Angel Eye keen to find comic talent

LONDON-based independent production company Angel Eye is hoping to boost its profile in Scotland after completing two programmes for Channel 4's Comedy Lab series.

One of the entertainment shows, The Last Chancers, was directed by Steve Merchant, the writer who developed the BBC hit series The Office with Ricky Gervais. The half-hour pilot will be broadcast on Channel 4 on Thursday.

The company's second show, Pam Ann's Mile High Club (featuring stand-up comedienne Caroline Reid), is due to be broadcast in December.

Set up in 1998, Angel Eye was initially commissioned to produce a six-part documentary series called Edinburgh Or Bust about comedy acts making a bid for stardom at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

In 1999 the company established a production base in the capital before eventually relocating to Glasgow's Research Centre for Television and Interactivity.

According to John O'Callaghan, Angel Eye Scotland's creative director, the decision to establish a base in Scotland was linked with a desire to find new talent outside London.

"We kept finding brilliant people up there and we really wanted to tap into some of that talent," he said.

O'Callaghan added that Angel Eye was now looking to develop its entertainment slate in Scotland following the production of its two Comedy Lab shows and a one-hour performance slot for BBC 4.

"We have been here for a few years, but we are still keen to develop new relationships with Scottish writers and producers - it's a fantastic place for meeting people.

"Developing entertainment shows is what we know best and we now have a great background in that area. Scotland is a good place to attempt to do that and perhaps we could emulate the success of The Book Group [produced in Glasgow by US writer/director Annie Griffin]."

As well as producing the Golden Rose of Montreux-nominated sitcom The Estate Agents for Channel 4, the six-strong production company was involved in co-producing the feature film Beginner's Luck, starring Julie Delpy and Steven Berkoff.

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