Ab Fab stars Saunders and Lumley reunite for Amandaland

Saunders (left) and Dame Joanna are better known to millions as Ab Fab's Edina and Patsy

Jennifer Saunders will reunite with her Absolutely Fabulous co-star Dame Joanna Lumley in the Christmas special of another sitcom Amandaland, the BBC has announced.

Saunders will appear as Joan, the sister of Dame Joanna's character Felicity and auntie of the show's titular star Amanda, played by Lucy Punch.

Her new character is humorously described as "a ball of country-living, enthusiastic upper-class bluster - very, very different from Felicity".

Saunders said in a statement she was "delighted to be joining the fabulous Amandaland gang for a Christmas special".

"Playing Joanna's on-screen sister is guaranteed to be a laugh," she added. "Who doesn't love a family reunion SoHa style!"

Amandaland follows middle class Amanda and her two children as they adapt to life in South Harlesden - which she refers to, pretentiously, as "SoHa" - having been forced to leave Chiswick following her divorce.

It is a spin-off of Motherland, a comedy about motherhood starring Anna Maxwell Martin, which aired between 2016 and 2022.

Saunders will feature in the festive episode before a second series of the show airs in 2026, the BBC confirmed.

Lucy Punch stars in the BBC sitcom as Amanda, a middle class single mum

Star of the show Punch said: "I'm beyond excited to get started on Amandaland series two with our brilliantly talented, lovely cast."

She added, in character: "The Christmas special is going to be an absolute cracker - it's like totes fire, with all the festive feels, for reals. Slay bells!"

The first series of Amandaland, broadcast earlier this year, received rave reviews from critics, with the Telegraph saying that Punch and her on-screen mother Dame Joanna "make a dream comic double act".

Fabulous addition

Previous double act, Saunders and Dame Joanna both won Baftas for their portrayals of PR boss Edina and retired model Patsy, respectively, in the popular 1990s British sitcom Absolutely Fabulous - aka Ab Fab.

The show initially aired from 1992 to 2005, before a 20th anniversary miniseries in 2012.

Across a handful of series and a well received feature length movie finale in 2016, the heavy-drinking, chain-smoking and codependent pair attempted to relive their youth - in swinging 1960s London - over and over again, often with funny and cringe-worthy consequences.

The stars came together again last year, alongside fellow Ab Fab actresses Julia Sawalha and Jane Horrocks, to share anecdotes and backstage secrets on the Gold programme Absolutely Fabulous: Inside Out.