BBC Studios Bringing British Storytelling to MIPCOM

BBC Studios is set to attend MIPCOM with a vast slate of content from British storytellers, including the third and final season of the BAFTA-winning series Happy Valley.

Written by Sally Wainwright, the third season sees Sarah Lancashire return as Sergeant Catherine Cawood, alongside James Norton, Siobhan Finneran and Rhys Connah. When Cawood discovers the remains of a gangland murder victim, a chain of events is sparked that unwittingly leads her back to her nemesis Tommy Lee Royce.

Happy Valley season three is produced by BBC Studios-owned production partner Lookout Point for BBC and AMC (U.S. and Canada). Presales for the final season are already confirmed with Coupang (South Korea), Cosmote (Greece), BBC First (Australia, Asia), Moviestar+ (Spain), South Africa (BritBox Africa) and HRT (Croatia).

Somewhere Boy, from BBC Studios-owned Clerkenwell Films, will also be presented at MIPCOM. It won the audience award at Series Mania earlier this year and is set to debut on Channel 4 in the U.K. on October 16. Sales have already closed with international broadcasters such as CANAL+ (France), TVNZ (New Zealand) and SBS (Australia).

From House Productions, Sherwood is also on the slate. A second season of the hit series has been confirmed. The show has been picked up in Japan (AXN), India (Big Tree Entertainment), the Nordics (SVT, NRK, DR), Ireland (RTÉ), North America (BritBox) and across BBC Studios’ drama channel BBC First across Asia, Turkey, Australia and Benelux.

The BBC Three series Mood, from Bonafide Films, has sold to broadcasters such as AMC Networks’ BBC America and AMC+ (North America), CANAL+ (France), ZDF (Germany), M-Net (Africa), Disney+ (Italy), DR (Denmark), Yle (Finland), NRK (Norway), HBO Nordic (pan-Nordic), SVT (Sweden), AMC+ (Spain) and RTÉ (Ireland). It is part of BBC Studios’ offering at MIPCOM as well.

A new series being launched at MIPCOM is The Diplomat, commissioned by UKTV’s Alibi and produced by World Productions (Line of Duty, Bodyguard). Lead cast members Sophie Rundle (Peaky Blinders, Gentleman Jack) and Serena Manteghi (Mrs Wilson) will be attending the event to meet buyers alongside Simon Heath, executive producer from World Productions.

Beyond Paradise, the spin-off series of Death in Paradise, will also be launched at MIPCOM. It was co-commissioned by BBC and BritBox (across territories including North America, the Nordics, South Africa and the MENA markets).

Other key titles on the slate are The Following Events are Based on a Pack of Lies, from SISTER, commissioned by BBC; Six Four, produced by BBC Studios-owned House Productions for ITV X; and Blue Lights, a Two Cities and Gallagher Films production for BBC.

Caroline Stone, commercial director of drama at BBC Studios, said, “It is very exciting to be returning to MIPCOM in person this year, and we are very proud of the strong scripted slate that we are bringing to buyers. Our slate offers unparalleled breadth and quality from the hugely talented writers and producers behind shows like Happy Valley through to the incredible lineup of on-screen talent from Sarah Lancashire and James Norton to rising stars, including Nicôle Lecky and Lewis Gribben.”