Josh Cole is joining Sky comedy as Commissioning Editor. In the role, he will commission and executive produce a range of original comedy for Sky.
His appointment comes as Sky 1 becomes the home of original comedy on Sky with a focus on laugh-out-loud comedy - from hour long comedy dramas to more edgy, surprising and mischievous half hour comedies. Josh will take up his new role this autumn ahead of a strong line-up of Sky Original Productions on Sky 1, such as Bounty Hunters, co-written by and starring Jack Whitehall as well as Oscar-nominated actress Rosie Perez, Sick Note with Rupert Grint, Don Johnson and Nick Frost, and Living the Dream with Philip Glenister and Lesley Sharp.
On Sky Arts, comedy will have its foot firmly in the arts and culture camp including the acclaimed Urban Myths strand, which takes a tongue in cheek look at stories of famous faces which may or may not be true.
Jon Mountague, Head of Comedy Commissioning, commented: “It’s a great time to be bringing someone of Josh’s experience, wit and energy to the Sky comedy team. There are some absolutely brilliant shows around the corner with fantastic talent. Josh has a terrific understanding for what makes unbeatable content. He knows exactly where to find it and precisely how to nurture it, and I’m delighted he’s coming to Sky.”
Previously Josh was a producer and executive producer at Big Talk, and his credits include the forthcoming Timewasters. He has worked with Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge - together they developed her first TV project, Crashing, a comedy drama for Channel 4.Prior to this, he also held roles in comedy development at both Roughcut TV, producers of Sky’s long-running Trollied, which returns next year, and the BBC.
Josh said: “I'm thrilled to be joining Sky as Commissioning Editor. Comedy is clearly a major priority at Sky and I'm excited to be tasked with developing a new generation of quality shows, with the best comedic talent.”
Kenton Allen, CEO, Big Talk Productions, added: “Sky is very, very lucky to have nabbed Josh. He has a fine comic mind, superb talent relationships and impeccable table manners. I know he'll make a phenomenal commissioner.”