Simon Nicholls offers expert insight into his MA Comedy Writing course

Despite knowing exactly what he wanted to do from the age of 13, Simon was pushed into studying a law degree by his family. “My grandmother told me that ‘if comedy doesn’t work out, at least you can write people’s wills.’ That’s not even the case! Within two weeks of my degree, I knew I hated it.”  

Although Simon’s grandmother was the reason he’d been consigned to three years of totally irrelevant study, the same woman helped him break into the comedy world. “After my degree, I was living at my Gran’s. I’d responded to an ad in the paper for a position as a runner on Jonathan Ross’ new panel show, and when the producers called up, she picked up the phone. She told them what a wonderful young man I was, and they found her so funny that they agreed to meet me! It ended up being my first job in comedy.” 

And the reason he was hired for that position?   

“In the words of the producers who hired me: ‘because I looked like a weirdo!’ But I think they were also intrigued by me, because they saw I had the law degree and just couldn’t understand why I would earn peanuts to be a runner instead of making money as a lawyer. But it was just what I wanted to do.”  

And Simon believes working as a producer was the perfect training for his new role as course leader. “The way I see it, running this Comedy Writing course requires the same skills. As a producer, what I’m doing is spotting new writers with talent, developing their skills and enabling them to sell their idea.” 

“In the same way, applicants will send me a sample script, I’ll read it, and if I see potential in the writer, I’ll ask them to join the MA. I then teach them everything I know about writing comedy, with a view to building up their confidence and giving them the skills to approach the industry.” 

According to Simon, building up confidence by providing a clear roadmap when it comes to comedy writing is an important part of the process. As Simon explains, “the way I teach scriptwriting is a bit like building a huge Lego kit. It’s done in a manageable way, piece by piece. It’s very easy to mess up a comedy script, so you’ve got to plan it carefully. 

“Comedy, whether it’s a sketch, sitcom or comedy drama, needs to have everything drama has – a juicy plot, a dramatic story, an emotional story… AND it has be funny. This is why a lot of professional writers will tell you that comedy is harder to write than drama. Then add to this the fact that everyone has a different sense of humour, and you have quite a challenge on your hands!”