BBC Four Picks Up Gaelic Detective Drama The Island

All3Media International has presold the four-part detective drama An t-Eilean (The Island) to BBC Four.

Produced by Black Camel Pictures for BBC ALBA, the series features Gaelic and English dialogue as a young family liaison officer is assigned to investigate a brutal murder at a remote castle in the Western Isles of Scotland, where a violent burglary has left one woman dead and a man fighting for his life.

Douglas Maclean and his wife Mary had a seemingly perfect life, with lucrative careers, four grown children and a long marriage. With Mary dead and Douglas fighting for his life, however, secrets begin to emerge. The four-parter follows the fallout of Mary’s murder through the eyes of the family’s grown children. When their father’s innocence is questioned by the young detective, their family loyalty is stretched to its limits.

It stars Sorcha Groundsell (His Dark Materials, Shetland, The Innocents) in the lead role. Groundsell is joined by Sagar Radia (Industry), Iain Macrae (Bannan), Sinéad MacInnes (Outlander), Meredith Brook (Bannan), Sam James Smith (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s Faustus: That Damned Woman), Elspeth Turner (Riptide) and newcomer Andrew Macinnes. Further cast members include Daibhidh Walker, Sharyn Ferguson, Carina Macleod, Tormod Macleod, MJ Deans, Iain “Spanish” Mackay and Julia Taudevin.

An t-Eilean (The Island) marks the latest drama from Black Camel Pictures to be distributed globally by All3Media International, following their exclusive first-look deal that was signed in 2023.

The drama is written by Nicholas Osborne and Patsi Mackenzie and directed by Tom Sullivan (Arracht). It is financed through a multi-partner funding structure supported by MG ALBA, Screen Scotland, Black Camel Pictures and All3Media International.

“Working with BBC ALBA on An t-Eilean (The Island) from its early inception has been a joy, as has continuing our first-look distribution partnership with the team at All3Media International,” said Arabella Page Croft, executive producer of An t-Eilean (The Island) and founder of Black Camel Pictures. “We’re very pleased to have BBC Four on board at presale stage, and we can’t wait to see this ambitious thriller find more viewers around the world when All3Media International presents it to global buyers in 2025.”

Caroline Stephenson, senior VP of U.K. and Eire sales at All3Media International, added, “We’re delighted to announce that this latest drama from the acclaimed team at Black Camel Pictures has secured a broadcast on BBC Four. For every partner involved in this project, the goal has always been to take Gaelic-language drama to an international audience, tapping into the proven success of minority-language premium drama on the global stage. We have every confidence this multi-million budget production with its gripping storyline full of complex characters, and the breathtaking Hebridean landscapes as a backdrop, An t-Eilean (The Island) will enthral audiences.”