Channel 4's Comedy Lab brand has been the launching pad for some of TV's biggest comedy stars since it first began in 1998. In the Lab's very first season Peter Kay launched his illustrious Channel 4 career with The Services back in 1998; and it was also where Jimmy Carr made his first TV appearance in Jimmy Carr's World of Corporate Videos.
Other notable series to have been spawned include Fonejacker, Trigger Happy TV, School of Comedy and Modern Toss.
The series has been an invaluable vehicle for giving stars their first significant TV breaks, with household names such as Russell Brand, Ricky Gervais, Mitchell and Webb, Katy Brand and Karl Pilkington all appearing in Comedy Labs early in their careers.
The Comedy Lab offerings for 2011 are a strong and distinctive collection of pilots, showcasing both brand new comedy talent, with television debuts, as well as brand new writers authoring their first television projects. We're really thrilled by the variety we have this year and the fantastic standard of talented writers, performers and producers we've worked with.
Nerys Evans,
Commissioning Editor, Comedy
