With script about Britain's fattest man

Caroline Aherne is writing a new comedy-drama about an obese man aiming to be the UK's fattest person.

The ITV1 show will star Timothy Spall as overweight Georgie, who is so fat he cannot leave his chair.

But Aherne is not expected to appear in front of the cameras during the 90-minute one-off, titled The Fattest Man In Britain.

The script is her first venture outside the Royle Family specials since the 2002 flop Dossa and Joe, and her only other on-screen appearance in a decade has been on Craig Cash’s BBC One comedy Sunshine.

The story to the ITV special, co-written by Jeff Pope, centres on the dilemma facing Georgie: to try to normalise his life by losing weight or to become famous by taking the fattest man title over his rival Big Barry. His exploitative agent, Morris, intends it to be the latter.

Executive producer Saurabh Kakkar said: ‘For a man trapped in his home, read someone trapped in a relationship, job or town, cheerily making the best of things. You could read Georgie’s story as a metaphor for their lives.’

Filming will start in the summer, and the comedy should be broadcast later this year.

Published: 3 Jun 2009