EXCLUSIVE: The BBC assembled some of the UK’s finest drama and comedy producers to discuss the scripted funding crisis currently gripping the industry, we can reveal.
Described as a “gathering of the families,” BBC director general Tim Davie and content chief Charlotte Moore invited the group of seasoned executives to a lunch meeting at London’s Charlotte Street Hotel in late November.
Deadline is disclosing details from the private talks for the first time after Jane Featherstone, the Black Doves producer who was in attendance last year, told British Parliament yesterday that the BBC is struggling to fund “multiple” series on its books.
Others at the BBC meeting included The Crown producer Andy Harries, Ludwig maker Kenton Allen, The Traitors producer Stephen Lambert, and Jimmy Mulville, the maker of Derry Girls. Tim Hincks, producer of Alma’s Not Normal, was also in attendance.
Sources familiar with the gathering said the talks were constructive and pragmatic, with the BBC showing a willingness to engage with concerns in a proactive way. “The drama funding gap has become the problem of our age. It is utterly unsustainable and extraordinary,” said a producer.
The BBC declined to comment on the meeting.
Producers spoke about how a greenlight from a UK broadcaster on a major drama series has effectively become meaningless because they are only able to provide around a third of the financing required to get cameras rolling.
Featherstone touched on this during her evidence to the Culture, Media & Sport Committee on Tuesday. “Each case is different but it leaves us with a gap of say 60% of the budget. We are now [in the UK] getting closer to that indie film model,” she said.
One person familiar with the talks said the BBC had “thrown down the gauntlet” to producers to devise stories that domestic broadcasters can afford, without having to turn to U.S. studios like Netflix for a co-production deal.
“What was expressed in the meeting was that the BBC wants the best shows and are willing to do co-production deals, but the direction of travel is that they’re going to have to work with producers on £2M-an-hour ($2.5M) stories that they fund alongside a tax break and distribution finance,” the source adds.
This person envisages a two-tier system, in which UK producers make “flashy international dramas” like The Crown for U.S.-backed studios and “compelling, affordable” series like Mr Bates vs The Post Office for the UK market. This is already happening to some extent, with Harries and Doctor Who producer Jane Tranter previously discussing plans to develop lower-budget slates.
Discussions also touched on tax breaks, with several senior producers informally lobbying the British government to extend television tax credits to lower-end domestic dramas and comedies. This is something the BBC could echo in its conversations with ministers and comedy boss Jon Petrie has already called for a comedy tax credit.
Although Davie and Moore’s meeting with producers was good-spirited, some of those present were critical of BBC Studios for failing to invest more in series commissioned by the BBC. “Tim, as ever, was very good about it, but there was so little love in the room for BBC Studios,” said one observer.
In response to Featherstone’s remarks on Tuesday, a BBC spokesperson said: “Jane Featherstone’s comments serve as a timely reminder of the vital role the BBC and the public service broadcasters play in this fragile ecology.
“While the competition of a global market is healthy, the BBC bangs the drum for British creativity and culturally relevant content in a way that the global streamers simply can’t. We remain the biggest investor in UK producers, talent and skills and fuel our precious independent production sector. Producers hold onto their rights and their IP and the value from our spend is retained in the UK, not across the Atlantic. We are committed to sustaining the growth of this world-class UK creative industry.”
Max Goldbart contributed to reporting.