Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society

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Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
September 2020

           Gripping drama
              from ITV
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2013          1
Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
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Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
Journal of The Royal Television Society
                                                                                                                   September 2020 l Volume 57/8

    From the CEO
                       Our summer may have                   epitomised by David Olusoga’s                                  forward to ITV’s The Singapore Grip,
                       been highly unusual,                  ­MacTaggart Lecture at the Edinburgh                           adapted by the great Christopher
                       but I am proud to say                  International Television Festival, a                          Hampton. Caroline Frost discovers
                       that RTS events came                   sobering account of his experience                            what it was like to make the series.
                       thick and fast from                    of racism while working in television.                           We also hear from Sky Arts head
                       head office and our                    Our TV Diarist, Pat Younge, recalls an                        Phil Edgar-Jones about his plans for
                       centres across the UK.                 alienating episode of his own during                          the channel, which goes free-to-air
       This issue reports some outstanding                    the early part of his career. He also                         later this month.
     sessions: “In conversation with James                    praises a new generation of black                                With production recovering, there
     Purnell”, the BBC’s director of radio                    activists demanding lasting change.                           is a growing sense that TV is getting
     and education, expertly chaired by                          Also inside, Channel 4’s Maria St                          back on the front foot after lockdown.
     Miranda Sawyer; a discussion of The                      Louis looks at social justice from an                         Massive credit to the ingenuity of our
     Salisbury Poisonings from RTS Futures                    advertising perspective, while Ofcom’s                        industry for making this happen.
     Northern Ireland; and a fascinating                      Vikki Cook responds to Marcus Ryder’s
     look at the importance of TV brands                      piece in our last issue.
     in a cluttered digital landscape.                           Autumn is traditionally the time
       Diversity and inclusion remain top                     when viewing figures surge as the
     of our sector’s agenda, and were                         nights draw in. I, for one, am looking                        Theresa Wise

Contents
                                                                                                                                               Cover: The Singapore Grip (ITV)

 5           Pat Younge’s TV Diary
             David Olusoga’s powerful MacTaggart lecture contained
             uncomfortable personal echoes for Pat Younge                               16                Heart-melting viewing
                                                                                                          ITV family favourite Dancing on Ice has broken
                                                                                                          taboos. Now it is preparing to socially distance

 6           Take Five...
             Kate Holman and Imani Cottrell update
             us on five social media trends                                             18                Inspiration to all
                                                                                                          Sky Arts is about to debut as a free service.
                                                                                                          Phil Edgar-Jones, the man in charge, explains
                                                                                                          to Steve Clarke what new viewers can expect

 7           Our Friend in the North East
             Graeme Thompson asks if the infamous ‘exams algorithm’
             also informed the BBC’s plan to axe regional services
                                                                                        20                Brand recognition is only half the story
                                                                                                          An RTS event showed how platforms and broadcasters
                                                                                                          can cut through digital clutter

 8           Working Lives: military advisor
             Military advisor Paul Biddiss is interviewed by Matthew Bell
                                                                                        22                Time for truth
                                                                                                          The writers of The Salisbury Poisonings tell the RTS why

10           Comfort Classic: Gilmore Girls
             A gentle guide to getting older and wiser, which
             Moya Lothian-McLean returns to again and again
                                                                                                          gaining the confidence of local people was critical to the
                                                                                                          drama’s success

11           Ear Candy: HBO’s Succession Podcast
             Podcast host Roger Bennett takes character analysis
             to a new level, hears Harry Bennett
                                                                                        24                Diversity: Ofcom puts action before words
                                                                                                          Vikki Cook responds to Marcus Ryder’s article in our
                                                                                                          last issue by outlining what Ofcom is doing to improve
                                                                                                          minority ethnic representation in television

12           An epic story of imperial hubris
             ITV’s adaptation of JG Farrell’s novel The Singapore Grip has
             many contemporary resonances, discovers Caroline Frost                     26                A lesson for the BBC’s future?
                                                                                                          James Purnell tells Miranda Sawyer how the BBC acted
                                                                                                          fast to transform its education service in lockdown –
                                                                                                          and why he’s a licence-fee fundamentalist

14           A sketch show defying gravity
             Shilpa Ganatra examines why BBC Three’s Famalam, a
             huge hit on social media, is making big waves with its
             third series                                                               28                Brands and broadcasters must seize the time
                                                                                                          Maria St Louis puts forward a three-point plan to build
                                                                                                          genuinely diverse teams in the media sector

Editor                     Production, design, advertising   Royal Television Society   Subscription rates                     Printing              Legal notice
Steve Clarke               Gordon Jamieson                   3 Dorset Rise              UK £115                                ISSN 0308-454X        © Royal Television Society 2020.
smclarke_333@hotmail.com   gordon.jamieson.01@gmail.com      London EC4Y 8EN            Overseas (surface) £146.11             Printer: FE Burman    The views expressed in Television
News editor and writer     Sub-editor                        T: 020 7822 2810           Overseas (airmail) £172.22             20 Crimscott Street   are not necessarily those of the RTS.
Matthew Bell               Sarah Bancroft                    E: info@rts.org.uk         Enquiries: publication@rts.org.uk      London SE1 5TP        Registered Charity 313 728
bell127@btinternet.com     smbancroft@me.com                 W: www.rts.org.uk

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                                                                3
Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
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Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
TV diary
                   David Olusoga’s powerful MacTaggart lecture contained
                       uncomfortable personal echoes for Pat Younge

   I
                t’s been an unusually         ■ We have a series in production, Am      about, because David tackled head-
                domestic and turbulent        Dro!, for S4C, showcasing the beauty      on that hoary old race/class question
                month. Covid-19 wiped out     and characters of the Welsh country­      and the pernicious ways race and
                the idea of piggy-backing     side. However, because of Covid           class biases push you to the industry’s
                on my wife’s work trip to     guidelines, we’ve had to review and       edges and often out of the door.
                Tokyo, the family holiday     rework everything from minibuses             It happened to me, when I was a
                in Greece and travelling to   to toilets to packed lunches. It’s been   local news correspondent at BBC
   Edinburgh for the TV festival.             an interesting creative and logistical    Newsroom South East. It was 1994 and I
       But it’s not been quiet, as the        challenge. So far, so good.               was taken aside by my boss and told
   ­reverberations of the death in May          I just wish we could rework the         that, “while your accent sounds just
    of George Floyd, under the knee of        bloody weather.                           like most people in this region, it’s not
    an American cop, are still being felt                                               RP and we have a lot of BBC senior
    in August.                                ■ I thought this month would be a         execs who watch our show”. The
       It triggered an interest in race and   good time to start to learn the Welsh     solution was to enrol me, aged 30,
    race relations that we’ve probably not    language. I studied in Cardiff for        in elocution lessons.
    seen here since the New Cross fire        five years, support Welsh rugby and          One night, it took me three hours
    and Brixton riots in 1981. And, after a   can sing the national anthem – but        to record a 40-second voice piece. It
    lot of soul searching in the TV indus-    never learnt the language. Given our      was confidence-sapping and soul-
    try, the commitments have come            long-term commitment to Cardiff,          destroying. Luckily, I had producing
    thick and fast.                           and working closely with Welsh-­          experience from LWT and managed
       I’m old enough to have been here       language producers and S4C and            to get into an off-screen role and
    before, many times, so it was great to    BBC Cymru/Wales, it seems like the        restart my career. Many didn’t have
    see a new generation of activists on      right thing to do.                        the opportunity of a second chance.
    the scene taking up the battle, such as      I took advice from Adrian Chiles,
    Adeel Amini and the BAME TV Task          who’d been learning the language for      ■ The month ended with our second
    Force. Let’s hope they will find the      an S4C show, and have subscribed to       broadcast, again for Channel 4, Peter:
    allies to get this done.                  a tuition service. Come back to me        The Human Cyborg. If you wanted a
                                              next August to find out how I’m doing.    film that showed you how technology
   ■ In May, along with Narinder                                                        could be a hedge against the worst
   Minhas, I left Sugar Films to launch       ■ If it’s August, it must be the Mac-     impacts of extreme disability, and
   Cardiff Productions. Early August          Taggart lecture, kicking off the          how the power of a positive mind-
   saw the transmission of our first          Edinburgh International Television        set and unquestioning, devoted love
   show, The Talk, a co-production with       Festival. This year it was digital and    could possibly conquer all, this is the
   Whisper, which also part-funded            delivered by David Olusoga. Wow!          film for you.
   the show.                                  What a speech he delivered, not just         It is also a fitting tribute to the
     It went from a casual conversation       deeply personal but also with some        director, Matt Pelly, who died follow-
   with Fatima Salaria at Channel 4 to        policy prescriptions that invited         ing a fatal fall during a filming hiatus,
   broadcast in just six weeks.               Ofcom to regulate diversity or step       but who set the style and tone of the
     Despite Covid-19 and the tight           aside for someone who will.               film. This one was for him.
   turnaround, all the talent in the            A lot of my black and brown col-
   senior roles was black, including          leagues on social media used the          Pat Younge, former chief creative officer
   camera, sound and editing. I guess it      same phrase: “Now I feel seen.” I         of BBC Vision Productions, is Managing
   shows that where there’s a will…           understood what they were talking         Director of Cardiff Productions.

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                            5
Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
Take five...
        Kate Holman and Imani Cottrell update us on five social media trends

                                                                      enough content to help us all survive                          Once the reality of spending days,
    TikTok screen wipes                                               the socially distanced months. The                          even weeks, creating one small loaf
    TikTok has allowed any of us to                                   one currently doing the rounds is the                       set in, people turned their attention to
    become social media famous, with                                  #2020Challenge. Started by Reese                            banana
    the app showcasing new talent sur-                                Witherspoon, the meme shows the                             bread. Less
    facing from viral trends that anyone                              months of the year so far represented                       work than
    can participate in.                                               by different characters. Witherspoon                        the demand-

                                                                                                                                                                         Instagram @happytummy_702
      One of the most popular trends is                               pulls a range of hilarious facial                           ing sour-
    the #WipeItDown challenge, which                                  expressions that become increasingly                        dough, but
    shows users as their normal selves in a                           dramatic as the year goes on.                               with more
    mirror before wiping the mirror down                                Since Witherspoon posted the                              failed
    to reveal a surprising alternative image.                         meme on Instagram, influencers,                             attempts
      Stars such as Jason Derulo and Will                             celebrities and even brands have                            than suc-
    Smith have had fun with the trend.                                recreated the #2020Challenge to show                        cesses, the
    The videos are set to the song Wipe It                                                                                        banana bread
    Down by BMW Kenny and Theelboy.                                                                                               phase was
                                                                                                                                  short-lived.
    Depop dramas                                                                                                                     The latest bread trend spreading
    Who could have known there would                                                                                              across the social platforms is cloud
    be so much drama on social shopping                                                                                           bread. Soaring in popularity due to
    app Depop? The weird and wonderful                                                                                            its fluffy, colourful appearance and
    world of Depop has been catapulted                                                                                            skimpy recipe (a mere three ingredi-
    to the mainstream after an app user                                                                                           ents), #CloudBread has accumulated
    set up an Instagram account that                                                                                              2.5 billion views on TikTok and nearly
    showcases the best of #DepopDrama.                                                                                            36,000 posts on Instagram.
      From outlandish excuses as to why                                                                                              All you need is egg whites, sugar
    an order was not shipped (“I fell off                                                                                         and cornflour – mixed in with some
    the edge of a swimming pool and got                                                                                           food colouring to create your own
                                                                                                                Instagram @hulu

    concussion”), to someone acciden-                                                                                             rainbow creations.
    tally paying £12,000 instead of £12 for
    a second-hand top, the comments                                                                                               Fitness freaks
    never fail to shock and amuse.                                                                                                Since lockdown, gyms may be empty
                                                                                                                                  but that hasn’t stopped people from
                                                                                                                                  turning to social media to “feel the
                                                                      their own versions of 2020, from                            burn” with home workouts.
                                                                      Kerry Washington to Netflix. Our                               Workout queen Chloe Ting has
                                                                      favourites are the depictions of the                        more than 2.7 million followers on
                                                                      ever-shocking Killing Eve and the                           Instagram and 14 million subscribers
                                              Instagram @depopdrama

                                                                      emotional rollercoaster Normal People.                      on YouTube. She has been spearhead-
                                                                                                                                  ing some major fitness transforma-
                                                                      Bread heads                                                 tions, uniting people with the hashtag
                                                                      When the UK went into lockdown                              #ChloeTingChallenge. The hashtag
                                                                      in March, the nation saw a bigger rise                      involves a daily 20-minute workout to
                                                                      in amateur baking than when a new                           sculpt a toned and athletic physique.
                                                                      series of Bake Off hits our screens.                           Ting is not the only one getting
                                                                      With self-raising flour like gold dust,                     people moving: fitness guru Kayla
                                                                      people found solace in their Insta-                         Itsines is the personal trainer behind
    #2020Challenge                                                    grammable sourdough creations.                              the popular #BBG, which stands for
    Social media is the place to go if you                              Soon, everyone wanted a slice, and                        the Bikini Body Guide, and has gar-
    want to find a great meme to make                                 no social media platform was free                           nered a legion of fans who credit the
    light of a difficult situation. And the                           from the hourly updates of Insta-                           workout regime with helping them to
    pandemic has provided more than                                   grammers “feeding” their starters.                          stay fit and healthy. n

6
Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
OUR FRIEND IN THE

            NORTH EAST
   I
                                                 Graeme Thompson
              t was Groundhog Day for                                                                                  new current-­affairs strand serving six
              me when news broke that            asks if the infamous                                                  super-­regions led by a commission-
              the BBC was proposing to
              cut £25m from the BBC
                                                  ‘exams algorithm’                                                    ing team based in Birmingham.
                                                                                                                          The 11 existing production teams
              England budget by 2022.             also informed the                                                    will be replaced by six slimmed-down
              Flashback to redundancies
              across regional programme
                                                  BBC’s plan to axe                                                    hubs, where journalists will make way
                                                                                                                       for content producers. The new York-
   teams, the culling of popular titles and        regional services                                                   shire and North West replacement in
   complaints from audiences seeing and                                                                                2021 will have an audience stretching
   hearing less about where they live.                                                                                 from Haverigg in the west to beyond
      I was regional director of ITV Tyne                                                                              Holbeach in the east.
   Tees & Border when, in 2008, Michael                                                                                   In mileage, that’s the equivalent of a
   Grade announced £35m of cuts to                                                                                     region spanning Newcastle to London.
   local news and programmes. Popular                                                                                  In my experience, viewers like network
   titles such as The Dales Diary, Grundy’s                                                                            and they value local, but other people’s
   Wonders and The Way We Were vanished                                                                                local programming is a hard sell.
   alongside production teams who also                                                                                    Since the 1990s, the UK has increas-
   made shows for the network.                                                                                         ingly slashed investment in local econ-
                                                                                            University of Sunderland

      No amount of protests and talk of                                                                                omies to power that of its capital. I
   ratings success in the regional slots (up                                                                           remember visiting newsrooms in the
   against the mighty EastEnders) were                                                                                 US during that period and being told
   ever going to change ITV’s determina-                                                                               that TV audiences wouldn’t put up
   tion to replace local favourites with                                                                               with a network that spent more time
   cheaper products. And, from Ofcom’s                                                                                 on Washington news than local activ-
   perch overlooking the Thames, the                                                                                   ity. Not true of England, apparently.
   commercial arguments all seemed                                                                                        At a time when democracy is under
   perfectly reasonable.                       people living in the North East and                                     threat as a result of widespread cuts
      Fast forward 12 years and the BBC        Cumbria, has a BBC TV budget of                                         in commercial radio bulletins and
   is making the same case. The long-­         £29m – that’s £15 of TV spend for                                       newspapers, the BBC appears intent
   running Inside Out current-affairs          every viewer. In my English region,                                     on further alienating loyal audiences
   series and its production teams –           the equivalent spend is £1.87.                                          outside London by reducing opportu-
   who also produce award-winning                 One of the BBC’s justifications for the                              nities for them to see and hear their
   documentaries for the BBC network           cuts is its desire to focus on “under-                                  lives and localities reflected online
   channels – are being axed.                  served” audiences. I think you could                                    and on-screen.
      In the case of the North East and        safely argue that a publicly funded                                        So, fewer jobs and fewer opportu-
   Cumbria, Inside Out performed strongly      broadcaster already commissioning                                       nities for the next generation of
   against Coronation Street and ranked        little content from a region whose                                      programme-­makers. At least the cuts
   alongside ratings phenomenon The            population is bigger than Northern                                      don’t extend to the regional politics
   Repair Shop in audience appreciation        Ireland’s and about the same as Wales                                   slot. These may not be award-winning
   scores.                                     is, indeed, significantly underserved.                                  programmes, but they’re highly valued
      Regional TV news and radio services         It feels like a rationale utilising the                              by local MPs, whose opposition to the
   are also in the line of fire. The axe is    same algorithm that levelled down                                       downsizing might just be appeased.
   not as sharp in the BBC nations. Quite      A-level results for comprehensives                                      Ofcom, on the other hand, may prove
   rightly, home-grown production in           but boosted schools teaching Latin.                                     more difficult to convince. n
   Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland           In its defence, the BBC’s senior
   is more protected. If only it were the      managers argue that the English                                         Graeme Thompson is pro vice-chancellor
   same for the English regions.               regions need to take a share of the                                     for external relations at the University of
      Northern Ireland, with a population      target savings (£125m). Furthermore,                                    Sunderland and Chair of the RTS Educa-
   smaller in size than the 3 million          Inside Out is being replaced with a                                     tion Committee.

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                                             7
Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
WORKING LIVES

                                                                                                                       Vanity Fair

                                                                                                                                      ITV
                      Military advisor
    F
                rom staging the Battle         action series Strike Back, I was actually   suggestion for a scene. I didn’t know
                of Waterloo for the ITV        in the writers room, helping to make        that extras on set were meant to be
                adaptation of Vanity Fair to   the stories authentic.                      seen, not heard. The director, George
                recreating trench warfare        When I have the script, I advise the      Clooney, liked my idea.
                for the Oscar-winning 1917,    costumes and props departments on             Word got around and I got called in
                Paul Biddiss ensures that      military uniforms and equipment.            to run the extras’ boot camps for Fury,
    battle scenes in TV and film are as        Then, I train the cast and supporting       starring Brad Pitt as a Second World
    authentic as possible.                     artists in how, for example, to use         War tank commander. It all took off
                                               weapons realistically and safely.           from there.
    What does the job involve?
    My job is to support the director and      How did you become a military advisor?      What was your first TV work?
    make films realistic from a military       It wasn’t planned. I served 24 years as     BBC One’s 2016 adaptation of War &
    perspective. On Sam Mendes’ First          a paratrooper in the British Army, sta-     Peace was my first big TV project as a
    World War movie 1917, I was running        tioned around the world. After leaving      military advisor. I wanted to show
    up and down the trenches with 500          the army, I worked as a private investi-    guys knocking seven bells out of each
    men, checking they were holding their      gator and a bodyguard.                      other, because that’s what the battle-
    weapons and equipment the right way.          I had a lean period before answering     field was like back then when you got
                                               an ad for a job as an extra on the 2014     to close quarters.
    When do you start work on a show?          Second World War movie The Monu-               There were 500 Lithuanian extras. I
    Ideally, I’m brought on to a production    ments Men. The military advisor was         had three days’ notice to study Napo-
    as early as possible. On the Sky 1         with the main film unit, so I made a        leonic warfare. Then, I had to carry out

8
Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
Entertainment One
                                                                                                                               1917

a risk assessment, put a boot camp           – the Russian soldiers’ green tunics in      hasn’t got the money to keep you on
together and train them for the shoot.       War & Peace were not always right as         set. It’s so frustrating when they get the
                                             the shade changed three times                details wrong during filming because
Do you have to have been in the army         between the periods depicted.                there’s no military advisor on hand.
to work as an advisor?                         But a production isn’t going to pay          Sometimes, productions don’t
Yes – you have to have experienced           for 500 uniforms three times over just       understand the value an advisor brings
military life. You have to be able to        to appease the purists.                      – we can save them money by helping
articulate to an actor the thoughts and        On 1917, Sam Mendes said he was            them to avoid reshoots.
feelings of a soldier as he potentially      making the film for an audience of
faces his death. It’s about much more        millions, not to satisfy a few nitpickers.   Are there any tricks of the trade you
than knowing how a rifle works.              Military advisors are helping to make        can share with us?
                                             an entertainment, not a documentary.         Keep yourself fit – if you’re training an
Can real soldiers play TV armies?                                                         actor and you want them to take you
It’s not always a good idea – sometimes,     What work are you most proud of?             seriously, you have to be able to do
you need a blank canvas. Trained, mod-       I’m hugely proud of 1917. It was a hard      exactly the same things that you’re
ern-day soldiers would march perfectly       job due to the nature of the shoot,          asking them to do.
in step but during, say, the Battle of       which used a series of long takes – if
Waterloo, many soldiers were not that        one of the extras had screwed up dur-        What TV series or film would you love
polished, so it wouldn’t be realistic.       ing a nine-minute take and we had to         to work on?
                                             do it again, everyone would have been        I’d love to do a series set in Roman
Can you advise on all types of warfare?      looking at me.                               times – that’s an interesting period.
All through history and beyond – I do                                                     And Star Wars – the storm troopers
sci-fi, too. For a new series, I’ve devel-   What are the best and worst parts of         need sorting out!
oped a system incorporating Roman,           the job?
Napoleonic and modern-day drills.            The best is when I see the people I’ve       Is it a great life as a military advisor?
                                             trained on screen, getting everything        My ex-army mates think I’m a lucky
What do you bring to work with you?          on point and doing it effortlessly. I use    bugger to get myself into film and TV.
My experience. I drill actors until it’s     a three-bar system of excellence to          It’s even worse when I tell them it all
natural, so they can concentrate on          encourage the actors: “good”; “the           kicked off after a chance encounter
their acting.                                dog’s bollocks”; and “airborne”, the         with George Clooney. n
                                             highest.
Do military advisors always get it right?       The worst is when a production            Military advisor Paul Biddiss was inter-
You never get everything 100% correct        brings you on board to train a cast, but     viewed by Matthew Bell.

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                               9
Gripping drama - September 2020 - Royal Television Society
COMFORT CLASSIC

                                                                                                                        Amazon

                                      Gilmore Girls
                             A gentle guide to getting older and wiser, which
                            Moya Lothian-McLean returns to again and again

     O
                       n the face of it, a com-      Hitting screens in 2000, the show             At the centre of its appeal are Lorelei
                       ing-of-age story about     ran for seven seasons, its cross-­            and Rory Gilmore, a mother and
                       a mother and daughter      generational popularity such that it          daughter navigating the world. When
                       who live in a quirky       was revived for a four-part Netflix           we meet them, both have a lot of
                       Connecticut town and       mini-­series in 2016, nearly 10 years         growing up to do; Lorelei is a formerly
                       speak at the pace of an    after the last episode aired.                 teen mother who has a fraught rela-
     Aaron Sorkin script doesn’t sound that          There’s no secret about why the show       tionship with her wealthy, old-money
     comforting. But that would be to judge       is so beloved; sinking into the world of      parents. Rory is literally a teenager.
     Gilmore Girls, the cult comedy-drama         Gilmore Girls is like sipping on your first   Often, their relationship is more like
     created by Amy Sherman-Palladino             hot chocolate of autumn or swaddling          siblings than parent and child.
     too quickly.                                 yourself in a thick duffle coat.                 Which is part of what makes Gilmore

10
Girls so magic; both Lorelei and Rory
                                                 Ear candy
                                                                                                                        Succession
are fully fleshed out women charac-
ters. This shouldn’t be rare but, all too
often, it is. These two are more than
the sum of their parts, not just “a
mother” or “a daughter”. They have
individual hopes, dreams, loves
and losses.
   At times, each makes mistakes or
does horribly unlikeable things. Sher-
man-Pallindo wasn’t afraid to allow
the women she wrote to be real and
learn the lessons of life the hard way.
It makes Gilmore Girls both a refreshing
show but also a comforting one. Life is
messy, the show says. And that’s OK.
   However, some of the joy also lies in
the fact it stops short of full reality. The
Gilmore Girls exist in a golden bubble:
despite family tensions, there’s always
a large pot of money on hand if needed
to bail them out.
   Lorelei and Rory live in Stars Hollow,
a unbelievable little town, stuffed with
zany characters, who make up a tight-
knit community that’s simply too good

                                                   HBO’s Succession
to be true. Viewers will also notice the
dark side of this; a huge lack of non-
white faces. It’s not the show for you if

                                                       Podcast
you’re watching for proper representa-
tion in 2020.
   Frankly though, as a woman of colour,
I’m not. Time and time again, I return
to Gilmore Girls because of its pseudo-­

                                                                                                                                        Sky

                                               T
reality, its slow-burn soap opera, its
gentle guide to getting older and wiser.
   It’s a programme from another era,                             o provide succour to     their Succession characters’ story arcs.
before everything was on-demand and                               desperate Succession        As the Roys are all in severe need
you could binge an entire season in a                             fans faced with a long   of therapy, there is ample material for
day. The plots reflect that: arcs that last                       wait for series 3, HBO   psychoanalysis. And Bennett does his
several seasons, calm pacing (despite                             has assembled the        best to unearth the roots of the relent-
the fast talking) that allows the viewer                          cast for a sequence of   less conflict and abuse by digging deep
to sit with the storylines and fall in                            longform, one-on-one     into their past traumas. No stone is left
love with the world that is being care-        interviews. Loosely inspired, it is said,   unturned, no trait unanalysed and no
fully created in front of their eyes.          by the Murdochs, the Roy family of          wardrobe uninspected.
   Gilmore Girls is smart and savvy but        Succession boasts some of the most             Each actor’s devotion to the craft
also a cocoon of safety, one that, at its      complex characters on the small screen.     shines through, but none more so than
warm heart, shares a spirit with the           Series 2 saw the Roy siblings vying to      Jeremy Strong, who plays Kendall Roy.
likes of Anne of Green Gables or Little        ascend the Waystar Royco throne once        He confesses to taking method acting
House on the Prairie. It’s a story of com-     the aging, raging patriarch Logan Roy       to mentally detrimental extremes.
munity and mutual support. That’s the          (Brian Cox) finally steps down.                Sprinkled and bookended with
quality that renders it timeless and             Sports journalist Roger Bennett           memorable quotes from the character
why, when I’m in need of a bit of light        hosts with infectious enthusiasm. His       in question, HBO’s Succession Podcast
and optimism, I’ll always head to Stars        emphatic introductions to each actor        will enlighten and leave you laughing.
Hollow. n                                      have become something of a trademark.       “If it is to be said,” as a wise Greg once
                                               He breezily steers the conversation from    said, “so it is.”
Gilmore Girls is on Netflix and Amazon.        their origins to the peaks and valleys of   Harry Bennett

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                  11
ITV’s adaptation of JG Farrell’s novel The Singapore Grip has
                     many contemporary resonances, discovers Caroline Frost

                                                                                                                                          ITV
                   An epic story of
                   imperial hubris
‘I
              t’s a false sense of entitlement    exploration of the consequences                 Hampton was determined to keep
              that we have to get rid of,         of colonialism.                              the comic, often bemused, tone of the
              because it can have cata-             Japan’s victory at Singapore was           author’s prose in his screenplay, high-
              strophic results. This is a story   overshadowed globally by the events          lighting the military incompetence,
              that recommends modesty. I          of Pearl Harbor just two months previ-       casually racist society and all-round
              think arrogance was the main        ously, but it was, nevertheless, calami-     complacency that led to Britain’s
     problem and it’s big a problem today in      tous for the British Empire: it led to the   downfall in the region.
     the way things have been handled             capture of nearly 80,000 Allied soldiers,       “He treats a serious subject with wit
     recently in this country.”                   the death of thousands more, and an          and lightness, which gradually darkens
        Screenwriter Christopher Hampton,         evacuation on a massive scale.               as the story darkens,” explains Hamp-
     who has adapted The Singapore Grip for         Hampton’s own uncle was among              ton. “I wanted to preserve the comedy
     the small screen, clearly sees recent        the desperate throng who boarded             where I could, and it’s very amusing in
     parallels to the tale told in JG Farrell’s   ships and fled the island just before the    places. I also wanted to keep the bal-
     last novel.                                  invasion. The screenwriter (an Oscar         ance between the real-life military
        His epic treatment of Farrell’s 700-      winner for Dangerous Liaisons) therefore     characters and the family saga, giving
     plus pages comes to ITV this month           felt a personal connection to the story.     them context.”
     and tells the story of what Winston            He had also known and admired                 Hampton, who also served as an
     Churchill called “the largest capitula-      JG Farrell when they both lived in           executive producer on the project,
     tion” in British history – the fall of       London’s Notting Hill during the 1970s.      sounds almost embarrassed when he
     Singapore in 1942. The book was the          Tragically, Farrell drowned off the          adds: “I found the whole process of
     third in Farrell’s “Empire” trilogy, his     coast of Ireland in 1979.                    adapting the book immensely

12
enjoyable. Nobody should be paid for             firmly where Matthew’s values are.                its very different inhabitant. “We can
having so much fun.”                             In the scene where I’m asking Walter              all identify with the beautiful, cool
   He was blessed with a cast able to            about how he treats his workers, I                house the Blacketts have created,” she
swing with these nuances of light and            found myself getting angry with him,              laughs. “It’s fashionable, cool, abso-
shade. David Morrissey plays Walter              and everyone like him.”                           lutely pristine, the perfect house for
Blackett, a complacent rubber-­                     While it is all too easy to see the            a modern European living in Asia.”
company executive focused only on                complacence and arrogance of Farrell’s                Mr Webb’s house is darker, pokier
what works best for him. Charles                 characters in many of our contempo-               but more characterful. “He’s immersed
Dance is his more principled colleague,          rary public figures, Treadaway is                 himself in the country’s culture. He’s
Old Mr Webb, and Luke Treadaway                  stumped when I ask for a real-life                collected things that are quite unique.
his equally well-intentioned but wet-­           modern equivalent of the more ear-                It’s a true reflection of his personality.”
behind-the-ears son, Matthew.                    nest, honourable Matthew Webb.                        Other locations that jump out on
   Jane Horrocks and Georgia Blizzard               Hampton believes the challenge                 screen include: the “Blue House”,
play Blackett’s wife and daughter,               lies in the character’s innocence. He             where a bizarre dinner party takes
while Coronation Street alumna Eliza-            explains: “I don’t think this is a very           place in the second episode; “an old
beth Tan is the mysterious and disrup-           innocent age. I feel that part of the             clan house that dates back centuries,
tive Vera Chiang.                                story is that of an innocent who, in the          with little bits of water, dark wood, so
   Treadaway clearly delighted in his            course of the story, gradually gets edu-          much history”; and the recreation of
role: Matthew Webb is a late arrival to          cated. I think that there are genuine             the Battle of Slim River, filmed in
                                                                                                   southern Malaysia – “lots of Japanese
                                                                                                   extras cycling over rocky ground on
                                                                                                   bicycles from the 1940s – it looked
                                                                                                   magical”.
                                                                                                       Abushwesha still can’t decide which
                                                                                                   was more temperamental – one of
                                                                                                   their leading men, who happened to
                                                                                                   be a monkey with very strong facial
                                                                                                   expressions, or the weather. Certainly,
                                                                                                   the latter failed to behave on one of the
                                                                                                   most important and, no doubt, expen-
                                                                                                   sive, shooting days of the entire project.
                                                                                                       “It was a circus day. We had hun-
                                                                                                   dreds of extras, special effects, groups
                                                                                                   of singers, a cannon to shoot someone
                                                                                                   from. We’d flown people in from Thai-
                                                                                                   land. We had 10 hours to shoot, and it
                                                                                                   rained for seven and a half of them.
                                                                                                       “There was a foot of water on the
                                                                                                   ground. What could we do? We
 Luke Treadaway (left) with the principal cast
                                                                                             ITV

                                                                                                   couldn’t drink, so we went to a café
                                                                                                   across the road, ate loads of cake and
the party, and it is he who takes the            idealists in the world, though, and he’s          waited. Finally, we got the shots, but it
audience on his journey into the rich,           in that family.”                                  was maddening.”
complex world of Singapore, beginning               The challenge of creating an epic                  Treadaway says acting in these huge
six months before the invasion.                  feel for “a Second World War film shot            street scenes was thrilling, “the nearest
   He soon becomes the subject of two            in the tropics of Southeast Asia” has             I’ll have to time travel”. He hopes the
rival women’s affections, but it is in his       made this the biggest professional                series will spark conversations about
protestations against Walter Blackett’s          project yet for producer Farah Abush-             the past: “We look at it and say, what’s
machinations for his rubber company              wesha, who previously worked with                 changed? It’s a fascinating prism to look
that Matthew emerges as the most                 the same company, Mammoth Screen,                 into another world, and have our own
generous-minded of the characters.               on The ABC Murders.                               world reflected back at us.”
Treadaway describes him as “progres-                The series was shot entirely in South-             Is there hope, too, amid all the hubris
sive for his time” in his attitude to            east Asia, with Kuala Lumpur doubling             and eventual devastation? Hampton
native workers’ rights and not wanting           for wartime Singapore. The neighbour-             believes so: “It resides in the under-
to strip the country of its assets with-         ing houses owned by Walter Blackett               standing that arises between the races
out putting something back.                      and Mr Webb on screen are, in reality,            and the open-mindedness that leads
   The actor says he saw his character           a stone’s throw from one another in the           to that. That’s the big positive of the
as one who learnt as he went along.              highest part of the city, which remains           story, and in the young people who
“He wasn’t putting his body on the               surprisingly lush and green.                      are open to what’s happening. They’re
line, he was just less shackled to the              The producer was delighted with the            aware of the world in a way that the
status quo.                                      different moods the design team were              older generation have become too
   “My ethics and values come down               able to create, each interior reflecting          boiled in aspic to notice.” n

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                         13
Shilpa Ganatra examines
         why BBC Three’s
       Famalam, a huge hit
        on social media, is
         making big waves
        with its third series

     W
                                hen Famalam
                                came to our
                                screens in
                                2018, British
                                television was
                                ready and
     waiting for a high-profile comedic
     exploration of the contemporary black
     British experience. It tapped the same
     vein as Michaela Coel’s Chewing Gum
     and the 1990s ensemble show The Real
     McCoy – and another hit sketch show
     was long overdue.
        It was squarely on target on both
     counts. In the two years since then, the
     show has earned RTS and Bafta recog-

                                                                                                                                           BBC
     nition for its driving force, Akemnji
     Ndifornyen (known as AK), and actor/
     writers Samson Kayo and Gbemisola
     Ikumelo. The show’s clips are among
     the BBC’s most-viewed social content.
        “A large part of [it] was to appeal to
     black folk, and for us to have agency

                                                  A sketch show
     over our stories,” says AK of its crosso-
     ver success. “Because it has served us
     first and has now gone broader, we’re
     thrilled.”
        With the cast completed by Vivienne

                                                  defying gravity
     Acheampong, John Macmillan, Tom
     Moutchi and Danielle Vitalis, the
     troupe continues the winning formula
     in the third series. AK believes it to be
     “the strongest yet”. Certainly, it’s found
     its stride: alongside familiar characters,
     such as the imposing gaggle of aunties       executive producer of all three series.    Interracial Couples Selling Stuff, per-
     and the Nigerian philanthropist Prince       “So we’ve brought in Danielle, and         formed by AK as if channelling Errol
     Alyusi, its 22-minute episodes are           she’s brilliant. The change has widened    Brown from Hot Chocolate. The every-
     crammed with absurd situations               up our comic angles and it’s brought a     day lyrics against the sexiness of the
     pushed to their extreme and smart            freshness to it. It excites the writers    song is funny in itself, but poking fun
     observations about life today.               and keeps us on our toes.”                 at ad companies’ formulaic output
        The opening gambit is a Narcos-style         While the dominating type of com-       notches up the comedy – even when
     skit in which two avocado cartels meet       edy is irreverence, the smarts are in      the point is the same as that made by
     to do a dangerous deal; “You know we         the density of ideas, the multilayered     social media trolls. For AK, it’s a case
     are going to have to test it,” says one,     observations and unexpected left           of “classic message and messenger”,
     chopping up a line of avocado to smear       turns. “Life provided a wealth of inspi-   he says. “Two people can say the same
     on toast and taking a rush-inducing bite.    ration to lampoon and satire,” says AK.    thing, but, because one person has the
        The new series sees a change of the          It helps that, with a largely black     licence to say it, it means different
     core cast, with Roxy Sternberg step-         British cast and crew, otherwise-­         things.”
     ping out and Vitalis stepping in.            sensitive topics that have bubbled to         That is a large part of its unique posi-
        “All the cast are becoming harder to      the foreground this past year are han-     tion in 2020’s TV landscape, explains
     nail down, but Roxy had a massive job        dled from a place of experience, rather    Shane Allen, controller of BBC comedy
     offer in the US and we couldn’t make         than judgement.                            commissioning: “People in mainstream
     it work,” explains Ben Caudell, an              A case in point is a musical number,    white culture walk on eggshells in

14
Vivienne Acheampong in Famalam

                                                                                                                                       BBC
certain areas, working out how they          that this approach has proved popular:        two to three minutes,” he says. “I think
can keep pushing the boundaries, but         “Turf wars” has been viewed more              that’s a great training ground for writ-
it’s more likely that the boundaries are     than 30 million times, and “There is no       ers to then go on and write longer-form
going to be pushed by people who             white Jesus” stands at 27.5 million           pieces or rounded sitcoms. Father Ted
aren’t the mainstream voice.                 views, making these Famalam sketches          creators Graham Linehan and Arthur
   “If you have people from those            among the BBC’s most successful social        Mathews wrote for Alas Smith & Jones
backgrounds who own the joke, then           media content. Which, as a blunt meas-        and, in the US, Tina Fey went from
that’s what the line is. Culturally, it’s    ure of success, matters.                      Saturday Night Live to 30 Rock.”
really important that comedy still has a        “The overnights are not as relevant           Famalam is already proving success-
bite and is able to ruffle feathers. It      as they were even two or three years          ful in developing talent, with Stern-
keeps comedy relevant in an age when         ago – now you’re looking for social           berg’s move to the US, and AK’s Bafta
people are saying, ‘It’s all gone PC and     media impact, cultural impact, and a          Television Craft Award for Break-
they’re trying to take away our com-         little bit of industry impact,” says Allen.   through Talent suggesting that “he’s
edy’. Actually, we’re trying hard for that   “Social media figures are one factor in       going to be a lot of people’s boss soon”,
not to be the case.”                         a wide array of how you judge a show,         according to Allen. The BBC comedy
   Crucially, in this politically weighty    but, because the BBC is trying to reach       chief also commissioned Brain in Gear,
age, the show isn’t only about the black     the young, underserved audience, it’s         Ikumelo’s comedy short, for a full
experience. Jokes are made about the         an important one – this audience isn’t        sitcom to air on BBC Two.
affront involved in leaving a WhatsApp       lining up to watch a specific show in a          The better news is that, even if the
group and people who thwart conver-          specific time slot on a specific channel      cast and crew outgrow the show, the
sations when there’s a spoiler involved      any more. There isn’t that brand loyalty.”    Famalam series could keep running
– in other words, ribbing every aspect          It helps greatly, of course, that short-   regardless. “It’s not like writing a soap
of contemporary life.                        form content viewed on social media           opera or a new series of Line of Duty,
   “If something pops up as part of the      fulfils the BBC’s remit as much as tra-       where you have to keep thinking of
zeitgeist, it’s like a Hungry Hippo: you     ditional viewing. The format also aids        new stories,” says Caudell. “Sketches are
have to knock it down,” says AK. “I          its remit of seeking out emerging tal-        often about life and there’s always going
apply the Family Guy model of laughs:        ent, a specific forte of sketch shows.        to be new aspects coming through, and
that nothing and no one is sacrosanct.       Allen reels off TV royalty such as            new talent coming through, too.”
So, while my name is one of the black-       Lenny Henry, Meera Syal, and Rowan               AK agrees: “In a show where we’ve
est, most African names you can ever         Atkinson, whose talent was nurtured           set a template for regeneration, any-
find and, when I cross my mother’s           in sketch shows Three of a Kind, The Real     thing’s possible. And this country has no
threshold, I’m in Cameroon, the reality      McCoy and Not the Nine O’Clock News,          shortage of black talent, because that’s
is that there are some aspects of life       respectively.                                 what this show is about. This can be a
that we all encounter. Love, relation-          “Sketch shows encourage mastering          great platform for the next generation of
ships, aliens – we’ll cover it all.”         of the short form: creating a character,      people. I can see this show continuing
   The social media figures indicate         finding a concept and playing it out in       and having a long-lasting legacy.” n

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                 15
Heart
          melting
          viewing

                                                                                                                2019 Contestants
                                                                                                             Ian ‘H’ Watkins (left)
                                                                                                               and pro Matt Evers
                                                                                                                                      ITV

     I
           t was a remarkable moment in                                                  going to do this.’ It shouldn’t be a thing
           British TV, when two men skated         The makers of the                     so I didn’t quite realise what a big deal
           on to the ice to perform together
           in a prime-time show. Hearts
                                                  ITV family favourite                   it was.”
                                                                                            The RTS event host, Richie Ander-
           melted across the nation, from         Dancing on Ice have                    son, part of the BBC’s Radio 2 Breakfast
           the Dancing on Ice studio to mil-
     lions watching at home.
                                                  broken taboos. Now                     Show team and a reporter on its TV
                                                                                         magazine The One Show, said: “As a gay
        The same-sex pairing of Ian Watkins       they’re preparing to                   man, I felt it was empowering and there
     – “H” – from Steps with pro skater Matt                                             was an element of acceptance. It was a
     Evers was a new development for the            socially distance                    beautiful moment.”
     flagship ITV show – and, as a member                                                   Dancing on Ice superfan Anderson
     of the production team told an RTS        any show. I was so proud and delighted    was the perfect upbeat host for the
     Midlands online masterclass, judge John   by the viewers’ reaction – we thought     entertaining masterclass, as he admit-
     Barrowman wasn’t the only one in          it might be more negative.                ted to having “anorak knowledge” of
     tears. Executive producer Clodagh            “I remember when I rang Matt and       his favourite TV show. He even con-
     O’Donoghue recalled: “It was such an      said, ‘H has approached us about doing    fessed to wanting judges and Olympic
     iconic moment and there wasn’t a dry      this, what do you think? It’s a brave     champions Jayne Torvill and Christo-
     eye anywhere in the studio. I’ve never    thing to do.’ He started crying on me,    pher Dean to be his TV mum and dad.
     heard an audience reception like it, on   saying, ‘I can’t believe the network is      He’s not alone in his love for Dancing

16
on Ice, which has dazzled as a Sunday-­          up in coats – but it can get steamy on       Gemma Collins falling flat on her face
night family favourite over 12 series.           the ice. The show has led to three last-     on the ice in last year’s show, which
Originally titled Stars on Thin Ice, it          ing relationships and a baby. Former         O’Donoghue said was initially a
began in 2006. So far, 154 contestants           England goalkeeper David Seaman and          “heart-wrenching” moment.
have put their skates on, from Joe Pas-          Frankie Poultney are married, as are            “All of us honestly thought she was
quale and Todd Carty to Kelly Holmes             Coronation Street’s Samia Ghadie and         seriously injured. We felt sick. But she
and Vanilla Ice. There have been                 Sylvain Longchambon, who have a son.         just got up and started waving and smil-
18 judges, including Louie Spence,                  The last series saw the engagement        ing at the audience. It was amazing.”
Katarina Witt, Robin Cousins and the             of footballer-turned-BBC-pundit                 O’Donoghue picked actor Ray Quinn
acerbic Jason Gardiner.                          Kevin Kilbane and skater Brianne             as the show’s best celebrity skater but
   The show will look a little different         Delcourt – who had previously dated          said that she has a soft spot for the
when it returns in January. One solu-            soap-star contestants Danny Young,           reigning champion, Joe Swash: “He
tion to filming with social distancing is        Sam Attwater and Matt Lapinskas.             was a real surprise. When we first
to have Perspex panels between the                  “Maybe there’ll be a romance this         met him he was falling over all the
judges on the Ice Panel. But one                 time, who knows?” said O’Donoghue.           time. If you had asked me to bet on
advantage Dancing on Ice has in a pan-           “I was delighted about Kevin and Bri-        who would be in the final, I would
demic is that it’s filmed in an                                                                           never have said Joe. And
isolated studio, a mile along                                                                             then to win it – and what
a runway on a disused RAF                                                                                 a lovely bloke.
base in Hertfordshire.                                                                                       “If I could sign up anyone,
   O’Donoghue said: “We                                                                                   Beyoncé would be incredi-
have to look at what works                                                                                ble. She would come out of
with cameras and lighting.                                                                                that tunnel looking amazing,
Will there be a reflection off                                                                            and I bet she can skate
the Perspex at a certain                                                                                  because she can do any-
angle? We have all these                                                                                  thing, can’t she?”
decisions to make.                                                                                           When asked for tips on
   “The cast start training in                                                                            getting into TV, creative
October and will go into a sort                                                                           producer Sita Patel said: “I
of isolation separately in order                                                                          applied for every traineeship
for them to come together and                                                                             and runner scheme. Hunt
train. There will be a lot of                                                                             down those opportunities,
testing for Covid and being                                                                               because they are out there.
‘clean’ – a period where you’re                                                                              “Be enthusiastic, persis-
not going out to nightclubs                                                                               tent and respectful about the
and rubbing up against people.                                                                            show you’re hoping to work
   “Our studio isolation works                                                                            on. Watch it! And don’t say:
very well for Covid. It’s just                                                                            ‘The last series wasn’t very
us, there aren’t any other                                                                                good’. Quietly getting on
shows around. Dancing on Ice                                                                              with your job, staying late
used to come from Elstree                                                                                 to clean up and helping out
and Shepperton Studios, but                                                                               with photocopying is what
they were booked up when                                                                                  a producer will notice more
                                        Reigning Dancing on Ice champion Joe Swash
                                                                                                     ITV

the show relaunched in 2018,                                                                              than the person chatting
so we purpose-built a studio                                                                              loudly in the bar.”
at RAF Bovingdon. It’s big enough for            anne. We pair them up on the basis of           O’Donoghue, the daughter of publi-
two ice rinks, a rehearsal and main              their heights and personalities. When        cans, revealed that her big break came
studio rink, and for all the crew, dress-        we first meet a celebrity – and that’s       thanks to common sense and a jug of
ing rooms and parking.”                          always on the ice, whoever they are, to      sangria: “I was on work experience
   The on-screen talent consists of              make sure they can get from A to B           with TV production company Initial. It
13 celebrities and 13 professional skat-         – we ask what sort of pro they’d like.       had a late meeting one night and they
ers, four judges, two presenters – Phil-         Are you competitive, do you need a           asked me to buy some sangria from a
lip Schofield and Holly Willoughby               pro who will push you? Do you just           tapas place down the road. I thought,
– and a commentator.                             want to have a laugh? Do you want a          ‘That’s crazy, to spend all that money.’
   Backstage, there is a crew of 250,            pro who is kind and nurturing?                  “So I made a jug myself and brought
including medics and physios, catering              “We want people to have a good            it in. The boss, Malcolm Gerrie, thanked
staff and a wardrobe department for all          time. There’s no point doing it unless       me and when I told him what I’d done,
the colourful, sequinned costumes.               you’re going to enjoy it. It’s full on but   he said: ‘You are going to go far’.” n
Then there are the more unusual jobs,            so rewarding. They often keep skating
skate sharpeners and a tanning team to           for fitness – you get a really firm bum      Report by Roz Laws. The RTS Midlands
make sure the sun-deprived contest-              on Dancing on Ice.”                          ‘Dancing on Ice Masterclass’ was held
ants aren’t the same shade as the ice.              Inevitably, there are falls, which is     on 29 July and hosted by Richie Anderson.
   It may be freezing in the studio – it’s       secretly what viewers may be waiting         The producers were Caren Davies and
no wonder the audience are wrapped               for. Everyone remembers reality star         Megan Fellows.

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                   17
Sky Arts is about to debut as a free
       service. Phil Edgar-Jones, the man
       in charge, explains to Steve Clarke
                                                                                                               Portrait Artist of the Year:
       what new viewers can expect                                                                              Painter Toby Michael and
                                                                                                                   sitter Wunmi Mosaku

                                                                                                                                              Sky
                  Inspiration to all
     F
                      or many of us, starved of   for another milestone in Sky Arts’ his-        be distinctive and do something differ-
                      enjoying a real perfor-     tory when, on 17 September, Sky Arts           ent to the BBC and Channel 4?’ I can
                      mance in a theatre or a     stops being a subscription-only service        say to an artist, ‘You can have the
                      concert hall these past     and goes free-to-air.                          channel for as long as you like, we’ll
                      months, watching Sky           The move is bound to increase the           take out the ad breaks, it’s yours, do
                      Arts in lockdown was a      network’s popularity. In some quarters,        what you like with it’.”
     revelation. Most of us knew about its        it is being interpreted as a direct chal-         Why, then, is Sky Arts removing its
     flagship shows Urban Myths and Portrait      lenge to the BBC. Several commenta-            pay wall? The channel’s impressive
     Artist of the Year. We were less familiar    tors have remarked on what they                on-demand programming, amounting
     with the service’s sheer eclecticism,        perceive as a diminishing number of            to around 2,000 hours of cultural con-
     which encompasses everything from            regular arts slots available on BBC            tent, will remain exclusive to Sky sub-
     ballet to the blues and Bono.                television. Even BBC Four has latterly         scribers. “We’ve been looking at it for
        “On some occasions, our audience          pivoted away from the arts to the              a while, the best part of 2019. We did a
     figures increased by as much as 40%,”        extent that presenters such as the bril-       lot of research around the channel and
     says Phil Edgar-Jones, who runs the          liant Andrew Graham-Dixon are rarely           talked to people in the arts world,
     channel. “During lockdown, we found          seen on the channel.                           practitioners and leaders, to see what
     that, across the board, there was a real        Edgar-Jones, who joined Sky as head         it was about the channel that was
     hunger for cultural content. It wasn’t       of entertainment in 2012, plays down           important to them.”
     only Sky Arts that benefited from this.”     any suggestion that having Sky Arts on            Three conclusions were drawn from
        A spin-off show, Portrait Artist of the   Freeview is likely to lure viewers away        this process – the desire to make Sky
     Week, perhaps reflecting a desire by         from BBC TV’s arts coverage.                   Arts more widely accessible, the need
     some people in lockdown to take up              “The BBC’s arts content is fantastic.       to help drive diversity and inclusivity,
     painting, was one notable success.           It’s very different to ours. We think          and the aim of increasing participation
        The programme, which will return in       about how we can create work that has          in the arts.
     October, was first shown on Facebook         a Sky flavour to it. Participation is at the      “So it made logical sense to allow the
     Live before transferring to the channel.     heart of that,” he insists. “I don’t see it    channel to reach more people,” explains
     “What we took away from this was             as a zero-sum game. We’re all in it            Edgar-Jones, who says he is now going
     that there is a great sense of commu-        together. I’d like to work with [the           out again to sample the arts. Recent
     nity that can be built around people’s       BBC], not against it. I’d love to partner      forays have included a local art-house
     passion points,” he observes.                with the BBC on projects....                   cinema in north London and the opera,
        Edgar-Jones will soon be responsible         “We always ask ourselves: ‘Can we           socially distanced of course, at

18
Thankfully, not everything on Sky
 Urban Myths: Joan Rivers,                                                                    Arts requires that kind of dedication or
 played by Katherine Ryan                                                                     stamina. Upcoming shows this autumn
 (right), and Barbra Streisand,                                                               include: series 4 of Urban Myths, includ-
 played by Jessica Barden                                                                     ing Steve Pemberton starring in Les
                                                                                              Dawson’s Parisienne Adventure; live cov-
                                                                                              erage of ENO’s first drive-in opera, a
                                                                                              new production of La bohème; No Masks,
                                                                                              a new drama from Theatre Royal Strat-
                                                                                              ford East based on the pandemic sto-
                                                                                              ries of key workers in east London; Life
                                                                                              & Rhymes, a celebration of the spoken
                                                                                              word hosted by Benjamin Zephaniah;
                                                                                              and Danny Dyer on Harold Pinter.
                                                                                                 “A lot of our work is trying to think
                                                                                              of ways to work beyond television.
                                                                                              We’re uniquely positioned to be more
                                                                                              than just a TV channel. We can com-
                                                                                              mission in the real world and meet
                                                                                              people in a way that other channels
                                                                                              can’t,” says Edgar-Jones. “We’re mov-
                                                                                              ing beyond being a spectator in the
                                                                                              arts to being an active participant. We
                                                                                              want to get communities involved in
                                                                                              creating art with us.”
                                                                                                 An example of this approach is a
                                                                                              new show, Landmark, in which artists
                                                                                              and local communities across the UK
                                                                                              attempt to create a new British land-
                                                                                              mark. “We want artists to be at the
                                                                                              forefront of our programmes and not
                                                                                        Sky

                                                                                              presenters,” he says.
                                                                                                 Sky doesn’t reveal its programme
Glyndebourne. He also plays guitar          Having run it for five or six years, I’ve         budgets. Edgar-Jones says it is less
and recently mastered David Bowie’s         always wanted to get it to more people.           about their size than where the money
1970s classic Starman.                      The business has always supported                 goes. “In the arts, every practitioner
   “Sky is a public service broadcaster,”   Sky Arts as something that doesn’t                is able to stretch things further than
he continues. “Giving Sky Arts away         have to be massively commercial or                people who buy drama can,” he
free is part of our service to the pub-     populist. I don’t get judged on ratings.          notes wryly.
lic.… I always say to people, ‘You won’t      “It enhances the Sky brand. From a                 Edgar-Jones needs no reminding of
like everything on the channel, but I       Sky perspective, that’s a very positive           the existential crisis that arts organisa-
guarantee you’ll find something that        thing. There is no commercial pressure            tions are undergoing and is anxious
you like.’”                                 around the channel.                               that “a layer of new talent”, potentially
   When James Murdoch was running             “In fact, quite the opposite. I’m               a forgotten generation, risks being
BSkyB in 2005 he purchased the              encouraged to do things that are bold,            extinguished by the pandemic’s eco-
remaining shares in Artsworld that          noisy, creative, and to encourage new             nomic impact.
BSkyB didn’t already own and turned         work, help support the arts and help                 Sky Arts is looking at what it can
the channel into Sky Arts. “James           support arts practitioners,” says Edgar-          do: a bursary scheme is being set up
deserves a lot of kudos for doing that,”    Jones, who, in common with many                   to support new and diverse voices in
says Edgar-Jones. “He’s a passionate        viewers, enjoyed Grayson’s Art Club, with         the arts industry.
supporter of the arts and making them       Grayson Perry, on Channel 4 during                   He concedes that, overall, British
more accessible. James pioneered £10        the early weeks of lockdown.                      broadcasters need to try harder on
opera tickets for people who wouldn’t         How, then, will Sky Arts change                 diversity: “We have to do a lot more.
normally go to see a live opera.”           when it is free? Might it become less             It’s been a perennial problem. There
   Could having a bigger audience           eclectic and more populist, perhaps               has been scheme after scheme after
eventually lead to more advertising         more pop and less Prokofiev?                      scheme. Sky has put money into some
revenue when the market begins to             “We’re not afraid of being popular              of these.
turn? “You might not believe this, but      and accessible,” he says. “There’s a                 “We’ve made great strides.… When I
we haven’t had a commercial discus-         wide range of stuff on the channel. At            started in television, diversity was
sion,” replies Edgar-Jones. “We think       one end of the scale, we can do Portrait          about whether you were from Oxford
we’ll reach a bigger audience, which        Artist of the Year, which we expect to            or Cambridge [Edgar-Jones went to
is attractive to all the partners we        become more popular still, while also             neither]. Television has come a long
work with.                                  doing 15 hours of The Ring cycle in               way from that. We include voices from
   “I’m passionate about this channel.      German in one sitting.”                           all communities.” n

Television www.rts.org.uk September 2020                                                                                                   19
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