Ben Stephenson, Controller of BBC Drama commissioning has commissioned over twenty hours of new drama in the shape of four new drama’s for BBC One and BBC Three.
The new drama’s are; Frankie, about a dedicated district nurse; A contemporary take on Alexandre Dumas’, The Musketeers; A re-imagining of the Hitchcock film, The Lady Vanishes (BBC One), and zombie event drama, In The Flesh (BBC Three).
Kate Harwood, Controller, Drama Series & Serials, says: “These four new commissions are a tribute to the huge range of creativity and talent within the in-house drama teams in both London and Salford.
“From a young and innovative new writer’s first television commission for BBC Three; to Adrian Hodges entirely fresh take on the classic characters in The Musketeers; to a beautiful and emotional adaptation of the novel that inspired a Hitchcock classic by Fiona Seres; through to Lucy Gannon’s Frankie, a warm and authored new show,from the doyenne of returning drama series.”
Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning, adds: “This raft of new drama reflects the range and ambition of in-house. A unique mix of classic and contemporary pieces have produced surprising and original scripts, from both new and established writers – all of which represents a thriving creative team.”
Danny Cohen, Controller, BBC One, adds: “These new BBC One commissions from drama present a richly ambitious slate that will thrill, move and delight audiences.”
Full details of the commissions:
Frankie, 6×60 series, created and written by Lucy Gannon (Soldier Soldier) for BBC One
A modern and redemptive take on the life and work of a dedicated district nurse whose patients matter more to her than her personal life. It’s about ordinary lives which are often in huge domestic crisis. Our heroine, Frankie is a heroine for the modern age who looks life and death in the eye; her mission is to make a difference.
The Musketeers, 10×60 series, written by Adrian Hodges (My Week With Marilyn, Survivors, Primeval) for BBC One
A fresh and contemporary take on the classic characters created by Alexandre Dumas in his much-loved novel. The Musketeers are a crack-team of highly trained soldiers, far more than the King’s personal bodyguards, confronting impossible odds and fighting any battle if the cause is just. The series bursts with escapism, adventure and romance and is set to thrill audiences with cracking stories of the week. Co-produced with BBC WorldWide.
The Lady Vanishes, 1×90 single, adapted by Fiona Seres (The Silence) for BBC One Christmas
From the novel ‘The Wheel Spins’ filmed by Hitchcock as The Lady Vanishes, this 1930’s thriller by Ethel Lina White has been adapted by Fiona Seres for Christmas on BBC One. When the spoilt but beautiful Iris returns home from a holiday in the Balkans, she is befriended on the train by an English woman she knows only as “Miss Froy”. Iris falls asleep, and when she awakes some hours later, Miss Froy has vanished. Fearing madness and risking death, Iris desperately tries to solve the sudden disappearance of her travelling companion.
In The Flesh, 3×90 event drama, written by Dominic Mitchell for BBC Three
New writer Dominic Mitchell’s first TV commission was developed by the BBC Drama Production team in Salford and discovered through ‘Northern Voices’, a BBC Writersroom competition.
His script begins after the Zombie Uprising has been quelled by the Human Volunteer Force and life is starting to return to normal. Any surviving zombies have been captured, medicated, held in an NHS holding facility in Norfolk and are being slowly re-integrated back into society, with the help of contact lenses and cover up mousse. The story follows teenager Kieran Walker and boldly goes where no zombie drama has gone before.
All BBC One dramas were commissioned by Danny Cohen, Controller BBC One with Ben Stephenson; and with Zai Bennett, Controller for BBC Three.
