BBC Worldwide agrees major content deal with TVNZ
October 15 2008
Cannes / Sydney: BBC Worldwide Australia and TVNZ have concluded a significant content deal covering new and returning
drama, factual and factual entertainment programming, it was announced today at Mipcom.
In Whitechapel - a Carnival Films production for ITV - Rupert Penry-Jones (Spooks) stars in a contemporary re-working of the Ripper story, in which a modern-day detective realises that the infamous
Whitechapel murders are being recreated in front of him, down to every last detail.
Following the build-up to the death of an eight-year old girl, The Children reveals a tangled web of family relationships torn apart by love and hate. Starring Kevin Whately, and Lesley Sharp, The Children is a Tightrope Production for ITV.
In Sleep with Me, Adrian Lester and Jodhi May star as a couple who fall under the spell of a mysterious woman, leading to a tangled web of
obsessive relationships, which unravels with devastating consequences. From the pen of Andrew Davies, Sleep with Me is a Clerkenwell Films production for ITV.
Returning drama titles to TVNZ include the third series of award-winning time-travel drama Primeval from Impossible Pictures, the fifth series of New Tricks (S5)from Wall to Wall Productions, Hotel Babylon (S4) from Carnival Films and Silent Witness (S12).
Britain’s biggest and toughest amateur cooking competition returns to NZ screens with Masterchef (S5) and Celebrity Masterchef (S3) from Shine Productions, while six more Western men travel to remote parts of the world to take part in local
rituals in Last Man Standing (S2).
To complete the offering, Professor Robert Winston and Dr Tania Byron (Little Angels) present a Child of our Time special: A Revolution in Childhood, which places the issues about childhood and child-rearing under the spotlight.
“Our drama has always held wide appeal in New Zealand and it’s great to see that continue with such a strong line-up of
contemporary titles” said Robyn Campbell, BBC Worldwide’s Sales Manager, New Zealand.
“We are pleased to continue to acquire these high-quality, important brands for TV ONE, as well as the new properties
which will continue to support the Sunday Theatre strand,” added Andrew Shaw, TVNZ’s General Manager Commissioning,
Production & Acquisition.
ENDS