In its role as the country’s first 24-hour laugh source, The Comedy Network is aiming to present an irreverent voice that steers clear of sitcom pap and delivers edgier comic fare. In the process, it hopes to provide a platform for Canada’s prodigious comedic talent, and, as the service ramps up, for an increasing number of Canadian producers.

The schedule of Baton majority-owned Comedy will feature stand-up as well as sketch and parody shows, shorts and other established programming from Canada, the u.s. and the u.k. Shows are along the lines of Fawlty Towers, Blackadder, Saturday Night Live and The Larry Sanders Show, in addition to Canadian shows like Kids in the Hall, Royal Canadian Air Farce and The New Red Green Show.

The network has also undertaken a number of original shows for this fall’s schedule, a combination of in-house and independent productions. Among the original shows set to air this fall are the strange El Mundo del Lundo from Halifax’s Salter Street Films. The 65-episode daily show features a skewed presentation of various types of tv footage from around the world – soaps, movies, u.s. army training films, Hercules, and the like – with substituted voice-overs written and performed by a group of Halifax improv players and hosted by the character of Lundo.

Ed Robinson, vp programming, had met with Salter’s Michael Donovan late last year and immediately cottoned to Donovan’s idea for El Mundo. ‘I like it because it sounded like the voice we are trying to establish, which is irreverent and kind of wacky,’ says Robinson. ‘It’s something you wouldn’t find on conventional broadcast systems.’

El Mundo is preceded in the schedule at 10 p.m. by Canadian Comedy Shorts, a daily showcase of Canadian comedy that combines in-house as well as acquired and commissioned short-burst comedy pieces from independent producers across the country.

‘It allows us to provide a national audience and a platform for smaller pieces of comic work,’ says Robinson.

Short pieces vary in length and style, ranging from Lupo the Butcher from Vancouver animator Danny Antonucci of a.k.a Cartoon to new and existing National Film Board shorts to The Comedy Network’s in-house ‘tribute’ to Heritage Minutes called Sacrilege Moments.

The network has also commissioned a number of programs from smaller independent producers including Ottawa’s Greg Lawrence, who is creating a total of 40 shorts of various lengths in three different series for this year’s schedule.

The series consist of a live-action compilation of right-wing commentary on current events, a collection of Lawrence’s own tirades (‘an attack on the things that piss me off,’ he says), and an animated series, produced entirely by Lawrence, about a character named Kevin Spence and the path to becoming a sociopath.

Lawrence says the Comedy shows originated at a pitch session organized by the Ottawa-Hull Film and Television Association. With a documentary called Human Nature under his belt and a background in troupe comedy writing, Lawrence pitched ‘eight shows in 20 minutes’ at the Ottawa session.

Lawrence has another series in development that he anticipates might be realized for season two or three of Comedy.

The channel has also commissioned Montreal producer Caroline Maria to produce 150 20-second shorts called The Many Deaths of Norman Spittel, a co-production with u.k.-based Codename Animation for the Comedy Shorts series.

Rounding out the specialty’s new daily productions is Open Mike, a twisted talk show hosted by comedian Mike Bullard, produced in-house and broadcast (it is hoped) live.

The network is also producing 26 episodes of The Dish Show, a women’s forum for discussing life hosted by Brigitte Gall and Maureen Holloway, and 26 episodes of Double Exposure. The CBC Radio staple will be produced out of Comedy’s bbs affiliate in Vancouver and will run on Baton and Comedy. The channel’s Sunday night centerpiece, The Comedy Network Presents, is a showcase of top comedic talent from across the country.

The channel has committed about $4 million to original programming in year one. Initial investments were slightly lower than planned, says Robinson, with delays in launch putting an additional cash crunch on the network.

‘We’re launching with a schedule we’re happy with but it’s our ambition to add more original material as we are able,’ says Robinson. In its second year, the channel anticipates spending just under $6 million on new shows.