New sketch show seeks writers

Radio 4 is to launch a new sketch show – to which anybody can contribute scripts.

Producers promise that the The Show What You Wrote, scheduled for an 11pm slot, will ‘sound different from any other sketch show out there’.

The five-part series is a rare ‘open access’ show, specifically designed for new comedy writing.

Radio 4’s most famous show featuring non-commissioned writers was the topical Week Ending, which ran for 28 years from 1970, providing a way in to comedy for writers including Andy Hamilton & Guy Jenkin, Stewart Lee& Richard Herring, Harry Hill, Al Murray and John O’Farrell. Radio 4 Extra has recently revived the format for Newsjack.

Each of the episodes in The Show What You Wrote will have a specific theme: thriller/ suspense, kitchen sink drama, science fiction & horror; documentary or Historical / costume drama – but producers say ‘we’re not looking for this to become a film parody sketch show’.

There will also be one-liners between the sketches.

In the call for contributions on the BBC Writers’ Room website, they said: ‘We’re expecting that the show will mostly be stand-alone sketches, but there’s lots of room for you to experiment with format as well. We will also consider repeating characters – maybe there’s a particular idea that would work across all the different genres that we could return to in different episodes, or a particular character that you’d like to create.’

All contributors will be paid for their sketches. The submission deadline is Monday March 4.

The show will be recorded in May and June in Manchester, and air from early June.

Published: 6 Feb 2013