BC CAROLINE AHERNE BURSARY WINNER 2018
SKY ARTS SOUTHBANK AWARDS BEST BREAKTHROUGH NOMINEE 2018 EDINBURGH COMEDY AWARDS BEST SHOW NOMINEE 2017 HERALD ANGEL AWARD WINNER 2017
BBC NEW TALENT HOT LIST 2017
CHORTLE NEWCOMER NOMINEE 2017

Multi award winning Sophie Willan’s stand up takes inspiration from her unusual life experiences, which makes for a razor sharp and totally authentic comic voice. A force to be reckoned with, she exudes confidence and northern charm.

In 2015 powerhouse Sophie Willan’s refreshing comic style took her to several competition finals including the Magners New Comedian of the Year, where she was crowned the winner. She later secured funding of over £100k to produce the dynamic multi-platform literary project Stories of Care, creating and curating short stories written by fellow care leavers. In 2016 she took her debut stand up show On Record, based on her experiences of growing up in and out of the care system, to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The show enjoyed a total sell out run and phenomenal critical acclaim, followed by a smash hit nationwide tour in 2017, which included 10 dates at London’s Soho Theatre and a commission to adapt the show into a BBC Radio 4 series, with a second series green light following quickly after. Sophie’s second show Branded was one of the big hits of the Edinburgh Fringe 2017, achieving a total sell out run, a Herald Angel Award and a nomination for Best Show at the Edinburgh Fringe Awards.

In 2020 Sophie’s sitcom Alma’s Not Normal was commissioned for a full series by BBC Two following the success of the pilot. The pilot attracted more than a million viewers and a slew of four and five-star reviews. The Mirror called it ‘Phoenix Nights meets Fleabag, guided by the spirit of Victoria Wood’; The Times said, ‘Willan’s writing is skilled and clearly very personal…uplifting and strangely enchanting’. The show featured in iPlayer for the standard four weeks, but was immediately brought back to the platform for a further 10 weeks after unprecedented demand for more viewings. Sophie is currently writing the full series for 2021 release.

She is the voice of Channel 4’s The Circle.

Credits include Still Open All Hours (BBC One), Click and Collect (BBC One), Class Dismissed (CBBC), Live from The Comedy Store (Comedy Central) As Yet Untitled (Dave) and The Last Leg Correspondents (C4).