...says BBC comedy chief

Broadcast Comedy Forum: Television sitcoms fail to reflect much of British life, a senior BBC executive has admitted.

Simon Wilson, the corporation’s executive editor for comedy, said that programmes pitched to him tend to offer a ‘surprisingly narrow’ view of the country.

‘They are often set in the South East,’ he said. ‘And if not, it tends to be set in Manchester or nearby.

‘There are also a limited number of worlds: Flat-shares, people just leaving college, middle-aged men… These are not reflecting most people’s normal lives.

He said that compared to the diversity of real-life stories told in factual entertainment shows, comedy often falls short. ‘The number of stories to be told are not reflected in what we receive,’ he said. ‘We'd love to find stories that reflect modern Britain.’

However, in another session, April Chamberlain of Glasgow-based The Comedy Unit spoke of her frustrations about getting programmes such as Gary: Tank Commander, on to network TV, not just BBC Scotland.

Wilson said that of all the BBC’s TV channels, he received fewest ideas aimed at BBC One audiences, despite their bigger budgets, possibly because of the fear of failure: ‘These are 9pm to 10pm slots and incredibly exposed,’ he said.

He added he was looking for ‘warmth’ in programmes pitched for BBC One, but warned producers and writers: ‘Steer away from families – we already have a number of shows in development that dissect family relationships. Competition is very tough in that field.’

BBC Two was especially keen to develop ‘broad, pre-watershed’ comedy following the success of Rev and Miranda he said, while ‘continuing to nurture the slate of strong writer-performers’ associated with the channel.

BBC Three is seeking ‘totally unusual’ shows such as Mongrels and Wrong Door, he added, while the few comedies made for BBC Four should be full of ‘insight, wit and extremes,’ he said. ‘Shows here can have a very strong flavour – think of The Thick Of It or Charlie Brooker. We can go further because there’s an arthouse feel to the channel.’

Meanwhile Sky One’s Lucy Lumsden outlined her channel’s new drive into comedy, with plans to launch six to eight shows a year.

‘We’re doing a lot of pilots,’ she said. ‘Our viewers are used to shows that are fully-formed, and anything we make has to sit next to the big, bold American acquisitions.’ But she added: ‘We’re not going to try to please everyone; we want to be loved by a few.’

She said she was particularly looking for shows that could be shot in front of a studio audiences, plus sitcoms that could go out before the watershed but still have an edge. She pointed out that 30 Rock plays in the US before 9pm, but in Britain ‘something goes wrong inside our heads when we think pre-watershed’.

Lumsden, who previously worked at the BBC, also said Sky would commission the occasional wildcard show because ‘hits never came out of strategy’. Already Sky One is making the surreal sitcom This Is Jinsy, which previously piloted on BBC Three.

However she said there were no plans for any sketch shows. ‘I’m very nervous of them… that dreaded hit and miss,’ she said.

Comedy Central is also moving into homegrown commissioning, with plans for three shows a year. It has already started its new policy with Olivia Lee: Dirty, Sexy, Funny, which has a second series in the works, and Grouchy Young Men, which will not be returning, commissioning editor Pete Thornton added.

Digital channel Dave is also looking to make more of its own content, following the success of the Red Dwarf revival and Argumental. ‘Panel shows are very important to us,’ said channel head Steve North. ‘Animation is very exciting and a multiplatform element is important.’

Published: 23 Sep 2010