Comedian Romesh Ranganathan is to explore the death of rapper Tupac Shakur in docuseries The Misinvestigations Of Romesh Ranganathan.
The three-part BBC Two programme will see the presenter delve into the stories of entertainment figures who have been a source of fascination to him: Shakur, punk rock figure Nancy Spungen, and musician Jimi Hendrix.
Ranganathan, 46, previously fronted four series of The Misadventures Of Romesh Ranganathan – which won a Bafta TV award in 2020.
Speaking about the programme, Ranganathan said: “We wanted to find a fun way of doing a celeb biopic while also doing a true crime style show. This ticked all (both) of the boxes.”
He added: “I believe that, regardless of whether you like the music of these individuals, you will definitely leave the shows with an understanding of how culturally important each of them were.”
The stand-up comic, who also hosts The Ranganation and The Weakest Link, spoke about why he chose the three celebrities.
He said: “They are all people who moved the cultural needle and also passed away in circumstances that are still being speculated about today – perhaps as a result of the manner in which they were idolised.”
Ranganathan explores Shakur’s death in episode one where he meets journalists, a former police officer, and one of the rapper’s closest friends.
Widely considered one of the most influential rap artists of all time, Shakur died after being shot in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 1996 – at the age of 25.
Though his career lasted just five years, he remains one of the most complex and prolific artists of his generation, with more than 75 million records sold worldwide.
Episode two will focus on Spungen, who was allegedly killed by her boyfriend and Sex Pistols member Sid Vicious, who died less than a year after her.
The last episode, which originally aired as a pilot in 2022, focuses on 1960s guitarist Hendrix, who died of a drug overdose at the age of 27 – although there are rumours of foul play.
The Misinvestigations Of Romesh Ranganathan launches on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer at 9pm on August 25.
