BAFTA award winning and Emmy nominated producer Caroline Norris has joined Candle & Bell as Executive Producer of Comedy. As a producer on Motherland, Tracey Ullman’s Show, and Horrible Histories (amongst many others) Caroline brings a wealth of knowledge in developing and producing comedy for television. Gateshead based Candle & Bell has a strong track record in producing scripted comedy films, and with the help of Caroline, the company is now breaking into the Television industry, by developing new ideas for sit-coms.
“I’m so excited to be working with Candle & Bell.” Said Caroline. “They have a wealth of fantastic ideas and talent relationships, and also an excellent office dog which is obviously of vital importance”
In June 2023, Candle & Bell celebrates 10 years in business. The company has come a long way from its humble beginnings, and has won two RTS awards and produced hundreds of hours of commercial content, as well as numerous award winning short films. Most recently Candle & Bell produced series 2 of ShortFlix for Sky Arts.
In February 2023, Candle & Bell was awarded Small Indie Fund for comedy from the BBC, alongside investment from the REACH Film and TV grant from North East Screen. This finance has been crucial in aiding the growth of the company and helping the team pursue their ambitions to grow their slate of TV projects. The company has also added award winning producer Zahra Zomorrodian to its team, to lead development of the comedy slate.
The company recently won a development commission on a TV sitcom idea with local writer Elijah Young, and founder Maria Caruana Galizia is looking forward to working with Caroline on developing the slate of projects even further.
“Working with Caroline has already had a huge impact on Candle & Bell. She is just as driven as we are to succeed and we knew from our first meeting with her she would be the perfect person to help us develop and produce outstanding comedy TV shows. The money from BBC and North East Screen has made a substantial difference to Candle & Bell, and by adding Zahra and Caroline to the team, our comedy slate has progressed at a rapid pace over the last few months. It’s a really exciting time for us and we’re incredibly grateful to the BBC and North East Screen for their support. ”
North East Screen is the screen agency for the North East, dedicated to helping production companies and talent in the North East of England thrive. Lisa Laws, Head of Talent and Business Development at North East Screen, commented ‘’NE Screen are thrilled to partner with BBC Comedy to support Candle and Bell with these exciting new appointments. Caroline brings an exceptional track record, connections and world class experience that will give the development team a real boost. We cannot wait to see what new voices and stories they uncover for BBC audiences.”
