ITV comedy boss Saskia Schuster exits

ITV's comedy boss Saskia Schuster is leaving the broadcaster.

She has announced she is moving to production company Fulwell 73, which is setting up a scripted division. Schuster, who has been at ITV since 2014, will join the company in May, focusing on developing new comedy dramas.

She said: "Fulwell 73 is synonymous with creating world class comedy and entertainment programming working with the best talent. Off the back of international successes such as Gavin & Stacey and Roast Battle, I'm really excited to be joining to expand Fulwell's scripted output.

"As anyone who knows me already knows, I'm passionate about addressing gender imbalance in comedy and I am really pleased that at Fulwell this is very much part of their remit. It's great that when I join Fulwell in May I'll be able to continue my work with Comedy 50:50, with support from my new colleagues and the wider industry."

Fulwell 73's Leo Pearlman says: "Saskia is one of the best comedy executives in the business and the perfect cultural fit for Fulwell. She has an enviable track record of having commissioned some of the UK's best loved shows during her time at ITV and Sky. We're really pleased to welcome her to the Fulwell family as we continue to expand our scripted programming and cannot wait to work with her on a slate of original, innovative and noisy content."

ITV is expected to reveal who will be taking over from Schuster later this year.