Channel 5 orders polygamy, amnesia docs

The UK’s Channel 5 has commissioned a trio of one-off documentaries on subjects including Britain’s only openly polygamous family and teenage amnesia.

The 1x60min films are Ellie’s World (working title) and Teen Amnesia (w/t) from OR Media/GroupM Entertainment and The Man Who Ate Himself to Death from Electric Sky.

Ellie’s World follows a ten year-old girl living in a polygamous family in which her father has seven wives, while Teen Amnesia follows the story of four teenagers that suffer from amnesia who attend a specialist summer camp.

The Man Who Ate Himself to Death follows at the story of Ricky Naputi, a 65-stone man who fought an ultimately unsuccessful battle with obesity, over three years.

Simon Raikes, commissioning editor, Channel 5, said: “These three films cover a diverse range of subjects, but each one takes the viewer deep into the daily existence of people with extraordinary stories to tell – stories that are not only compelling, but which raise fundamental questions about how we all live our lives.”

All three will broadcast over the summer.