BBC Two Commissions Holocaust-Survivor Drama

BBC Two has ordered The Children (working title), a drama based on a true story regarding child survivors of the Holocaust.

Written by Simon Block (The Eichmann Show), the story draws on the first-person testimony of some of these now-elderly survivors, whose filmed interviews will feature in the 90-minute drama. It is a Wall to Wall and Warner Bros. ITVP Germany production for the BBC and ZDF, in association with Northern Ireland Screen, and is distributed by Fremantle.

Patrick Holland, controller of BBC Two, said: “The Children (w/t) promises to be a beautiful and powerful drama about a little-known part of British history. The refuge given in the Lakes and determination to give children back their lives so they could begin again is both deeply moving and humbling.”

Tom McDonald, head of commissioning for natural history and specialist factual, added: “I feel privileged that we will be bringing this extraordinary, but little-known, story to vivid life through beautifully realized drama and powerful testimony interview. This timely, evocative and emotional film, which reflects our ambitions for History at the BBC, will shine a light on events in such a way that they change how we see not just the past, but the present.”

Leanne Klein, CEO of Wall to Wall Media, said: “The Children (w/t) is a story of hope after horror, revealing how Britain and a remarkable group of adults transformed the lives of 300 child survivors of the concentration camps. Seventy-five years after the Holocaust ended it’s a story that feels as important and relevant as ever. I’m incredibly proud of the exceptional cast and crew we have brought together to make this film.”