New BBC Talent Show Searches for Drama Actors

Wall To Wall Media is producing the new talent competition series Bring the Drama (w.t.), which searches for aspiring dramatic actors, for BBC Two and BBC iPlayer.

The six-part series will find and develop untapped acting talent that represents the U.K. today, from all kinds of backgrounds, who love to act, but who have never had the chance to realize their dream. The leading candidate will get the chance of representation with a top agent and a role in a BBC drama.

The candidates will benefit from an intense acting experience with leading industry mentors, from casting directors to writers and celebrated stars. The show will use and celebrate British drama as a way of offering unsung talent an introduction to the real world of screen acting. The series ends with a dramatic final showcase.

To complement the series, the BBC will curate a Bring the Drama Festival, showcasing the acting profession and encouraging behind-the-scenes access to other careers in the creative industries. The BBC will work with cultural organizations across the U.K. to promote and showcase the diverse range of opportunities in the sector and accelerate a talent pipeline.

Clare Mottershead, BBC’s commissioning editor for factual and events, said: “British TV actors are among the best in the world, but there’s still plenty of undiscovered talent waiting for their big break. In this entertaining and revealing new competition, we’re scouring the U.K. to find our next acting superstars as we put them through their paces behind the scenes of some of Britain’s biggest and best-loved dramas.”

Managing director of Wall to Wall Media, Leanne Klein, said: “As a nation, TV drama is now the art form we consume more than any other, so it’s hugely exciting to be making a series that will take viewers behind the scenes of some of our favorite tv shows and unpack the essential skills of acting via the incredible expertise of leading lights in the industry. I hope it will be a gripping watch for all who love watching actors as well as those who’d love to act.”

Suzy Klein, head of commissioning for arts and classical music, added: “This new competition is about giving everyone a chance to break into a fearsomely competitive industry. Many people across the U.K. dream of becoming an actor, but few get the opportunities and training to do it. Bring the Drama promises to take them on the ride of a lifetime, giving them the skills and experience that they could only get in a prestigious acting school. And with a major real-world campaign of access into the wider film, TV and theater industries running alongside the TV series, we hope to support the pipeline of world-beating talent that makes the U.K. one of the most creative places in the world.”