Tom Wells is beaming. Our interview is punctuated by regular giggles from the Hull playwright, who brings his latest comedy Jumpers For Goalposts to Watford next week.

He’s a lot to be happy about. Since his debut in 2009 he’s worked with Alan Ayckbourn, written a one-off drama that aired on Channel 4, has seen his play’s tour the country and this year was named one of the UK’s most promising playwrights by The Independent. Key to his success seems down to being funny and having fun while you’re doing it.

“My last play was called The Kitchen Sink and that was a definite attempt by me to write a kitchen sink drama in the vein of A Taste Of Honey or Look Back In Anger,“ explains the 27-year-old. “I really tried but I’m not that sort of writer so it doesn’t come out like that. What comes out is comedy.

“I’m quite a people-watcher: I just find people funny. If that’s what your interested in, you notice in people the things they do that make them different, and they’re often quite amusing.“

The characters in Jumpers for Goalposts are certainly a funny bunch. Brought together to form a five-a-side Sunday league football team, the motley group play out their dramas in the changing room after each match.

“They’re pretty hapless,“ says Tom, “They’re a lesbian and gay team. They are there because they’re mates rather than being good at football. It’s all a bit ramshackle, but that’s authentic to five-a-side!

“They’re quite ill-prepared, many of them don’t even own shinpads.“

The team is made up of lesbian landlady Viv, who is desperately trying to coach her crew to gain the title; mates Danny and Geoff; Joe, Viv’s widowed brother-in-law; and newcomer Luke. Each is humourous in their own way, making the play both heart-warming and hilarious.

“When you’re writing a play and you have to rehearse it, you’re spending a lot of time with those characters, so I think they might as well be good company! If they were really tedious it would be awful. It’s totally in your control how much fun you have – you might as well just go for it.“

After studying English at Oxford, Tom worked as a dish-washer in a café before taking a writing workshop. Although he’d not been involved in drama before, or even been to the theatre that often, it’s the playwrighting life for him now.

“For other kinds of writers it’s really unsociable. They just sit on their own and write it and then it’s written. When you’re a playwirght you get the unsociable bit, but then you get the fun bit where you get to hang around with everyone.

“It would be a shame not to be part of it. There is a proper reason, but mainly it’s a bit less lonely!“

Tom, who penned a short play performed at last year’s Imagine Watford festival, has joined the cast and crew as they rehearse, squeezing in extra gags – and laughing a lot.

“It’s a bit of a funny one,“ he giggles. “You don’t want to be a knob, laughing at your own jokes, but at the same time you wrote it because you find it funny.

“You’re always looking for opportunities to make things clearer, funnier or sing a bit more. You’re always looking at it with opportunistic eyes, to improve it.

“In rehearsals there comes a point when it’s definitely stopped being funny, but for everyone’s sake, you have to take it for the team and laugh along! It’s horrible to be an actor in a silent room saying your punchline and getting nothing back. And, of course, you can laugh at your own jokes shamelessly and not feel awkward afterwards!“

Jumpers for Goalposts is at Watford Palace Theatre from April 5 to 20 at various times. Details: 01923 225671