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 […]
Three Little Birds writer Lenny Henry has launched a new production firm backed by Banijay, with BBC Studios exec Jon Sen joining as co-MD. Esmerelda aims to produce broad appeal drama and comedy, with an emphasis on working with under-represented writers, cast and crew. Banijay’s minority investment comes via its UK Growth Fund and includes […]
Banijay has taken a stake in James Norton and Kitty Kaletsky’s Rabbit Track Pictures, the London-based production firm behind Netflix thriller Rogue Agent. Rabbit Track was launched in 2019 by actor and Happy Valley star Norton and scripted exec Kitty Kaletsky, formerly of Black Bear TV and Number 9 Films. The company’s first film, Norton-starring […]
Banijay-owned production firm Workerbee Group is backing a new start-up from its former head of development, Red Sauce exec producer Ben Smith (Tyson v Bruno, Bargain Loving Brits). Ty’r Ddraig will be based in Wrexham in Wales and marks the first major production label investment by Workerbee, which has been behind The Bridge for Channel […]
Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight is developing a drama series around the life of William Shakespeare, based on a concept from Happy Valley star Sarah Lancashire. The series is being produced by Banijay UK label Kudos, alongside Lancashire and Peter Salmon’s firm Via Pictures, at Knight’s Digbeth Loc. Studios in Birmingham. The series will tell […]
Banijay UK is investing in Conker Pictures, a new scripted label from BBC commissioning editor Tommy Bulfin and Apple TV+ commissioner Kim Varvell. The duo will make “popular and distinctive scripted series for UK and global audiences”. Bulfin and Varvell have extensive production and commissioning experience having been behind many of the most successful dramas […]
Banijay UK has hired the finance director for BBC content as its new COO, with a remit that includes working across future M&A and start-up ventures. Sarb Nijjer will be responsible for driving the group’s UK strategy alongside CEO Patrick Holland, while also managing collaborations across the wider Banijay group, developing business relationships with key […]
Former Netflix and BBC Studios (BBCS) exec Chris Sussman has struck a first-look deal to develop scripted projects with Banijay UK, as part of its recently launched £50m ($60m) Growth Fund. Sussman will work with labels across Patrick Holland’s UK arm to produce new original scripted projects, having stepped down as Netflix’s director of UK […]
CBS Reality orders true crime docuseries CBS Reality has commissioned Murder: Fight For the Truth, a new unscripted series from UK-based factual specialist Phoenix Television The 10 x 60-minute series reveals the stories of heroes who went the extra mile when the odds were stacked against them to crack murder cases and bring killers to […]
Banijay UK label Workerbee has struck a multi project deal with Scottish director and producer Kevin Macdonald to executive produce and direct factual projects over the next two years. Macdonald, whose credits include the Oscar-winning One Day In September, as well as Touching The Void, Marley and Whitney, will work closely with Workerbee’s film division […]
