Shane Allen, Controller of BBC Comedy Commissioning, announced the BBC’s upcoming comedy slate which is set to include a new pilot produced by CPL Productions, a Red Arrow Studios company, as part of BBC Three’s Comedy Slices.

Shane Allen, Controller of BBC Comedy Commissioning, says: “The last few years in BBC Comedy have been a boom time for new talent with multi-award winning shows including Fleabag, This Country, The Young Offenders and People Just Do Nothing. These are shows that have taken a risk on new talent, which have resulted in comedy from the heart that has a very real sense of place and with characters you grow to care about – who earn those emotional twists and turns.

“In a world where there’s more competition for established talent from an array of competitors we want to broaden and cement our commitment to finding the very best of new wave talent and how we’re going to achieve that is through a comprehensive talent ladder to provide opportunity to an array of emerging voices and performers.

“We get excited by the stories that haven’t been told and the voices we haven’t yet heard which is why you’ll see more and more diversity of all kinds in the output over the next few years as we break new ground. Today’s announcements signal our expansion of this commitment to championing the very best emerging British comedy talent alongside new comedy pieces that cater for the wide spectrum of tastes of our audiences.

“We believe in a British talent first and foremost approach and are here to grow the stars of tomorrow through the hit shows of today.”

About Comedy Slices, BBC Three

Now in their sixth year, the Comedy Slices are the vital place to develop the next generation of British on and off-screen comedy talent. The three brand new pilots from three female rising stars announced by the BBC include – Diary of a Hounslow Girl (w/t) written by and starring Ambreen Razia and produced by CPL Productions, and Tash and Ellie (w/t) from writer-performing duo Natasia Demetriou and Ellie White.

Commissioned by Shane Allen, Controller of Comedy Commissioning and Damian Kavanagh, Controller of BBC Three.

Diary of a Hounslow Girl (w/t)

Shaheeda, Tash and Leonie are three West London college students with big dreams, big attitudes, and big plans. From fights on the night bus to yet another ‘family’ wedding, mosque class to fake IDs, new hijab swags to cooking up schemes on Hounslow High Street, these girls are determined to have the best time – fun first, consequences second. Bouncing between being good, modern Muslim girls and living their best lives, they are three smart, young, Asian women in a bold, provocative, new comedy.

Diary of a Hounslow Girl (w/t) is written by and stars Ambreen Razia (BBC Talent Hotlist 2017), inspired by her smash hit play, and is produced by CPL Productions Ltd.

Script edited by Holly Walsh, produced by Charlie Coombes and executive produced by Arabella McGuigan & Danielle Lux for CPL Productions. The Commissioning Editor for the BBC is Alex Moody.

In My Skin

In My Skin is a darkly comic, coming of age story about Bethan Gwyndaf – a 16 year old girl who tells a lot of lies. At school she poses as the perfect student, with a run-of-the-mill family. But all the while her mother is sectioned in a mental facility based only moments away. We follow Bethan as her house of cards slowly begins to collapse.

This series gives a raw and accurate portrayal of growing up in Wales today, holding up a mirror to the state of our nation. There’s heartache, and laughs, and shame, and sometimes an almost too-hard-to-look quality as we revisit the pain of adolescence.

In My Skin is written by Kayleigh Llewellyn and produced by Expectation Entertainment. The Executive Producer is Nerys Evans for Expectation Entertainment and Kate Daughton is the BBC Commissioning Editor. The producer is Gina Lyons.

Tash and Ellie (w/t)

Writer-performers Natasia Demetriou and Ellie White are one of Britain’s most exciting new double acts and bring their world of one of a kind and unforgettable characters to BBC Three.

Ellie and Natasia embody the most familiar cultural stereotypes and completely make them their own. With their unique take on modern society, pop culture and, more importantly, the role of women within it, the characters and sketches will be memorable, current, and very funny.

Ellie plays Princess Beatrice in Channel 4’s popular The Windsors and will also star in Holly Walsh’s series The Other One on BBC Two alongside Lauren Socha and Siobhan Finneran. Natasia will play the lead role of Sophie in Jamie Demetriou’s series Stath Lets Flat on Channel 4 and will star in the FX series of What We Do In The Shadows with Matt Berry and Kayvan Novak.

The Executive Producers for CPL Productions are Harry Hill and Mobashir Dar. The Commissioning Editor for the BBC is Alex Moody.