Channel 4 Lines Up New Thriller from Buccaneer

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Channel 4 has come on board the new crime thriller In Flight, produced by Buccaneer Media (Marcella, Crime, The Burning Girls).

The 6×60-minute drama series is written and co-created by Mike Walden (Marcella, Whitstable Pearl) and Adam Randall (Slow Horses, iBoy) and directed by Chris Baugh (Wreck, Tin Star). Katherine Kelly (Mr Bates vs the Post Office, The Long Shadow) leads the cast, playing a flight attendant who finds her life turned upside down when she is blackmailed into drug smuggling after her son is arrested.

ProSieben has prebought the series for Germany, along with SBS for Australia and TVNZ for New Zealand.

Kelly said, “I am really excited to be taking on the role of Jo, and I can’t wait to tell her compelling story. I am delighted to be working with Buccaneer Media again, and it’s a joy to be filming in Belfast.”

Walden and Randall said, “In Flight is our spin on the noir genre, a high stakes, stylish, romantic thriller with iconic characters and nerve-shredding action. Channel 4 is the perfect home for our story, and we’re so excited to be collaborating with such a brilliant team. Jo is a character close to our hearts. She is an ordinary woman facing extraordinary odds. We can’t wait for audiences to meet her.”

Polly Scates, head of acquisitions at Channel 4, said, “We’re thrilled to have In Flight on our scripted slate and beyond excited that the brilliant Katherine Kelly is on board to lead the series. This unique crime drama will take our audience on a thrilling journey through terrifying worlds, but at the real heart of this story is just how far a parent will go to keep their child safe. We’re excited to be working with the team at Buccaneer to bring this story to screen.”

Richard Tulk-Hart, executive producer at Buccaneer, said, “At a difficult time for the industry, In Flight shows the power of bringing a number of partners together to make something happen. So a big thank you to SBS, TVNZ, ProSieben and Fremantle for also seeing the potential in these scripts at such an early stage.”

Anna Burns, executive producer at Buccaneer, said, “In Flight is a real passion project for me and my fellow execs, Tony and Richard, and we could not be more excited about the team we have in place to bring Mike and Adam’s gripping creation to life. We’re so proud to be making this show for Channel 4 and cannot wait to take the audience on Jo’s heart-pounding journey.”

Rebecca Dundon, executive producer at Fremantle, said, “In Flight is a surprising, propulsive standout, a high-stakes action crime thriller that combines the intensity of international drug smuggling with the emotional depth of a mother’s relentless quest to save her son. Set against the high-pressure world of global travel, this series offers a fresh, commercially powerful mix of suspense, sacrifice, and gripping drama. I couldn’t put the script down, and audiences everywhere will feel the same.”