Story Collective invests in ‘Murder In Successville’ duo’s prodco Mighty Pebble

LR: Tom Davis & James De Frond

Fifth Season-backed production and investment firm The Story Collective has taken a stake in Mighty Pebble Pictures, the newly created prodco from Murder In Successville duo James De Frond and Tom Davis.

De Frond and Davis, who previously founded Banijay UK label Shiny Button, will develop and produce across drama and comedy at Mighty Pebble, which will be a vehicle for their own projects as creators and third parties.

Murder In Successville

Investment details have not been revealed but The Story Collective said it would support the company “strategically, financially and commercially” to help develop, produce and deliver projects.

De Frond and actor/comedian Davis were behind aforementioned BBC Three show Murder In Successville, as well as BBC One sitcom King Gary and The Curse for Channel 4, the latter both produced via Shiny Button.

Mighty Pebble has also named Kate Heggie, producer of Amazon Prime Video’s show Your Christmas Or Mine to head up its development slate.

The Story Collective’s CEO, Damian Keogh, said: “Tom and James are brilliant, uniquely talented individuals. Put them together and that brilliance seems to expand exponentially. From both behind and in front of the camera, they bring wit, charm, warmth, humanity, drama and laughter to everything they’re involved in, and just as important, they are honest, generous and funny.”

Davis and De Frond added: “Since meeting Damian and the team here, we’ve been blown away by their enthusiasm and support. We can’t wait to start this next stage of our journey alongside them. It’s also great to get some extra income on top of the scrap metal and dog minding businesses we’ve also set up. We’d like to thank Banijay UK / Tiger Aspect for their support over the last five years and collaborating with us on a number of shows that we are both immensely proud of.”

Mighty Pebble joins Maia Pictures and Artis Pictures at The Story Collective, which was launched in 2021 by BBC Studios alum Helen Jackson and Lookout Point duo, Simon Vaughan and Damian Keogh. The company, which changed its name from The Story Company last year, has also expanded its ranks by hiring Euston Films and See-Saw Films execs.