DNA Films and TV Acquires The Watchers

LONDON: Following an eight-way auction, DNA Films and TV has optioned television rights for Welsh novelist Neil Spring’s book The Watchers, published by Quercus.

The sci-fi mystery novel is set against inexplicable happenings along the Pembrokeshire coastline and Cold War cover-ups at the Ministry of Defense. It blends fiction with historical UFO sightings. The Watchers is Spring’s second novel. His first novel, The Ghost Hunters, is currently being adapted into a TV drama for ITV, slated to air this winter.

Tom Winchester, the head of TV development at DNA Films and TV, said: “Neil Spring is a master of the modern gothic chiller. Working with him on the ITV adaptation of The Ghost Hunters was a pleasure, and I'm thrilled that he's decided to bring his second novel to DNA Films and TV.”

Kathryn Taussig, the commissioning editor at Quercus, remarked: “[His] writing style is just perfect for film and television. As his publishers, we're not surprised that so many others have seen the massive potential in Neil's talent for spinning a memorable story. The Watchers is sure to become a huge hit."

Spring added: “I always envisaged The Watchers making a great returnable drama that gets under your skin, and as one of the finest film companies in the world I have no doubt that DNA Films and TV is the perfect home for the work.”