BWTVF Adds Paul Abbott, Chuck Lorre to Master Class Session Lineup

TORONTO, April 25: Banff World Television Festival (BWTVF),
taking place in Banff, Canada, from June 10-13, has added acclaimed British
screenwriter Paul Abbott and U.S. sitcom specialist Chuck Lorre to this year’s
lineup of Master Class sessions.

Abbott produced the second series of Cracker, for which he won a BAFTA for Best Drama. His other
TV writing credits include Coronation Street, four seasons of the semi-autobiographical series Shameless, and the political thriller State of Play, which is being adapted for cinematic release by
Universal Pictures in 2008.

Lorre is the creator and executive producer of Two and a
Half Men, and has created comedy series
such as Dharma & Greg, Grace
Under Fire and Cybill. He received People's Choice Awards for Grace
Under Fire, Dharma & Greg and Two and a Half Men, a Golden Globe for Cybill, and Golden Globe and Peabody Awards as a
writer/co-executive producer on Roseanne.

Abbott and Lorre join the Festival’s previously announced
Master Class speakers, including Mike Clattenburg, the writer, director and
producer of the hit TV comedy series and the 2006 feature film The Trailer
Park Boys; Greg Daniels, the executive
producer of the Emmy Award-winning NBC series The Office and co-creator of the Emmy Award-winning FOX series King
of the Hill; executive producer/show runner
Carol Mendelsohn; The Tank Man
director Antony Thomas and Veronica Mars creator/executive producer Rob Thomas.

“The Banff Television Festival has always enjoyed the
participation of internationally renowned speakers as part of our Masters
Program,” commented BWTVF’s director of content, Jennifer Harkness. “This year
we have reached a new high with veteran show runners Chuck Lorre and Paul
Abbott, who have set a new standard for television sitcoms and drama series.”