Shane Allen wants a new body to promote the genre

The BBC’s comedy chief is proposing an industry-wide initiative to promote the genre and find the next wave of stars.

Shane Allen says he has been in talks with Sky and Channel 4 to  create a British Comedy Foundation – and will today call on producers and agents to sign up.

He told trade magazine Broadcast that he the new body should aim to get more under-represented voices into comedy, help create more opportunities and celebrate the heritage of the genre.

‘The attention received by genres like drama gives me a slight inferiority complex,’ Allen said. ‘There are institutions representing lots of cultural entities so we need one that celebrates British comedy.’

The proposed collaboration has been likened to bodies in other areas of the arts such as Bafta and the National Youth Theatre.

Other aims would be to ‘wash out US cultural imperialism’ by helping make more authentically British comedies and to set out guidelines for how broadcasters could deal with complaints, particularly around political correctness.

‘There is a Victorian moral code around the way people criticise comedy, especially on social media, and the BCF could set the agenda more clearly,’ he said.

Published: 11 Apr 2019