A Bolton comedian is set to kick off an annual TV festival which draws figures from across the TV industry. Alma’s Not Normal creator Sophie Willan, who hails from Bolton , is set to be among those speaking on the first day of the Edinburgh TV Festival. The annual media event will be held between Tuesday and Friday this week.
On Tuesday, advisory chairman Harjeet Chhokar and Rowan Woods, the creative director of the event, will officially welcome delegates. Sign up to our newsletters to get the latest stories sent straight to your inbox. Big Boys supremo Jack Rooke and Alma’s Not Normal creator and actress Willan will follow them and speak about their creative processes.
Alma’s Not Normal, which won a best comedy Broadcasting Press Guild award in 2022, is set in Bolton, and sees Willan draw on her own unusual life experiences. A second series of the show has already been filmed, with one lucky audience enjoying a sneak preview of the first two episodes last month. The series, which has been snapped filming in parts of the borough , is expected to return to screens this autumn.
Rooke collected a gong for best writer for a comedy for his Channel 4 semi-autobiographical sitcom Big Boys at the 2024 Bafta Television Craft Awards. Following their talk, there will be a session on Industry, the hit BBC show about the world of finance, with creators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay, actor Sagar Radia and Bad Wolf chief executive Jane Tranter, from the series’ production company. It .