Mayor of West Yorkshire pays tribute to Kay Mellor

17 May 2022

Kay Mellor will forever be known as the voice of the North

Through her incredible catalogue of work, which included iconic dramas such as Band of Gold and Fat Friends, she brought working class stories to the screens of millions of people. 

Kay was a unique talent. Her writing was warm, funny and hard-hitting all at the same time. 

She was one of life’s grafters and having had her children young, she went back into education once her daughters were at school.  

She never gave up on her dreams – and she also helped many people achieve theirs. 

She gave many young actors like James Corden their first big roles and helped to champion other northern writers. 

Kay passionately believed in her home county and the talent we have here. And she was one of the leading campaigners to make Leeds the new home of Channel 4.  

I was privileged to work with Kay and, even more so, to call her a friend. 

For many people who didn’t know her personally, they felt like they knew her from watching her work.  

She told their stories in their voices in a way no other writer could.  

My heart goes out to her family, her friends and her colleagues.