Tim Downie plays Paul Green, a hapless investigative journalist stuck writing for The Jewish Enquirer, a struggling north London publication where every assignment turns into disaster. Downie, who also created the series, centres each episode on mundane investigations, a missing synagogue thermometer or questionable kosher meat, that spiral into farcical catastrophes involving his neurotic editor Simon, played by Josh Howie, and Naomi, the paper's only other reporter, performed by Lucy Montgomery.
The show's humour emerges from Paul's incompetence rather than Jewish stereotypes, though the specificity of the community provides rich material. When Paul attempts to expose a florist overcharging for lulavim, he ends up destroying the entire stock, while his investigation into a new kosher restaurant reveals the chef is his ex-girlfriend seeking revenge through dietary law.
Prime Video released the first six-episode series in 2020, commissioning a second run that arrived in 2022 with eight episodes, establishing The Jewish Enquirer as one of British television's few Jewish comedies not set in wartime or centred around the Holocaust. Downie's background in British comedy, including appearances in Toast of London and Paddington, informs the show's absurdity, while Howie, a former rabbinical student turned comedian, brings authentic knowledge to the religious details that ground the escalating ridiculousness.
Production Details
Prime Video / 2 Seasons / 14 Episodes / 2020 - Present
Showrunner(s): Tim Downie
Main Cast
Tim Downie as Paul
Josh Howie as Simon
Lucy Montgomery as Naomi
Rakhee Sharma as The Florist
