CHANNEL 4 is looking to bring a new sitcom set in Bradford, charting the lives of four South Asian college students, in what is pitched as a "sort of British-Asian Inbetweeners".

Comedy producer Stu Richards confirmed that the channel was currently casting for the roles, with auditions set to take place at Bradford College in mid-July.

He also confirmed that an as yet unnamed Bradfordian would be writing the sitcom and that behind the scenes people from the city, such as make up artists and prop designers, would be needed.

Speaking about the premise of the show, Mr Richards said: "We're looking for five South Asians from Bradford or West Yorkshire, four men and a woman, who are funny and fresh and can play an 18-year-old college student."

"It's not literally a remake of The Inbetweeners, they're all slightly older for a start. But it is about the camaraderie between four lifelong friends who are useless in their different ways.

"So there'll be a cool handsome one, a hapless one, a conspiratorial one etc. They're all young lads who are trying to deal with the world and the struggles of becoming a man."

Asked why Channel 4 had chosen Bradford, Mr Richards enthused: "For me, Bradford is unique.

"There's so much talent and skill in the city and this is a real opportunity to tap into those resources and do something that's not been done for TV in this area before, a comedy sitcom.

"We want it to be an authentic representation of Bradford so I feel it could only be written by someone who lives here and that's the idea, we want people from Bradford to be behind and in front of the camera.

"The make-up department at Bradford College is incredible so we could use their help, as well as people filming it and designing our props.

"We'd like the majority of the cast and crew to be from Bradford."

Explaining the stage the show is at now, Mr Richards said: "I can't give away too many specific details, but we're casting at the moment and the auditions will be held at Bradford College in mid-July.

"Obviously, we're looking find a South Asian cast, so of Bangladeshi or Pakistani heritage for example.

"At the moment, we're hoping to be able to shoot a pilot in Bradford this September, with a view to hopefully filming more shows later in the year if that's successful.

"I'll be able to give out more details when Channel 4 circulate their official press release soon.

"For now, we're asking those who are keen to take part in the show to contact us at casting@rockerdalestudios.co.uk.

"If they tell us just a little bit about themselves and include a photo, we'll reply and let them know about the auditions."

Even though Mr Richards has made it clear that the show is not a remake of The Inbetweeners by any means, he and Channel 4 will be thrilled if this new sitcom is even half as successful.

The original show ran for three seasons on E4, owned by Channel 4, between 2008 and 2010.

Despite lasting just 18 episodes, it obtained a huge following, which led to feature length films in 2011 and 2014, and made Simon, Will, Jay and Neil household names.