PRESS RELEASES
January 20, 2011

BBC Worldwide Surfs Into NAPTE 2011 With Hot New Shows

New York, NY – BBC Worldwide crashes onto the shores of Miami Beach with a wave of fantastic new programming and a massive catalog of over 50,000 hours just in time for NATPE 2011. Along with the quality content audiences have come to expect from the BBC, BBC Worldwide will also offer buyers at NATPE 2011 over 2500 hours of HD content and a variety of superior digital offerings. From fascinating Natural History programming for which the BBC is known, to powerful dramas, sharp comedies, and delightful children’s shows, BBC Worldwide offers buyers an array of programming that spans all genres.

Matt Forde, EVP of Sales & Co-Productions for BBC Worldwide Americas, said: “We have a number of exciting new shows that we are looking forward to presenting to buyers at this year’s NATPE event. From edge of your seat thrillers such as The Deep starring Minnie Driver, wildly funny puppet animation comedy series Mongrels, and eye-opening science offerings like Wonders of the Solar System with star presenter Brian Cox, these titles illustrate BBC Worldwide’s ongoing commitment to delivering a wide range of content for every type of audience.” Forde continued, “There’s a nice buzz surrounding NATPE 2011, and we’re all eager to head down to Miami and see this market take on a new life”

PROGRAM LISTING
The Deep (Drama – 5 x 60’)
Minnie Driver (Good Will Hunting) and Goran Visnjic (ER) star in this five-part series penned by Simon Donald (Wallander) set thousands of feet below the Artic Ice. In the midst of an escalating global energy crisis, The Deep follows the crew of an oceanographic submarine as they search the final frontiers of Earth for unknown and remarkable life forms before catastrophe strikes. A Tiger Aspect production for BBC.

Strike Back (Drama – 3 x 90’)
An adrenalin-fuelled contemporary action drama from the makers of Wallander and Married Single OtherStrike Back is a story of deception, redemption and revenge all played out in the interlinked lives of two former soldiers—Major Hugh Collinson and discharged veteran John Porter, whose paths last crossed seven years ago. Now, amidst a new hostage crisis in the Middle East, their lives are about to collide again. Strike Back is based on the novel by Bravo Two Zero veteran, Chris Ryan. The series is a Left Bank Pictures production for Sky One.

Outcasts (Drama – 8 x 50’)
From the makers of multiple award-winning and international hit shows, such as Life on MarsMI-5 and Hustle, comes the electrifying new sci-fi series, Outcasts. With Earth no longer habitable, a group of courageous pioneers travel to the planet of Carpathia to start a new life. Immersing viewers into a completely new world, the series explores survival, sex, politics, and the drive for power in a new post-Earth era. Carpathia offers the possibility of redemption as the new inhabitants try to avoid the mistakes made on Earth.  Inevitably they cannot escape the human pitfalls of love, greed, lust, loss, corruption and a longing for those they’ve left behind.   As they continue to work and live together, they come to realize this is no ordinary planet…mystery lurks around them and threatens their fragile peace. Outcasts is a Kudos Film & Television, BBC AMERICA and BBC co-production distributed by BBC Worldwide.

Come Fly With Me (Comedy – 6 x 30’)
The comedic duo from international hit show Little Britain, Matt Lucas and David Walliams, return in this hilarious, unique mockumentary series set in a busy airport terminal. From flight crew to check-in, and from paparazzi to passengers, Lucas and Walliams play over 60 characters based on people who work and pass through airports. Shot on-location at Britain’s airports, the two stars draw on every aspect of airport life to create an amazing array of richly comic characters. The series is a Little Britain Productions/BBC Production.

Mongrels (Comedy – 8 x 30’)
Enter the colorful, surprising and mischievous world of Mongrels. With all the characters played by puppets, this visually arresting urban jungle has instant grab-value. Nelson is your typical, broadsheet-reading, metrosexual, urban fox. New to London, he meets Destiny, a sexy, pretentious ‘It Bitch’ wannabe Afghan hound with whom he falls in love. He also meets a wide-eyed, slow-brained street cat called Marion, a sarcastic pigeon named Kali, and Vince, a wild, unashamed fox who’s everything Nelson isn’t. They may be furry, they may be feathered, they may be feral, but scratch their hairy surfaces and these guys are just five mixed-up kidults struggling with everyday emotional truths. Mongrels is a BBC production.

Luther (Drama – 6 x 50)
This dark psychological drama stars Idris Elba as John Luther, a near-genius murder detective struggling with his own terrible demons, who might be as dangerous as the depraved murderers he hunts. Idris Elba earned a Golden Globe nomination for Luther in the category of Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for TelevisionLuther is a BBC production.

Big Babies (Comedy – 26 x15’)
A combination of live action, puppetry, and CGI, Big Babies, is an unconventional, innovative new comedy series that follows the adventures of Rocco and Brooks— two ‘babies’ who are portrayed by grown men in their twenties, with their heads superimposed on real infants’ bodies. A BBC production.

Human Planet (Natural History – 8 x 50’)
Awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping, heart-stopping, Human Planet is a majestic portrait of humankind and the power of nature in extraordinary symbiosis, struggle and strife. For the first time, the BBC’s Natural History Unit has turned the camera on humans, illustrating how amazing we can be and how we adapt to any habitat, anywhere. Human Planet is epic in ambition, extreme in content, intimate in effect. Human Planet is a BBC/Discovery/France Televisions co-production.

Atlantis (History – 1 x 90’)
In 1613 B.C., a gigantic volcano in the Aegean Sea stirred from its fifteen thousand year slumber and violently erupted, tearing apart an entire island and ultimately triggering the end of Europe’s first great civilization – the Minoans. In doing so, a legend was born – Atlantis. A growing number of scientists now believe that the Minoans and the Thera eruption provided the historical inspiration for the legend of Atlantis. Rooted in the latest archaeological evidence, this drama follows the story of that eruption, as seen through the eyes of the Minoan people – all brought to life, for the first time ever, in this major landmark production. A BBC/Discovery Channel/France Televisions/Pro-Sieben co-production.

Wonders of the Solar System(Science – 5 x 50’)
Travelling from the Sun to the far-out reaches of Neptune, Wonders of the Solar System combines incredible images sent directly from a fleet of probes, rovers, and telescopes currently in space with ground-breaking CGI to transform the static into the dramatic.  Featuring star presenter Brian Cox, this series reveals the true and awesome beauty of our solar system.  A BBC/Science Channel co-production.

Beast Legends (Science – 6 x 50’)
Lake monsters, blood suckers, dragons, wild lizards and giant sea creatures…we’ve all heard stories about these strange and unidentifiable creatures. Now, using a powerful combination of eye-witness accounts, scientific fact and CGI, these animals are brought to life by credible and expert investigators in a series that journeys to the very frontiers of knowledge.  Beast Legends is a Yap Films production for History Television and SyFy.

Lonely Planet: Roads Less Traveled (Lifestyle –13 x 50’)
Join a thousand Lonely Planet authors and photographers as they scour the planet in search of the most amazing travel experiences.  This series takes viewers behind-the-scenes to discover what adventures and misadventures travel writers go through in order to fulfill an assignment.   From the exotic to the unexpected, this series is full of excellent travel ideas that are both informative and inspiring.

Zingzillas (Children’s – 52 x 22’)
Zak, Tang, Panzee and Drum are music sensation ZingZillas. On their island paradise this band of primate friends lives to play fantastic music. With the help of their mentor, music guru DJ Loose, they manage to capture that unique ‘ZingZilla’ sound just in time for their daily performance, ‘The Big Zing’.  Ranging from a full concert orchestra to a lone saxophonist or a bottle neck guitarist, this series embraces and celebrates musical genres from around the world.  ZingZillasis a CBeebies in-house production in association with BBC Worldwide.

Uki (Children’s – 52 x 5’)
This adorable series follows a day in the life of Uki a cute, cuddly, upbeat, and curious little creature who expresses himself through sounds, laughter, and smiles.  Winking, waving and smiling to the camera, Uki encourages the viewers to join in and learn with him, but most of all to have fun!  Produced by Universal Music Belgium and Co-produced by Topfloor BVBA and Creative Conspiracy NV.

BBC WORLDWIDE AMERICAS
NATPE 2011
FONTAINBLEU HOTEL
SUITE NUMBER:  22714 & 22716

*Images available upon request*

BBC Worldwide Executives Attending:

  • Matt Forde, EVP Sales & Co-productions, BBC Worldwide Americas
  • Jemma Adkins, SVP, Sales & Co-Productions – Fiction, BBC Worldwide Americas
  • Helen Jurado, Vice President, Sales & Distribution, Latin America
  • Gustavo Schneideroff, Senior Sales Manager, Sales & Distribution, Latin America
  • Maria Bolanos, Sales Executive, Sales & Distribution, Latin America