'It’s an existential issue' producers say

British TV comedy faces an ‘existential’ threat from planned tax changes, some of the biggest names in the business have warned.

Producers say the proposals will have a ‘scorched earth’ effect on the sector, making it harder to fund programmes in what is already a high-risk genre.

The government is suggesting raising the threshold at which programme-makers can claim 20 per cent tax relief from £1 million to £1.5 million an hour as production costs rise. But that would exclude most comedy shows, which operate on tighter budgets compared to drama.

Consultation on the plans has just closed, and The Times today quotes leading industry figures expressing universal condemnation.

Matthew Justice, managing director of Friday Night Dinner producers Big Talk said: ‘It’s an existential issue for scripted comedy. The broadcasters won’t step into the funding breach and shows just won’t get made. It will have a scorched earth effect.’

Jimmy Mulville, co-founder of Derry Girls producers  Hat Trick Productions described the proposal as a ‘disaster’, adding: ‘Great comedies linger longer in the public consciousness than great dramas... They are a really important cultural plank.’

And Ash Atalla, chief executive of People Just Do Nothing and Stath Lets Flats producers Roughcut TV, said  tax credit ‘is one of the really important building blocks’ for the risky genre.

He also said that the distinctiveness of comedy made it harder to attract international co-production partners, unlike drama which is easier to sell globally.

Jon Petrie, BBC director of comedy commissioning, said he would have to commission fewer shows if the changes were brought in.

A coalition of broadcasters and programme-makers have written to the the Treasury and the culture department to say  the tax relief helps deliver £4.2billion to the UK economy supports nearly 30,000 jobs.

Last year, the tax breaks on making high end TV amounted to the equivalent of £397 million, spread across 355 programmes.

Published: 13 Feb 2023