We are thrilled to have been selected to receive the BBC TV Small Indie fund for the third year alongside the BBC Radio & Music Indie Development Fund for 2025.

The £1.7m fund was launched by the BBC in 2020 to support the development of small independent production companies with turnovers below £10m across a range of genres – Drama, Entertainment, Comedy, Factual, Children’s, Daytime and Film. We’re excited to be amongst 50 companies across the UK to receive the funding and support.

Successful companies receive investment to support development and BBC mentors to help supercharge the creative businesses. We were selected for the Small Indie Fund in 2023 alongside five other North East based production companies and again in 2024 and we are delighted that in 2025 we’ll be supported to make progress in both TV and Radio.

Working with the BBC over the last two years has allowed us to develop our comedy slate and our first radio comedy series ‘Tom and Lauren Are Going OOT’, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September, was a direct result. We are extremely keen to continue our work with the BBC comedy team to bring to life more of our ideas and stories. We are looking to grow the company and will continue to use and support diverse local talent in the content we produce.

“It’s been great working with Candle and Bell this past two years on the Small Indie Fund. Maria and Zahra’s commitment to comedy has been inspiring to see, and I’m proud of what they’ve achieved in a relatively short time, already securing multiple comedy commissions across radio and television. They are championing so much brilliant, authentic, funny talent both in the North East and across the UK, and I’m looking forward to continuing the work with them into this 3rd year on the Small Indie Fund scheme”

Emma Lawson, Commissioning Editor, BBC Comedy