Matt (played by Lee Ridley, aka Lost Voice Guy) is 28. He has cerebral palsy and can only speak via an app on his iPad. Everyone who cares about Matt knows that this isn't the defining thing about him. Matt is funny and clever and "up for stuff".
Matt shares a flat with his best mate, Jess (Sammy Dobson). He has a rubbish carer, Bob (Jason Lewis). And finally, last year, in series 3 Matt met Anna (Lisa Hammond). They have loads in common and she is even a wheelchair user so they can share their annoyance and grief and same sense of humour at people's crazy attitudes to disabilities.
Now in series 4 of this award nominated comedy, Matt has been with Anna for six months. This is to be their first romantic weekend away and Anna is very excited, but Matt is worried that Anna is all too easily slipping into the role of being his carer, so he asks Bob along to un-blur the lines. And then Jess joins in too. This is not what Anna had in mind.
Ability is the semi-autobiographical co-creation of Lee Ridley, who, like Matt, has Cerebral Palsy and uses his iPad to speak. Producer Jane Berthoud started developing this sitcom with Lee after he won the BBC New Comedy Awards in 2014. Lee later went on the win Britain's Got Talent in 2018.
The series is set in Newcastle.
Written by Lee Ridley, Kat Butterfield and Daniel Audritt
A Funnybones production for BBC Radio 4 Show less