best mate is Moz's chief supplier!).

To make matters worse regular client Psycho Paul (the name says it all) was keen to involve Moz in a get-rich-quick kidnapping scheme - and wouldn't take no for an answer! Events then took a sinister turn when the body of Craig, murdered by masked hitman Cartoon Head, turned up in the local chippy's deep fat fryer. The second season also saw the introduction of a new character called Judith - a timid neighbour with a very dark secret!

Series three, which was first shown in spring 2007, starts with Moz stuck in a plaster cast (having fallen from his rooftop). His long-suffering girlfriend Nicki had moved back in too - bringing baby Sanjeev with her - determined to give their relationship one last shot.

Nicki was suffering from sleep deprivation, so at times had hallucinations of Moz in the baby bouncer, and once with the perfect Chippendale body. Meanwhile, Moz had to start juggling his dealing 'career' with the challenge of being a new dad, and his natural inclination to do as little as possible.

To Moz's initial delight and Nicki's complete dismay, the baby's Health Visitor turns out to be Moz's fun and flirty ex-girlfriend, Tania. She shares his predilection for petty theft and starts stealing stuff from the flat to sell on eBay. On top of this, Moz's Mum Sheila joined a pyramid scheme, selling slimming drinks and she's determined to flog them to all Moz's customers. And Moz's ex-necrophiliac neighbour Judith was back working at a funeral parlour and Moz suspects she may be bringing her work home with her...!

But Moz's problems really begin when the landlord arranges for builders to redecorate the flat. The foreman is Alan, a permanently cheerful yet very hard line born again Christian. Can Moz keep up the pretence of being a devout Christian and keep Alan from finding out what he does for a living?

With their relationship deteriorating fast, both Moz and long suffering girlfriend Nicki embark on clandestine affairs at the start of series four. Nicki hooks up with Salford's dopiest Police Constable and Moz discovers love in the arms of a rather surprising companion.

Matters are further complicated when Moz's long lost dad Keith comes knocking at the door. Absent for 12 years, Keith bowls right back into Moz's life, hoping to offload some dodgy wide screen TV's.

Meanwhile, in the world of disorganised crime, former best mates Cartoon Head and Psycho Paul go head to head in a gangland war involving the notorious Low Triad. Can Moz avoid getting dragged into this potentially fatal gang war? Can he and Nicki keep their simultaneous affairs secret? And will he ever discover the true identity of his new neighbour - a mysterious and frightening man known only as Fist? All will be revealed in the new series.

Ideal is written by Graham Duff (who plays the rather camp Brian in the series, pictured). Duff who has also written and starred in two series of Radio 4's hit sci-fi sitcom Nebulous.

Additional material is provided by Mancunian stand-up Tony Burgess who can be seen in some episode of Ideal as Moz's paranoid 'old skool' raver brother who runs his own pirate radio stations from his bedroom in the airing cupboard.

2006 Interview with Graham Duff