British Comedy Writers Launch Female-Led Production Company To Address On-Screen “Imbalance”

British Comedy Writers Launch Female-Led Production Company To Address On-Screen “Imbalance”

Four British comedy writers and performers have launched a female-led production company designed to address the imbalance of “well-rounded female” characters on screen.

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Caroline Amer, Natalie Bray, Rebecca Tanwen Morgan and Isobel Hughes have launched Double Yay Productions to produce comedy series for linear and digital platforms and have already started work on their first production – Nutritiously Nicola! about an unhealthy health-food blogger.

The trio said that they were “outraged” at the cost of acting classes and the lack of roles for women so they decided to set up their firm. They are looking to create shows that are “funny” and “feminist”.

“There’s a lie that women are told, almost from day one. Which is that we’re bitchy or competitive. It was probably created to stall us from realising the truth and taking over the world,” the group said.

They are currently in production with seven-part digital series Nutritiously Nicola! The show is about “food, friendship, fxxcking up, and finding your filter” and tells the story of Nicola Woodford, a not-so-healthy health food blogger slash spinning instructor living in East London who wants to become a global brand. Her dream is for Nutritiously Nicola! to become a global brand. The series, which will feature episode of around 10 minutes, stars Poldark’s Heida Reed, Outlander’s Andrew Gower, Goodnight Sweetheart’s Christopher Etteridge, Kingsman: Secret Service’s Fiona Hampton and The Borgias’ Luke Allen-Gale. It was produced after the group raised over £16,000 (US$23,000) via Kickstarter.

“We make comedy that’s not just for comedy’s sake,” added Natalie Bray, Producer and Creative Director at Double Yay Productions. “Our work features female leads who are kind of heroines – they may be messed up heroines, but they’re heroines you know. They’re a bit like us; a bit like you. It may be comedy about women, but it’s something that everyone will find funny. There is a serious undertone in our work – what we would call aggressive heart. Our work has a British sensibility with global appeal.”