One last series of dysfunctional fun.

Award-winning BBC One comedy, Outnumbered will return for a fifth and final six-part series on 29 January at 9pm, it’s been confirmed.

The series which began in 2007, follows Hugh Dennis and Claire Skinner as parents to three unruly children played by Tyger Drew-Honey (Jake), now 17, Daniel Roche (Ben) now 14 and Ramona Marquez (Karen) who is 12.

Writers Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkins who also created Drop The Dead Donkey have made the decision to end the semi-improvised comedy due to the young child actors getting older. However, they have expressed an interest in doing one-off specials in the future.

In 2011 Drew-Honey told What’s on TV: “The point of Outnumbered is that it is set around the house with the school run and the madness of that. If everyone is mature I just don’t think it will work.”

Speaking about the new series he says: “As we’ve all gotten older, everyone’s matured; maybe with the exception of Hugh and Claire.”

“But Dan, Ramona and I are now able to work more professionally.”

While Marquez who began playing Karen when she was 5 years old added: “It wasn’t much different, I saw a bit more of the script that’s all.”

Hamilton and Jenkins also confirmed the filming process has only changed slightly for the final series.

“Inevitably, as the kids get older, their minds go off on fewer absurd tangents, so, yes, there is a little less improvisation, but they didn’t get given scenes to learn overnight, they just skim-read them on the day.