1600 Penn, one of the lucky shows to premiere as a mid-season replacement last month, is to return for a longer stretch starting tonight (January 10, 2013). The show has been created by 31 year-old Tony nominated actor Josh Gad and stars Bill Pullman, and its plot chronicles a dysfunctional family in the Gilchrists, whose father happens to be the President of the United States.

According to NBC New York, Gad has teamed up with real life President Barack Obama’s former speechwriter Jon Lovett to create the show, and he said that, though one of the lives involved was a fictional leader, it wasn’t so much about politics, and more about exploring the family dynamic –as well as a lot of laughter. “When we set out to do this, we really loved this idea of ordinary family, like any other family, in an extraordinary circumstance” the actor – who plays eldest offspring Skip – told NBC. “And I think as the episodes start to come out, you'll start to see this family become a very fun, cohesive unit that has their foibles but is absolutely in love with each other and absolutely teaching each other lessons week after week.”

Gad also revealed that he’d been given a two hour tour of the White House as part of his preparations for the show – describing it surprisingly as a “very small, intimate setting” – and also revealed a little more about what was going to happen further down the line. “We have the brilliant Hannah Simone from ‘New Girl’ coming on the show” he revealed, saying that she would be doing “do a role as this princess who goes on a date – she plays a literal princess of Andorra who comes to visit the White House. She's fascinated by Skip, absolutely, like in love with the idea of the chaos that is this character.”

What did the critics make of 1600 Penn?