First time writer wins The Sitcom Mission 2010
Bryn Mills, a new comedy writer, has won The Sitcom Mission 2010 - a live showcase of comedy writing dubbed 'The X-Factor for Sitcoms'.
The writer's sitcom, Thunderer, was picked as the winner by a judging panel made up of top industry executives, including comedy commissioners from the BBC, ITV and Comedy Central and the heads of comedy from Channel 4, Sky TV and BBC Radio Production.
Thunderer, a period sitcom, is set in 1885 when The British Empire is at its height. The comedy follows Samuel Mason, and editorial assistant at the mighty Daily Thunderer - a newspaper undergoing a number of changes, not least in the shape of Fleet Street's very first intrepid lady reporter, Miss Amy Peasegoode. In the pilot episode showcased, Mason and Peasegoode investigate a grisly murder whilst their lazy editor is off on an all-day lunch.
Bryn Mills says: "Everyone at Thunderer is surprised and delighted to have won this year's Sitcom Mission against such a fantastic line-up of finalists. Thanks to the organisers for their herculean efforts in arranging this amazing forum for writers and performers."
David Fynn, who directed and also starred in Thunderer, added: "This competition has given us such fantastic opportunities and we have made a lot of great contacts. It's a fabulous breeding ground for young writers, actors and directors."
Not only did Thunderer win best sitcom, but additionally its lead actors - Cian Barry and Emily Houghton - were voted Best Actor and Best Actress by the audience.
The Sitcom Mission, run by Declan Hill and Simon Wright of production company Every 1's A Critic, started with an initial entry of 500 scripts. This was whittled down to 16, with those sitcoms going through to head-to-head knockout heats at the New Diorama Theatre in London. In all, five 15-minute sitcoms made it through to the Grand Final; with Paul Stokes' Custody, Harinder Dhillon's The Selected Few, Mike Hayley's Deadly Danger and Graeme Knowles' Arthouse the other comedies competing in the final.
Judges in the heats included comedy producers, TV critics and established writers; and The Grand Final last night was attended by a number of top executives, including representatives from production companies including Hat Trick, Avalon, Objective, Tiger Aspect and TalkBack Thames as well as Eyeworks CEO and former Head of Entertainment at BBC and ITV, Paul Jackson, and current BBC Head of Entertainment, Andy Brereton.
Meanwhile, the illustrious judging panel was made up of some of the biggest decision-makers in UK comedy commissioning. The panel was comprised of BBC commissioner Simon Lupton; ITV commissioner Michaela Hennessey-Vass; Head of Channel 4 Comedy, Shane Allen; Sky TV's Head Of Comedy, Lucy Lumsden; Comedy Central's commissioner Pete Thornton; Head of BBC Comedy Jane Berthoud; and Time Out's Tim Arthur.
To find out more about the contest, see The Sitcom Mission website