How BBC and HBO Beat Netflix for Richard Gadd's New Project
The producer reveals what actually went down. Plus: What the U.K. elections mean for British TV and a close encounter with the Tom Cruise marketing tornado
This is the latest in my dispatches from the international TV scene. I recently wrote Netflix Said No 3 Times to a TV Pitch. Then Said Yes. What Changed?.
Hello, Series Business Readers! I have something a little different for you today, a whip around of a few hot-button topics here in the U.K. that have some global salience as well.
First up: I struggle to think of a critically lauded contemporary show with a more complicated legacy than Baby Reindeer. That’s evidenced by the fact that a week barely goes by without a mention of the series at British industry events.
Last week, a Royal Television Society panel on “good duty of care” in broadcasting became a low-key dissection of Baby Reindeer’s ethical and legal challenges. (Creator Richard Gadd’s alleged real-life stalker, Fiona Harvey, is suing Netflix in the U.S. for defamation, negligence and privacy violations, seeking $170 million in damages.) Two days later, Gadd joined a stage of up-and-coming talent at the Mondrian hotel in Shoreditch as one of Screen International’s Stars of Tomorrow for 2024.
The industry clearly has big feelings about this show.
This week, the production giant behind Gadd’s next project, Lions, lifted the lid on exactly how it landed at the BBC and HBO, and I got the inside story from Patrick Holland, CEO of Banijay U.K. — which is making Lions through its label Mam Tor — how it did.
Elsewhere in the U.K., there’s a palpable sense that change is afoot. The Labour party has ousted the Tories, claiming a landslide victory at last week’s national election. As a result, the U.K. has a new government culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, the sixth person in the role in five years. I’ll dig into whether Nandy’s appointment on Friday is good or bad news for British TV.
And while we make every effort to deliver on the “series” part of Series Business, after witnessing Tom Cruise’s whirlwind appearance at Twisters’ European premiere in London this week, I can’t resist but offer a take on overseas marketing.
In this issue, you’ll learn:
How — and when — Gadd’s new show Lions came to the BBC
What role Netflix, which distributed Gadd’s Baby Reindeer, played in the deal
The executive relationship that may have been the difference maker
How the U.K. TV industry responded to Labour's win last week
What to expect from the U.K.’s new Culture Secretary
How Tom Cruise hijacked Glen Powell’s big movie premiere
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