...thanks to Frasier's Kelsey

The Sketch Show has become the latest British comedy show to be picked up by American TV - thanks to Frasier star Kelsey Grammer.

The actor's production company Grammnet is to produce a pilot episode of the ITV1 comedy for the Fox network.

British scripts will be remade with American actors, and the show will probably be filmed in London.

Other producers of the show include Whose Line Is It Anyway? creator Dan Patterson and Jon Thoday from Avalon TV, which made the British version with Tim Vine, Jim Tavare, Lee Mack, Karen Taylor, Ronni Ancona and Kitty Flanagan.

Grammnet executive Steve Stark told Hollywood trade journal Variety: "Dan came in and showed me about ten minutes of it, and it was one of the funniest, quickest-paced shows I've seen in a long time.

"I love sketch comedy shows but am tired of the ones that take too long and have no payoff."

His company has bought the rights to use the 450 or so sketches written for the Bafta-winning ITV1 show, although an American writing team will also be hired if the pilot becomes a series.

Published: 17 Dec 2003