Nanny to air on Radio 4 next month

Sara Pascoe is directing a new musical about two nannies and would-be comedians.

Nanny has been written by Alana Ramsey and Lizzie Stables, who will perform it for Radio 4 next month.

The pair play actor-nannies Amy and Lea as they juggle demanding bosses – big and small – money worries, dwindling auditions and the creeping feeling that, as they approach 40, time might be running out for their own dreams of motherhood and of forming a comedy double act.

Matthew Floyd Jones – of Frisky and Mannish fame – composed the music and also appears as the pianist for nursery rhyme time at the toddler group where the production is set.

In those moments, the pair enter an imagined world where babies’ gurgles become roaring applause as they perform musical numbers such as The Perfect Mum and Everything You Do Fails.

Pascoe, above, said: ‘Nanny really captures the chaos of parenting – it’s funny, honest, and very familiar. Lizzie and Alana are brilliant, and it was such a pleasure to work together on it.’

Ramsey and Stables have previously performed a stage version of the musical with Jenny Rainsford, which premiered at Bristol Old Vic in 2023, followed by a run at Plymouth Theatre Royal. Both have side careers in childcare.

They said: ‘We’ve both always loved Sara Pascoe, so we were thrilled when she said she wanted to direct. Her comic voice around modern womanhood, combined with her unflinching honesty about parenting, makes her an ideal fit for Nanny. 

‘She was a joy to work with, and really helped us achieve what we were aiming for with this new version for radio.’

The pair are also developing other projects, including a sitcom set in a Berkshire hospital in the 1980s.

Nanny will air on BBC Radio 4 on May 21 at 2.15pm.

Publicity for the show says: ‘It’s about friendship, the kind that carries you through the decades, ambition, insecurity and the invisible emotional labour of caring for other people’s children while struggling with your own dreams of motherhood.’

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Published: 25 Apr 2026