BBC Wales launches Festival Of Funny season
- The BBC Wales Festival Of Funny season will run on TV, radio and iPlayer from November 2021 to January 2022
- The season includes TV sitcom pilots Mammoth, Bravo Two Charlies and Beena And Amrit
- There will also be new series of In My Skin, Age Of Outrage and The Tuckers, plus short films and radio shows
BBC Wales is launching Festival Of Funny, a season that showcases Welsh comedy talent across TV, radio and BBC iPlayer.
The BBC confirms: "From November through to January, BBC Wales will be showing brand new comedy programmes, with some familiar faces, as well as up-and-coming talent across its services. This is part of an ongoing commitment from BBC Wales to support and develop the next generation of comedy writers and performers."
The shows are:
In My Skin
The BAFTA award-winning comedy drama returns on 7th November for a second series. Bethan (Gabrielle Creevy) embark on her last year of school, entering an exciting new relationship and planning to fly the nest, all while still desperately trying to hide the reality of her still troubled home life.
Mammoth
A sitcom written by and starring Mike Bubbins that focuses on a school teacher brought back from the dead.
The plot is described as: "42 years after being engulfed by an avalanche on a school skiing trip in 1979, Tony Mammoth is miraculously brought back to life. Things can't have changed that much since 1979... could they?"
Joseph Marcell, who played Geoffrey Butler in The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air, co-stars as Mammoth's best friend.
The pilot is due to be shown on BBC One Wales and BBC iPlayer this November.
Age Of Outrage
Following on from the 2020 pilot, sketch show Age Of Outrage returns with a six part series that "makes light of the frustrations of modern life."
Live From Aberystwyth Pier
Kiri Pritchard-McLean hosts four new stand up shows filmed at Aberystwyth Comedy Festival. The line-ups include both emerging talent and established comedians.
BBC Radio Wales will broadcast a radio version - Aberystwyth Stand-Up Show - on Monday 25th October at 6:30pm, featuring the sets of Tadiwa Mahlunge, Cerys Bradley, Leila Navabi and Tudur Owen.
The Tuckers
The second series of the sitcom written and starring Steve Speirs about the close-knit Tucker family who are determined to survive through any means necessary will start on TV in January 2022.
Bravo Two Charlies
A TV taster pilot of the BBC Radio Wales sitcom will make its debut on BBC One Wales. PC Dennis Babb (Martin Trenaman) and PC Lee Cushion's (Rhys ap Trefor) of North Wales Traffic Police gets their day disrupted and duties put on hold as a malfunction with their patrol vehicle's electronics system leaves them trapped inside with no way of escape.
Beena And Amrit
TV sitcom taster pilot written by Priya Hall and Sarah Breese. Recently graduated Beena (Hall) moves back in with her mother, Amrit (Meera Syal) and finds the mother/daughter roles being reversed. Not only is her mother intercepting her parcels for herself, but she's playing up to Grandma and sponging off Beena. Add in a nosey neighbour, and Beena quickly feels like she's the only normal person.
Priya Hall says: "I'm so excited to see Beena And Amrit on BBC One Wales this winter as part of the Festival Of Funny. Having the chance to adapt a former BBC Radio Wales drama into a TV show was such an awesome experience and to act in it alongside the great Meera Syal was a dream come true. Also, writing the script with Sarah Breese was such a fun process so I hope everyone enjoys watching it!"
Short Films
BBC Wales will also showcase short films featuring writers and performers who have previously worked with BBC Sesh - BBC Wales' platform to help develop creative talent across Wales with content aimed at 18-34 year olds.
Up and coming Welsh indie band; Vandullz are on the brink of their big break. But will the pressures of life on the road force them to give up before they've even started? Written by: Leila Navabi and Siôn Edwards.
This short film sees the returners, the misfits, the dregs get together at the post-grad SU bar, where the only students drinking are the ones who have nowhere better to go and no-one better to be with. Written by: Rachel Harper and Garyn Williams.
Golden Cobra is a short-form animated comedy about a delivery driver at an Indian takeaway on his first night on the job. Written by: Adam Llewellyn and James Prygodzicz.
The Leak
Starting 1st November, Tom Price and guests are back for a new series of the BBC Radio Wales topical comedy format. "As the show's (entirely fictional) drone plummets to Earth from the stratosphere, taking in the news as it goes, Tom and his guests zoom in on the events that are shaping Wales and the world."
The first episode will be a special focused around the COP26 Summit. "The team attempt to solve the climate crisis using only the power of comedy."
The Musical Life Of...
The award-winning musical sitcom returns for a third series to reveal the untold stories (with some artistic licence) of Wales' greatest men and women. In this series: Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson, Welsh pirate Black Bart, footballer Neville Southall and the wizard Merlin.
BBC Radio Cymru
Meanwhile the Welsh language station will broadcast the following shows:
Chwalu Pen
Mari Lövgreen challenges team captains and special guests in a merrymaking panel quiz show.
Uffern Iaith y Nefoedd
Panel show with linguist Gruffudd Owen, who leads the teams through a host of challenges and linguistical questions with the aim of making them laugh. With team captains Mari Beard and Richard Elis.
Commissioning editor Paul Forde comments: "It's great to be producing comedy again after the pandemic derailed our plans in 2020. I'm really proud of the range of different comedies that we've managed to cover in this Festival Of Funny season. It demonstrates the wealth of comedy talent that is currently available to us in Wales, both new and established."