Cold Feet Follow-Up Leads New ITV Drama Commissions

LONDON: ITV in the U.K. has given the go-ahead to several new drama projects, including the return of its popular ’90s series Cold Feet.

The dramedy will reunite the original cast members, with series creator and writer Mike Bullen executive producing. Filming on the eight-part title will begin in February. Cold Feet first launched on ITV in 1997, airing 33 episodes across five seasons. ITV Studios-owned indie Big Talk will produce, with Terry McDonough (Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad) directing.

“We’re delighted to be revisiting Cold Feet for a new generation,” said Steve November, ITV’s director of drama. “Like any reunion we’ll be looking forward to working with Mike Bullen on his wonderfully heartfelt and funny scripts and learning how the characters’ lives have changed over the years.”  

“This feels like the right time to revisit these characters, as they tip-toe through the minefield of middle age,” Bullen added. “They’re 50, but still feel 30, apart from on the morning after the night before, when they really feel their age. They’ve still got lots of life to look forward to, though they’re not necessarily the years one looks forward to!”

ITV has also greenlit a new medical drama, The Good Karma Hospital. The 6×1-hour series follows a cast of doctors, nurses and patients in a Goa hospital run by an eccentric Englishwoman. Created and written by Dan Sefton (Mr Selfridge, Death in Paradise), the series is slated to begin shooting next year, with Tiger Aspect Drama producing.

“Dan Sefton’s scripts are beautifully written and deal with themes we’ll all identify with—love, loss, relationships, family conflict, facing adversity and the importance of seizing the day,” November said. “The Good Karma Hospital is a feel-good drama full of warmth and characters we will love.”

Additionally, the network has ordered the three-part horror drama Him, written by Paula Milne and produced by Mainstreet Pictures. The series will focus on a 17-year-old torn between his divorced parents’ new families while struggling with supernatural powers. Filming will start in January.

“Him tells the gripping story of a boy capable of psychic phenomena,” said November. “It’s extraordinary and unlike any drama we’ve commissioned before. We’re incredibly excited about working with writer Paula Milne and commissioning Him from Mainstreet Pictures following the success of their series Unforgotten.”

“It’s fantastic to be bringing such a bold, surprising and emotional serial to ITV from one of the U.K’s most eminent writers,” said Sally Haynes, who is producing for Mainstreet.