Top Stories

TORONTO: Bell Media has completed the restructuring of its independent production unit with new team hires. The unit, headed by Corrie Coe, the senior VP of independent production, has been restructured to reflect development and production of original Canadian production …

LOS ANGELES: FOX has ordered a second season of Simon Cowell‘s latest talent competition The X Factor, which is currently ranking as the number one reality series on broadcast TV in the U.S. for the fall season. The X Factor is averaging …

LONDON: Endemol Worldwide Distribution has sold the new AMC original Hell on Wheels to TCM (Tuner Classic Movies) for a 2012 premiere in the U.K. Produced by Entertainment One (eOne) in association with Endemol USA and Nomadic Pictures, the series …

NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES: Debmar-Mercury has renewed FremantleMedia North America’s classic game show Family Feud through 2015, with clearance in more than 75 percent of the U.S. The renewal of the popular game show sees the series continue airing on stations …

LONDON: Simon Crawford Collins, the former joint managing director of Kudos Film and Television, has established Slim Film & Television, a new U.K.-based independent production company focused on drama and comedy output, with BBC Worldwide on board as a minority shareholder. …

OSLO/LONDON: Åse Marie Bendiksen, the creator of such formats as 71 Degrees North and Ugliest Rooms, has been named managing director of Limelight Film & TV, a member of the Nordic independent production alliance NICE Group. Bendiksen joins Limelight from …

UNIVERSAL CITY: Universal Television has made Andy Weil its VP of comedy development. Weil will report to Tracey Pakosta, the new senior VP of comedy development at Universal Television. Prior to his new role, Weil served as the head of …

MUMBAI: The BIG CBS Prime channel in India is launching the new U.S. legal drama series The Defenders on November 7. The Defenders features Las Vegas defense attorneys who lead the law firm of Morelli & Kaczmarek, with Jim Belushi …

SYDNEY: The international co-production Teenage Fairytale Dropouts, distributed by CCI Entertainment, has been added to Seven Network’s lineup for 2013. The 52-episode 11-minute series is a co-production between Anima Estudios, SLR Productions, Home Plate Entertainment and Telegael. CCI Entertainment signed …

NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES: Abigail Harvey and Noah Pollack have both been named VP of reality programming for Lifetime Networks for the East and West Coast, respectively. Harvey and Pollack will be responsible for developing and overseeing production of non-fiction projects …