BBC's Manchester comedy supremo quits
Kenton Allen joins indie
The BBC’s creative head of comedy is quitting the corporation to join the production company behind Shaun Of The Dead, Spaced and Black Books.Kenton Allen will take up his new role of joint chief executive of Big Talk Productions in September, when his brief will be to head the company’s TV side.
Allen, who joined the BBC in 2003, is also head of BBC Comedy North in Manchester, which has produced Ideal, I’m with Stupid and Scallywagga, among others.
In 2006, he won an Oscar for Six Shooter, a short film he produced in a two-week holiday from the corporation.
He told trade journal Broadcast: ‘I leave behind a terrific slate of shows and a talented team, but I feel that the time is right for new challenges.’
BBC Vision chief creative officer Peter Salmon paid tribute to Allen, saying: ‘From That Mitchell and Webb Look to After You've Gone, from Omid Djalili to Comedy North, he has championed talent and teams in London and the north-west.’
Published: 10 Jul 2008
