Banijay UK acquires ‘Becoming Elizabeth’ prodco The Forge

Becoming Elizabeth

Banijay UK has acquired The Forge, the UK drama producer behind titles including Marriage, Help and Becoming Elizabeth.

The company is led by founder and MD George Faber, with its senior creative team also consisting of exec producer and head of business affairs Mark Pybus and exec producers Beth Willis and George Ormond. The acquisition also includes a first-look deal on The Forge titles for distribution arm Banijay Rights.

The Forge is currently in production on shows including The Buccaneers for Apple TV+, due to launch globally on 8 November; Disney + series Shardlake, due to release next year; a factual drama about the Grenfell disaster by Peter Kosminsky for BBC One and Generation Z, currently shooting for Channel 4.

Previous titles include National Treasure, Kiri, Help and Ackley Bridge for Channel 4, The Miniaturist, Marriage, Collateral, Roadkill and Rules Of The Game for the BBC and Becoming Elizabeth for Starz.

“I have been a massive admirer of The Forge since its inception. George Faber, Mark Pybus, Beth Willis and George Ormond have together grown one of the most ambitious and exciting drama slates in the UK,” said Patrick Holland, CEO of Banijay UK.

“With a commitment to the most distinctive authorship, a desire to make shows of the highest quality and a creative commitment to make drama that appeals to broad audiences, The Forge is an extraordinary group of talented producers.”

Faber added; “We’re ambitious for the next stage of our growth and we believe that Banijay’s superb distribution arm, production expertise, management team and global reach will help us chart an exciting path to the future.”