BBC seeks Father Figure for TV

BBC1 has commissioned a sitcom pilot based on one of its radio comedies, featuring stand-up comedian Jason Bryne.

Jason Byrne

Father Figure, a comedy pilot in which Bryne plays an error-prone married man with two sons, will be produced in-house early next year.

The four-part radio show – created, written by and starring Bryne – aired on BBC Radio 2 this year. Its producer Julia McKenzie will also produce the TV pilot, while Pauline McLynn (Father Ted) will rejoin the cast.

The pilot, aimed at a post-watershed audience, will be exec produced by Stephen McCrum (Mrs Brown’s Boys) and was commissioned by BBC1 controller Danny Cohen and Cheryl Taylor, BBC’s controller of comedy commissioning.

Previous BBC comedies to successfully take the step from radio to TV include The Mighty Boosh and Little Britain.

The news comes a week after BBC1 commissioned another comedy pilot, from Blackadder scribe Ben Elton.