PRESS RELEASES
December 1, 2023

BRITBOX SURPASSES 3.4 MILLION SUBS

WITH ACQUISITION OF CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED DRAMA

BLUE LIGHTS

The International home of premium British entertainment, BritBox International, today announced that the service, which is co-owned by BBC Studios and ITV, has surpassed 3.4 million subscribers globally.

The streaming service which operates in eight territories – U.S., Canada, Australia, South Africa, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland – has seen an increase of 15% in its membership since the start of 2023, the service is home to recent high-end Originals and co-pros including STONEHOUSE, TIME, BEYOND PARADISE, PAYBACK and soon to launch ARCHIE.

A new acquisition to the stable, also announced today, are the two series of the hugely successful British crime drama BLUE LIGHTS for the U.S. and Canada.

The BBC’s BLUE LIGHTS is an authentic, gripping and darkly funny drama about ordinary people doing an extraordinary job as PSNI probationary recruits in Belfast. The series follows characters navigating their way through their first few months in a uniquely dangerous place to be a response police officer. Series One of Blue Lights transmitted on BBC One and iPlayer earlier this year and was a critical hit launching to five-star reviews and proved popular with viewers. It was directed by Gilles Bannier, co-created and written by Declan Lawn and Adam Patterson, co-created and co-produced by Louise Gallagher of Gallagher Films, and co-created and produced by Stephen Wright of Two Cities Television, with support from Northern Ireland Screen.

The BBC announced that the drama will return for a second 6 x 60’ series. BritBox International have signed a deal to screen both series across the U.S. and Canada.

BLUE LIGHTS is a Two Cities Television (an STV Studios Company) and Gallagher Films production, distributed internationally by BBC Studios.

BLUE LIGHTS will fit into BritBox’s wider, curated slate of scripted, non-scripted and live programming that has helped make the subscription service an international home for British content and a destination for fans of premium entertainment the world over.

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ABOUT BRITBOX INTERNATIONAL

BritBox is a digital subscription video on demand service offering the largest and most comprehensive, unmissable collection of British entertainment available all in one place. Co-branded by BBC and ITV, BritBox delivers the UK’s favourite programmes, ranging from brand new commissions to gems, across a variety of genres, including critically-acclaimed drama, crime thrillers, classic comedy and powerful documentaries, alongside reality hits and entertainment.

BritBox is available on multiple platforms, including via the web, mobile, tablet, streaming devices and connected TVs, with the offering in each market showcasing the depth and breadth of British creativity. With the support of BBC and ITV providing a pipeline of exceptional content, made available as soon as it comes out of its broadcast and catch-up windows, BritBox is home to a wealth of titles from its parent companies, in addition to completely new original commissions specifically created for BritBox by British production companies.

The critically acclaimed BritBox Original co-production Stonehouse is a dramatised limited series covering the extraordinary story of disgraced Labour Minister John Stonehouse, starring Emmy-winner Matthew Macfadyen alongside Keeley Hawes; The Confessions of Frannie Langton, from the award-winning novel by Sara Collins and starring Karla-Simone Spence and Sophie Cookson. Other popular recent series include Karen Pirie, starring Lauren Lyle, and Sanditon, adapted from the work of Jane Austen.