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January 2019 Keep dancing
Apply now for
the 2019 Shiers
Trust Award
The Trust can make a
grant of up to £4,000
towards publishing
work on any aspect
of TV history
Grants will be given to assist in the
completion of new or unfinished
projects, work or literature specific
to the objectives of the Trust.
‘Literature’ is defined as including
audio-visual media such as DVDs
and websites. It is essential that
applicants read all the conditions
Do you need
and criteria, which can be found
online at the address below.
George Shiers, a distinguished
US television historian, was a
long-standing member of the RTS.
£4,000
The Shiers Trust grant is now in its
19th year.
Application procedure
Applications are now invited and
should be submitted to the Trus-
for a history of tees by Friday 29 March 2019 on
the official a
pplication form.
television project? www.rts.org.uk/
shiers-trust-award
8
Journal of The Royal Television Society
January 2019 l Volume 56/1
From the CEO
As 2019 begins, I’d like decision to locate its new out- A massive thanks to them and to our
to thank everyone of-London headquarters there. peerless host, Damian Collins MP,
who has helped make I was thrilled that Michael Grade chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and
the past year such could be a panel member at our Sport Committee. Full reports of both
a stand-out one for December early-evening event, “A TV evenings are in this issue.
the RTS. The Society Christmas Carol”. Michael’s revealing January’s cover story by Pippa
could not do all the anecdotes came thick and fast. He Shawley is a timely piece on the rise
great things it does without our tre- recounted how he’d helped shape and rise of the dance genre on TV.
mendous, hard-working staff in Lon- and schedule some of the classic Saturday evenings won’t be quite the
don, or the fantastic goodwill of moments from festive TV. The two same minus Strictly.
everyone who does so much for us in Kates (BBC Entertainment’s Kate The good news is that another
the nations and regions. Phillips and Click’s Kate Russell) were glamorous dance series, The Greatest
It’s been an incredible 2018. I can’t fantastic, too. Dancer, is coming soon. Judged by the
thank everyone enough for making it On an evening of high drama at trailers, we’re in for another glossy,
all happen. Westminster – in the Commons, the prime-time treat. I, for one, can’t wait.
Our January issue contains some Government suffered three consecu- Finally, a very Happy New Year to
New Year treats for you to enjoy. Peter tive defeats in the Brexit debate – the all our members and readers.
Bazalgette’s look back at some of the RTS hosted its latest APPG event, “The
main events of last year from a televi- future of TV journalism in an age of
sion perspective is a joy to read. fake news and disinformation”, at
Also, do read Helen Scott’s warm Portcullis House.
reflections on how her home city, A stellar panel got to grips with a
Leeds, is set to benefit from Channel 4’s subject that is close to all our hearts. Theresa Wise
Contents
7 Alex Horne’s TV Diary
Alex Horne, creator of comedy hit Taskmaster, receives
an unusual delivery and consults his children for advice 20 March of the ten-per-centers
On both sides of the Atlantic, talent agencies are
increasing their role in content production.
Simon Shaps investigates
8 TV and dance: perfect partners
Can BBC One’s new show The Greatest Dancer sparkle
like Strictly? Pippa Shawley takes to the floor
22 Fighting fake news
Steve Clarke is persuaded by an RTS panel that
transparency will be central to content platforms
10 A storyteller for our times maintaining trust
Mark Lawson hears how James Graham aims to make
sense of our divided nation in Brexit: The Uncivil War
26 RTS Masterclasses 2018
Steve Clarke and Matthew Bell distil two days of expert
13 Royals, reboots and revelations
In a Brexit-free zone, Peter Bazalgette looks back
advice from leading television practitioners
on the past 12 months
30 Carving up Christmas viewing
Matthew Bell is haunted by the ghosts of Morecambe
16 Gently does it and Wise at a Yuletide RTS event
Andrew Billen talks to Killing Eve producer
Sally Woodward Gentle about the obstacles
to a work-life balance
33 RTS Craft & Design Awards 2018
The nominees and winners of the awards, hosted by
Tom Allen at the London Hilton, over eight pages
19 Our Friend in Leeds
Helen Scott celebrates Channel 4’s impending move
to her home city Cover: BBC
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 2019.
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 January 2019 3
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RTS NEWS Your guide to
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RTS AWARDS
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TV diary
Alex Horne, creator of
comedy hit Taskmaster,
receives an unusual
delivery and consults his
children for advice
M
y working Taskmaster book, which involves as ■ I seldom do stand-up alone any
life was much work for me as the reader. more, so this is my only chance to
turned on its Many of the tasks are interactive. do what used to be my job.
head nine Throughout the week, I receive Doing it with friends (I went to
years ago, the amazing and alarming correspon- primary school with two of the band
summer after dence. Yesterday, I came home to a and know the others more intimately
I became a message from my neighbour, who’d than is healthy) is immeasurably
father. Presumably out of panic, I had to take delivery of a pallet of more pleasurable than the solo world
began two projects that were meant peanut butter for me (in response to a of endless journeys, silent dressing
to run alongside my normal stand-up “Send me something unusual” task). rooms and soulless service stations.
comedy, but these now dominate the There are many perks to what I do. Although, to be fair, I still love these
working week. islands.
My three children seem not to ■ Even more recklessly, I vowed to If I ever need to write something, I
mind both ventures – for now, at dish out a task on Twitter every day head to Teddington or Beaconsfield
least – and actually help on occasion. throughout Advent, unaware that a and plant myself in the middle of the
daunting number of people were lying very worst café to get inspired.
■ We are currently filming the bulk in wait for just such an opportunity.
of the eighth and ninth series of I can’t back out now, so any spare ■ This week, we recorded with Tim
Taskmaster. What started as a one- time is spent answering questions Key, Rufus Hound and Sir Chris Hoy.
night stand at the Edinburgh Fringe from the confused and trying to I didn’t expect I’d be saying that
took on a life of its own – and took decide who’s won every day. It’s a job when we booked 10 nights at the
over mine. that Greg Davies was born for but Pleasance back in 2010.
I spend more time at the Taskmas- which makes me sweat. We never had a plan – and still
ter house, by the Thames, when we This, though, is the heart of the don’t – but, again, better comedians
are in full swing than I do at home, show. Nine years ago, I sent my first and friends such as Tim have always
but it’s only fun. We think up tasks tasks to 20 of my friends over the been there to muck around with us.
for my comedy heroes to tackle. One internet. Now, thousands are taking And it’s a happy surprise that the
by one, they come and do whatever part. I can see how cult leaders get likes of Hoy and Hound are so willing
is asked of them. carried away with themselves. to join in.
Sure, they bicker and berate me.
Many force me into situations that I’d ■ Thankfully, my other children – ■ At home, the kids suggest their
never wish on others. But I am con- the members of my band, The Horne own tasks and solutions. I try to get
stantly surprised by the unending Section – are consistently excellent them to practise their saxophones,
inventiveness of their brains. It turns and always diligent at putting me in because I still wish I was a real
out that comedians are funny people. my place. musician.
We meet at least once a week for a My wife is a saint for putting up
■ If I’m not adjudicating at the Task- chaotic live show, ideally somewhere with it all.
master house, I’m adjudicating from within two hours’ travel from home,
mine. I foolishly invited the public or for a rambling podcast in the saxo- Alex Horne is a comedian, musician and
to take part themselves through a phonist’s basement. writer.
Television www.rts.org.uk January 2019 7
TV and dance
Perfect partners
Can BBC One’s new
show The Greatest
Dancer sparkle like
Strictly? Pippa Shawley
takes to the floor
W
hen the BBC
spiced up one of
TV’s oldest for-
mats to create
Strictly Come Danc-
ing, few thought it
would create the holy grail of TV – a
genuine pop-culture phenomenon that
glued all ages to the box.
That was almost 15 years ago. Come
Dancing, the show that inspired Strictly,
first appeared in 1950, surviving in all its
flouncy glory until 1998. It remains to
be seen if even Strictly can last that long.
Remarkably, despite the departure of
key dance master and catchphrase king
Bruce Forsyth, who hung up his shiny
shoes in 2014, Strictly chalked up its
most successful season ever last year.
“In a way, it’s owned by the public,”
says Kate Phillips, the BBC’s entertain-
ment controller. Viewers have become
armchair experts in the paso doble and
Viennese waltz. The Strictly team work
hard to cast celebrities who will appeal
to all ages.
Despite the annual grumbles about
some members of the cast being more
obscure than others, by the end of the
competition the show has made
household names of its contestants.
“We cast a mixed bag,” Phillips
explains. “We want to cast [some]
people who are complete novices,
some who have a bit of dance knowl-
edge and some who will surprise us.”
The show has hit a winning formula
with its mix of fabulous costumes, fiery
judges and outstanding professional
dancers. It’s not something that’s
The Greatest Dancer
messed with. “People just love what
presenter Jordan Banjo
they know,” Phillips believes. Instead of
8
playing around with the format, each for more than one,” she insists. Dancing moment, and the next morning in
year the show pushes for bigger, more on Ice returned in 2018 after a four-year school and in the office.”
impressive dances that continue to hiatus. It was felt that the show had With this in mind, former Love Island
thrill and inspire the nation. come to the end of the road, and winner Kem Cetinay has been
Now Phillips is launching what she coaches Jayne Torvill and Christopher recruited as the new social reporter for
hopes will become another entertain- Dean wanted a break. Dancing on Ice, producing content for
ment behemoth. Inspired by the music “People genuinely missed it,” says social-media platforms. As a previous
video for Justin Timberlake’s Can’t Stop Rawcliffe. “We did a lot of research Dancing on Ice competitor, Cetinay
the Feeling, which showed amateur [and] they missed that sort of glitz knows what it takes to participate in
dancers busting their moves in car and glam in cold January on a Sunday the competition, but he is also popular
parks, diners and supermarket aisles, night.” That nothing else had performed among younger viewers.
Phillips wanted a show that featured as well in that slot helped, too. An aver- The 2019 series will feature more
“real people”. age audience of 7.8 million tuned in for themed nights, following the success
The result is The Greatest Dancer, an the rebooted series. of last year’s fairytale episode, which
eight-part talent show in which ama- Like Strictly, the audience switches on appealed to both the show’s younger
teur dancers of all ages show off their to see skidding celebrities transform viewers and its nostalgic older audience.
passion for dance, from ballet to into majestic figure skaters – but the The accessibility of dance is the key
Bollywood. jeopardy of being on the ice also helps. to the success of shiny floor shows
Singer and former X Factor judge such as Strictly and Dancing on Ice, but
Cheryl (no surname these days), Glee for Emma Cahusac, the BBC’s dance
star Matthew Morrison and Strictly IT’S EVENT TELLY commissioner, dance also plays an
professional Oti Mabuse serve as
“dance captains”. They will mentor .… YOU NEED important role in tapping into the
zeitgeist: “Dance is a very useful way
the contestants.
The series is produced by Syco
TO BE THERE of looking at us at that moment, at our
culture, at our history.”
Entertainment, Simon Cowell’s pro- WATCHING IT She is keen to work with dance
duction company, best known for ITV
hits Britain’s Got Talent and The X Factor.
AS IT PLAYS OUT companies that are not only innovative
in their performances, but also mark
It is the first show the BBC has ordered a “moment”. BBC Four’s 2018 Dance
from the company. Season included Choreographing History,
“I didn’t realise it was such a big deal,” Notable accidents include Jennifer which looked at the artistic process
laughs Phillips, who put the idea for an Ellison drawing blood when she hit behind Shobana Jeyasingh’s Contagion,
amateur dance show out to tender. herself on the head with her skate inspired by the 1918 flu epidemic. Prej-
“The pilot from Syco was just glorious blade, and professional skater Mark udice and Passion, also part of the sea-
and full of energy,” she recalls. She Hanretty dislocating his shoulder live son, followed choreographer Carlos
hasn’t met Cowell, but Syco’s track on air. Pons Guerra as he prepared a chil-
record of delivering Saturday-night “We found quite quickly that people dren’s production that told the true
ratings winners for ITV for the past loved to watch the celebrities pull off story of a baby penguin raised by two
14 years won’t have hurt. the dances and the routines and learn male penguins.
Consisting of four pre-recorded their skills,” shares Rawcliffe, “but Cahusac is currently working on a
episodes, followed by a further four equally, if there was a slip, a slide, a fall, show that uses the prism of dance to
live shows, The Greatest Dancer won’t a trip, they loved that as well.” explore the social history of the 1970s
compete with Strictly, but will nod to its For modern audiences, being able and 1980s.
older sister, with the winner receiving to tweet about those trips and falls (or Watching beautifully produced,
£50,000 in cash and a slot performing impressive scorpion kicks) is part of well-rehearsed routines provides some
on the next series of Strictly. the fun. When the return of Dancing much-needed escapism, too, believes
“Obviously, everyone wants the on Ice was mooted, the team debated Kate Phillips. Last year, Strictly received
cash, but [performing on Strictly] is a whether it could be pre-recorded. its highest ratings ever. “I’m not going
really big deal for them,” says Phillips. “We’ve always felt that, with this to get political, but there is a sense that
“A lot of the younger performers, the show and shows that are similar, it’s formats often reflect the climate, and
16- and 17-year-olds, have watched event telly.… You need to be there, I think we’re in unstable times at the
Strictly almost their entire lives, and watching it as it plays out,” reckons moment.… People just love what they
grown up with it.” Rawcliffe. “When someone does slip know, and they will keep coming to it
The New Year will be a good time for or trip, it makes it much more of a as long as it’s still at the top of its game.”
shareholders in sequin-manufacturers. ‘moment.’.” Launching a new prime-time enter-
ITV’s winter extravaganza Dancing on Phillips agrees: “Amazon and Netflix tainment show is no mean feat, but
Ice returns with its own celebrity are coming, and they’re strong compe- Phillips hopes that the dance-loving
line-up, including Towie star Gemma tition… but I think that’s where the public will warm to the amateur com-
Collins and actor Richard Blackwood. linear channels endure – we have petitors on The Greatest Dancer in the
The show’s creative director, Katie those live appointments on TV. same way they have to Britain’s Got
Rawcliffe, isn’t worried about the new “Even with Love Island on a digital Talent contestants and Strictly’s super-
competition. “The whole of the TV platform, people were coming to watch stars – and that the new format will
industry is looking for the next big it live every night, because they want provide another dollop of glamorous
BBC
entertainment show, and there’s room to be part of the conversation at that escapism for viewers. n
Television www.rts.org.uk January 2019 9
A
storyteller
for our
times
M
y interview with negotiations, in 2010, between Bertie
Drama dramatist James Carvel’s Nick Clegg and Mark Dexter’s
Graham regarding David Cameron.
his Channel 4 As Cameron is now thought by some
Mark Lawson hears drama Brexit: The only to have promised the EU referen-
how James Graham Uncivil War takes dum in the belief that it would never
place slightly later than planned for an happen (because he expected to lose
aims to make sense of appropriate reason. We have both been the 2015 election or enter another
our divided nation in transfixed by coverage on the BBC
Parliament channel of Theresa May
coalition with Clegg, who would have
blocked a plebiscite on Europe), there is
Brexit: The Uncivil War suffering three Commons defeats in a link between Coalition and Brexit: The
close succession at the start of the Uncivil War, which seems certain to be
debate on her EU withdrawal deal. one of the first TV hits of 2019.
One mark of a distinctive playwright And, as Graham also dramatised the
is that life starts to feel like their scripts. 2015 election in The Vote (a Donmar
And the events in Westminster resem- Warehouse stage play screened live on
ble a scene from Graham’s 2012 hit More4 on polling night), I suggest to
stage play, This House, concerning the him that he now has an accidental
‘I THINK THERE’S fall of the Labour minority government
of 1976-79.
trilogy, dramatising all the major polit-
ical events of this decade.
A DIFFERENCE That success made Graham the “Yes,” agrees the 36-year-old who
BETWEEN go-to fictional chronicler of British
politics. It led to further stage plays,
comes from Mansfield. “Although my
feeling is that it won’t stop at a trilogy.
PEOPLE BEING including Labour of Love (2017), the story It will be an anthology that will never
DISILLUSIONED of a centrist Labour MP who falls in
love with a Corbynista assistant. It also
stop. Without sounding too worthy or
romantic about the role of culture in
BY POLITICS AND set up Channel 4’s 2015 drama Coalition. these unprecedented, chaotic times, I
UNINTERESTED’ This RTS Single Drama award winner
foregrounded the power-sharing
think, alongside journalism and politi-
cal debate online, drama needs to
10insert itself into these events – to con- writer afterwards. “It was a slightly
sider them on a narrative, dramatic, surreal moment,” Graham recalls. “It’s
character level. a bit of a blur because I couldn’t really
“There are clearly such divisions believe he was there in front of me. He
– and it’s so toxic – that storytelling was very engaging and asked lots of
needs to come into this space to try to questions about who I spoke to. He
give some sense of what’s going on.” was very keen on a sequence that
At the start of Graham’s career, it showed the old ‘hot metal’ method of
was common for producers in theatre printing newspapers. He spoke about
and TV to say that politics was boring. his memories of the romance of that.”
“Yeah. I sort of miss ‘boring’ politics. I For Brexit, Graham spoke at length to
really do. But I don’t think it was ever Oliver and Cummings: “For whatever
true. When TV commissioning editors reason, people seem happy to meet
said there was no audience for politics, playwrights and talk to them in a dif-
I never believed them. I think there’s a ferent way than they would to journal-
difference between people being disil- ists. I’m not going to lie: Dominic
lusioned by politics and uninterested. I Cummings had a lot of questions about
don’t think that most people are unin- engaging at first, realising that some-
terested. The great surprise of my – thing like this had the potential to be
Curtis Brown
and my colleagues’ – creative life was a stitch-up. So he met me a couple of
that This House found not just an audi- times and spent time with Benedict.”
ence at the National Theatre, but that After the research process, Graham
James Graham
it went on to find one in the West End begins by reducing the story to its
and on tour over the past five years. essentials: “I’m a great believer in
“So there is an appetite for stories ‘THE MAIN applying to the random sprawling
about the political condition – to be
entertained by it, horrified by it, and CHARACTERS mess of history quite a rigid, traditional
structure. I often ask myself, if this
informed by it.” WERE UNKNOWN were a Pixar movie, what would the
While Graham will doubtless, even-
tually, write – for stage or TV or both TO ME BEFORE I Pixar version be?
“Or, in the musical version, what
– That House, about the parliamentary STARTED WORK would the second song be? And, once
debate over Brexit, he has no worries
about Brexit: The Uncivil War now seem-
ON IT’ you apply those principles to it, you
start to tame the mass of information
ing dated, in focusing on the fight and make sense of it. But, once you’ve
between the Leave and Remain teams done that, you can be inventive and
in 2016. Cummings, the eccentric and conten- playful with the form or whatever. But
“The reason we go back to the very tious visionary who ran the main you have to get the story straight first.”
recent past is to make sense of where Leave campaign. Theatres have no statutory obligation
we are now and where we are going,” “The main characters were of impartiality, and biographical dra-
he says. Watching the “chaos and car- unknown to me before I started work mas for that medium also benefit,
nage” of the parliamentary debates on on it,” admits Graham. “It’s a great Graham thinks, from the fact that
May’s deal was, for Graham, a privilege as a writer to be able to pull “stage plays have an abstraction and
“reminder of the validity of exploring back the curtain and see all these sense of illusion that encourage view-
the origins of some of the actions that invisible people pulling levers. We’re ers not to think they are seeing reality”.
are now having consequences”. very familiar with the public-facing But, he acknowledges, “TV is a much
With calls for a second referendum politicians, the Michael Goves and more literal medium, and that comes
growing louder at the time we speak, Boris Johnsons. with responsibilities. Especially with
he also feels that “if we’re going to do “But Johnson didn’t come up with something as recent and controversial
it again, then, Jesus Christ, we need to the £350m a week for the NHS claim as Brexit. So, yes, I do think that you
learn the lessons of the last one”. that was on the side of the bus. have to apply different standards to the
Brexit: The Uncivil War is based on two Michael Gove didn’t design the tar- representation of real people on televi-
books on the referendum: All Out War, geted advertising that appeared on sion than you would on stage.”
by Sunday Times political editor Tim people’s Facebook feeds. This drama is Because of internal and external
Shipman, and Unleashing Demons by about the people who did.” codes of conduct, TV editorial and legal
Craig Oliver, who was Cameron’s Graham’s policy with his biographi- departments carefully scrutinise bias,
director of communications. cal dramas is to seek to speak to the accuracy, libel, and privacy.
Whereas, in Coalition, the main char- living participants in the events. For “I found it really hard to tread that
acters were well-known public figures the stage play Ink (2017) – about Rupert line of impartiality,” Graham says.
(Paddy Ashdown reportedly com- Murdoch’s 1969 recreation of the Sun as “I sought advice constantly from col-
plained that he was played by an actor a Tory, breast-baring tabloid – he even leagues. But I really enjoy the part of
who looked too old), in Brexit, they are requested an interview with the elu- writing that is to play devil’s advocate
largely the unknown puppet-masters. sive tycoon. He refused but eventually with your own possible prejudices.”
Rory Kinnear plays Oliver, with Bene- came to see one of the final West End Across his work for stage and screen,
dict Cumberbatch as Dominic performances, meeting the cast and Graham’s reputation is for being �
Television www.rts.org.uk January 2019 11Benedict Cumberbatch
Channel 4
as Dominic Cummings in
Brexit: The Uncivil War
� even-handed. Is that a result of Brexit begins with the standard A striking aspect of recent TV drama
temperament or policy? “It was a disclaimer that some scenes and has been the recruitment of theatre
very conscious decision. I’m not dog- dialogue have been created for dra- writers: Mike Bartlett (Doctor Foster,
matic about it. I think that there matic purposes. “My general rule,” Press), Jack Thorne (This is England,
should be different approaches: TV Graham says, “is that, if someone is National Treasure) and Phoebe Waller-
can sustain work that is polemical or standing in front of a microphone or Bridge (Fleabag, Killing Eve) were all to
didactic. a dispatch box, they have to say as be found alongside Graham in the
“But, for me, I just find it dramati- near as dammit what they really said. theatre listings at the time he started
cally inert to come down explicitly on But, once they’re behind closed doors, writing.
one side. Especially with Brexit – they’re mine. “We’re in a very exciting time,” says
which is pretty much 50-50 in the “And I think audiences are familiar Graham. “I remember a view among
country, whatever people in the with that convention: the joy of playwrights – which, in my view, was
media industries might have thought shows such as The Crown is that the unfair and unfounded – that televi-
– you want people to access the work audience enjoys being taken into the sion was a lesser art form than thea-
without feeling pre-judged. private world while being aware that tre. And broadcasters were sometimes
“But I think that, while doing that, they are watching a fictionalisation. reluctant to employ theatre writers.
you can still pursue an argument, “We know that, at the end of each “But those two perceptions have
which isn’t tribal or Leave/Remain. episode of The Crown, people jump on now gone. If you look at Phoebe
And, in this case, the question for me to Wikipedia and ask: ‘Is that true?’ I’d Waller-Bridge’s Killing Eve, it’s so
is how healthy this referendum was: like that to happen with Brexit. It extraordinary and authored. I don’t
did we rise to the occasion and pres- should be a primer.” know how they write the hours they
ent the best version of ourselves? For me, Peter Morgan, screenwriter do. I’m in awe of the amount that
“I don’t think anyone believes that of The Crown, takes more liberties with Mike Bartlett and Jack Thorne write
we did. I think it was an awful cam- history than Graham does, but the for TV. I write a single film and then
paign – on all sides – politics at its younger dramatist’s response to this have to lie down.”
lowest.” suggestion allows Morgan the excuse He loves television, though, having
Because those behaving (allegedly) of dealing with duller material: “Well, grown up watching “that ITV/Granada
lowly do not always see it that way with Brexit, why make anything up, tradition of muscular northern drama
themselves, Graham also admits that because the reality is so – Cracker, Band of Gold. Also, anything
he has “spoken to so many lawyers. I extraordinary?” by Sally Wainwright, Alan Bleasdale,
don’t want to sound accidentally cava- The liberties Graham took in Brexit Paul Abbott – dramas that put the
lier or boastful about it. But I genuinely extended to telescoping four meetings human at the heart of the story but
think that, if I wrote something like into one, or putting in the room some- were set against very real, urgent
this, and I wasn’t immediately phoned one who was, in reality, on the phone socio-political background. I loved
by a cabal of worried lawyers, then I from a train. He also created a framing that contest of the political and the
wouldn’t have done my job. device in which Cummings is inter- personal.”
“The scripts came back marked: viewed by a Hutton- or Leveson-like He hopes to continue the screen
‘What’s your source for this?’, ‘Can we inquiry into the conduct and funding story that begins with Brexit: The
say this?’ And that’s great. And excit- of the referendum campaigns; there Uncivil War. “I already have the next
ing. Because a piece like this should has never been such an inquiry, three or four films in my head, and
feel dangerous.” although some have called for one. would love to do them.” n
12Review of the year
In a Brexit-free zone,
Peter Bazalgette
looks back on the
past 12 months
Love Island
ITV
Royals, reboots
and revelations tabs have their story. Later, the party imagine the call: “White House
JANUARY meets the impressive young talent switchboard... I’m sorry, the President
ITV’s much-anticipated new Chief coming through the RTS’s important does not take unsolicited calls… and
Executive, Carolyn McCall, finally bursary programmes. Harvey who?”
arrives on the South Bank. The press Fantastic drama on Channel 4 this
chitter-chatter mentions her previous month: Kiri, with the incomparable MARCH
media experience at the Guardian. Sarah Lancashire. Always good to see ITV, in common with other employ-
True, but few write about why we Coronation Street alumni prosper. ers, publishes its gender pay gap. Of
really wanted her: her brilliant cura- the bewildering array of statistics, our
tion of the customer relationship at FEBRUARY top-line 11.9% compares well with a
EasyJet. All broadcasters now have Speculation mounts that the Weinstein national average of 18%. But it shows
to perfect their direct-to-consumer Company will file for bankruptcy, that we have work to do.
skills – from one-to-one online rela- following a shocking catalogue of As I’ve pointed out in these pages
tionships to data-rich advertising. revelations. Extraordinary to think that before, the gender pay gap is consis-
Within days, we host television Harvey was trying to flog his TV arm as tently misunderstood. It reveals a lack
industry royalty in the tower. The RTS recently as 2016. A problem for anyone of senior women in an organisation.
wants them to meet some Windsor taking his proposition seriously was It does not denote that men and
royalty. First the Society’s Patron, his difficulty in presenting a set of women are paid differently for doing
HRH Prince Charles, with the Duch- discrete accounts for that division. the same job – equal pay has been
ess of Cornwall in support, tours This A bigger problem was the legendary mandatory since the 1970s. Through-
Morning for a taste of mutton stew and charm of Harvey. When he realised out the year, I hear senior journalists
an encounter with apprentice guide this was an issue, I’m told that he said in all media completely confuse the
dogs. Digby distinguishes himself by he really was a lovely guy to work two. Read my lips….
biting a fluffy sound boom and wres- with and, if you didn’t believe him, Boards have to set an example and,
tling it to the ground. It’s bravely to call Barack Obama at the White as we approach spring, ITV’s is heading
rescued by Prince Charles and the House for a reference. We can just for a 50/50 gender balance. I have �
Television www.rts.org.uk January 2019 13� to say that we’ve had no problem become the philosopher’s stone of schedule – AVoD, SVoD, live events
finding women of talent in finance, broadcast TV: a massive young audi- and so on. But also to the magic social
strategy and governance. ence, lots of live viewers for the glue of PSB (witness 10 million watch-
The Government announces a sector schedule, just as many catching up on ing the Lost Voice Guy win BGT in
deal for the creative industries as part ITV Hub and Hub+, 360° brand exploi- June). “More than TV” also works for
of its industrial strategy. It includes an tation and sales around the world. brand advertisers who can expect
investment in creative clusters, which I For those of you of a certain age who programmatic buying, targeting and
strongly recommended in my indepen have resisted it thus far, feeling lin- ambitious creative solutions going
dent review in 2017. More of this later. guistically challenged, here’s a handy forward.
glossary: got a text = the producer is Just about my favourite drama at the
APRIL communicating with me; pied = moment, Unforgotten, commences a
Coinciding with Her Majesty’s 92nd dumped; peng sort = fit guy; mugged successful third series. But the extraor-
birthday, we transmit The Queen’s Green off = being deceived or disrespected; dinary ratings for England’s unlikely
Planet, in which two national treasures co-ord = apparel; 100% = I agree with run in the World Cup, on both BBC
take a leisurely turn around Buck you; crack on = indulge in romantic and ITV, rather drowns out the rest of
House’s garden. Yes, it’s Sir David pursuits. It reminds us that language the schedule.
Attenborough and Her Majesty in a remains wonderfully dynamic. Ah, Would we have said, at the turn of
brilliant confection, masterminded Shakespeare, thou shouldst still be the century, that the PSBs would still
by Chris Shaw for ITN Productions. living at this hour… be getting audiences of more than
My guess is that they only had 20 million a couple of decades later?
90 minutes’ access, but their pica- JULY
resque progress around some noble The dating show that is the content AUGUST
oaks and ashes provides the spine for industries these days rolls on: 21st The holiday month kicks off with
a worldwide arboreal dissertation. Century Fox shareholders yield to a powerful piece in the Guardian by
What do the royals do wherever they Disney’s blandishments. And, in the Damian Collins MP, the Chair of the
go? Plant a tree, that’s what. So, no wooing of Sky, Fox is also cleared for a Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Com-
shortage of relevant archive! takeover of Sky. But, is that the hand- mittee. Damian is taking an admirable
Gratifyingly, it gets 6.4 million view- some Comcast hoving into view? We lead on the way that Silicon Valley, for
ers. And, at a Palace launch a few days could do with Cilla to sort all this out. all its benefits, is hollowing out civil
earlier, the Woodland Trust gives us This is the context for Carolyn to society.
each a tiny hazel sapling. I plant mine unveil her strategy to the markets. It’s We could talk about abuse of pri-
in our Italian garden. How’s it doing? entitled “More than TV”, a consumer- vacy or IP, dodgy commercial impacts,
Well, I might get it its own webcam so aimed offer failure to pay proper tax or extreme
you can track its progress to maturity. referring to porn. But, on this occasion, Damian is
Slow TV is now the zeitgeist. all the concerned with fake news and
services democracy.
MAY beyond He proposes fining the likes of
Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? success- the Facebook when they’re guilty of
fully returns to the schedules. This promoting campaigns of disinforma-
confirms a trend I’ve noted: that the tion. It pulls the values of pub-
channels are currently reviving recog- lic-service news into sharp focus,
nised entertainment brands with some arguably more important today
success – Dancing on Ice, The Crystal than in the pre-internet era.
Maze, The Gen Game (possibly). It con- Preserving a funding model
trasts with the period between 1995 for trusted and reliable news
and 2005, when non-fiction telly was must be a political priority,
revolutionised with new genres and as well as guaranteeing its
formats. But a bit quiet since then. prominence.
The making, distribution and con-
sumption of drama is where all the SEPTEMBER
innovation is now. Soaring production BBC One enjoys an extraordi-
quality, via CGI and drone cameras, nary breakout hit with Body-
box-set availability and the drug of guard. Its finale consolidates with
seamless online binge viewing.… Net 17.1 million (the sort of TV
flix and Amazon pioneered this, but audience which
only because the competition author- That’s
ity bone-headedly prevented a British
service nine years ago. A plague of
Paul Hampartsoumian
kangaroos on whoever took that
foolish decision.
JUNE
HRH Prince Charles and
Yes, my friends, that cultural icon
the Duchess of Cornwall
Love Island returns to ITV2. This has
14Bodyguard
BBC
Life! was winning back in 1978, when I
worked as a researcher for the blessed ‘THE BBC AND is the Central Line. But, in this hottest
of hot summers, it became an even
Esther). I admit this smothers our rival ITV, MUST NOW more sadistic sauna than ever. I have
in the schedule, Vanity Fair, which
meets its Waterloo, so to speak. BECOME THE to ask myself: your career started at
BBC News as an act of aspiration; you
But it gradually gets appreciated in BEST OF FRIENDS were later lucky enough to have a bit
the public prints that there’s a silver
lining for ITV. Of course, Jed Mercurio’s IN ORDER TO of inspiration (well, a couple of hits,
anyway); but must it all end with you
creation is made by World Productions, PROSPER IN OUR drowning in perspiration?
part of the ITV Studios family. It under
lines for me how those old rivals, the
BRAVE NEW DECEMBER
BBC and ITV, must now become the WORLD’ I’m writing in early December and I’m
best of friends in order to prosper in not into making predictions… so a brief
our brave new world. reflection that last month saw the last
In other news, the BBC’s highly origi- makes the Channel 4 decision even edition of Big Brother on Channel 5. As a
nal Killing Eve is the cult hit of the month. more valuable. result, I’m invited on to (it seems)
And Comcast gets Sky for a lorra, lorra The creative industries are now everything from Russia Today to Shet-
money, as Cilla would have observed. worth £100bn a year to our economy lands Radio. I decline, since I prefer to
and are growing much faster than look forward not back (and I’ve got
OCTOBER most other sectors. They’ll also create time off for good behaviour, having not
The last day of the month brings the jobs while AI destroys entire occupa- seen the show since 2007).
announcement of Channel 4’s reloca- tions elsewhere. The point of the clus- Back in 2000, it was innovative in
tions (and plaudits to Alex Mahon for ters is to drive forward innovation in many ways. But most intriguing was
defusing a row with the Government, the likes of immersive tech and 5G. how it enfranchised and educated the
where the politicians seemed to have And it does, indeed, require a coherent audience by streaming, and thus
a point). and determined industrial strategy. broadcasting, its rushes. Everyone had
The second HQ will be Leeds, an a view on how “fair” or “unfair” the
excellent choice, where ITV already NOVEMBER nightly edits were. Thus demonstrating
has a substantial news and production Crossrail’s opening is postponed for that the hallowed documentary-maker’s
centre, not to mention the Woolpack a year… curses! It was going to be my art was always entirely the subjective
watering hole for Emmerdale’s thirsty new mode of transport from west view of the director.
residents. Bristol and Glasgow will also London into work. This year, ITV has Can’t a channel (Channel 4 perhaps?)
get a boosted Channel 4 presence. moved to new offices in Holborn after ask two directors to edit the same
This follows hard on the heels of five decades on the South Bank. The material and broadcast both shows? I
news of nine creative clusters to tower became a bit of a sick building bet you that the narratives would be
receive investment via the Arts & (when the lifts broke, we had to buy entertainingly different.
Humanities Research Council. the spares on eBay) and the site will There, I didn’t mention the B-word
Two of them, led by local universi- now be redeveloped. once… a happy new year to all our
ties, are in Leeds and Bristol/Bath. This This means my obvious route to ITV readers. n
Television www.rts.org.uk January 2019 15Gently
does it
The Billen profile
Andrew Billen talks to
Killing Eve producer
Sally Woodward Gentle
about the obstacles to
a work-life balance
T
hrough the glass of Sally pretty well. The pair lunch together. Waller-Bridge but based on Luke Jen-
Woodward Gentle’s They also run marathons side by side. nings’s Villanelle stories, it was truly
office in Fitzrovia, the The second arrival, minutes later, is original and has begat a second season.
founder of Sid Gentle Colin Wratten, the producer of Sid “We thought of ourselves as quite
Films looks out on to a Gentle’s clever Saturday-night hit, subversive and a bit risqué and a bit
large space filled with Killing Eve. He has brought with him funny,” says Woodward Gentle, “but,
hard-working media types. Only a the two gongs that the series won at actually, it has found a very main-
modest nine of them work for her, the previous night’s C21 International stream audience as well as a really cool
however. The rest are social-media Drama Awards: Best English-Language audience. On BBC America, I think it
people and TV-commercial producers. Drama Series and, for Jodie Comer, was the first show for 10 years whose
Sid Gentle may be one of television’s Best Female Performance in a Drama viewing figures grew every week. I
most creative young indies, but it is Series. There is a small round of think that was word of mouth, people
not, at a time of rising drama costs, applause. liking to discover something and feel
wasting its money on an F-off HQ. Killing Eve last year gave the lie to ownership of it.”
During our 70-minute conversation, those who warn against overestimating In the US, where it was shown in the
Woodward Gentle’s team gets two television audiences. A funny, gory spring, the series could be sampled on
visitors, each, in their way, illustrating thriller about a psychopathic female lifestyle and women-orientated plat-
the twin challenges of their boss’s assassin, it was both cynical and warm, forms, an improbable demographic
career: excellence, and the trade-off its performances minutely nuanced but gamble that paid off. In the UK, when
between excellence and family life. larger than life. it landed in the early autumn, the
The first visitor is her daughter, Ella, It was heightened drama, yet rooted whole box set was available online on
who has popped in from the graphics in the reality of the story’s exotic loca- BBC Three. “I think it was great fore-
company around the corner where she tions – which really were shot, with sight,” she says of the BBC, “to get into
works. Despite what her mother says the exception of Moscow, where the box sets and for BBC Three only to be
later about her parenting skills, it looks over-loud captions said they were. available online.” As well as skewing
to me as if things have turned out Written by Fleabag’s Phoebe young, I say, Killing Eve’s audience
16plays Mrs Durrell was no longer “on
an option” for series 4 but, apparently,
could not resist rejoining the family
one last time.
“They do adore each other,” Wood-
ward Gentle says of the cast. “They
have little fights and little spats but
they genuinely adore each other. Given
that none of them had met each other
before, it’s a miracle.”
If there is a cloud hovering above the
Ionian’s azure skies, it is the familiar
one: money. Since the referendum,
British producers have taken a hit from
Getty
dollar-pound fluctuations and the euro
exchange rate. In addition, the drama
boom has meant creatives are in
demand and more expensive to hire. Ninja Turtles
“There’s so much drama going on, it
naturally becomes inflationary. There to Killing Eve
is massive demand for directors, writ-
ers and producers. And now there is Sally Woodward Gentle, CEO and
this tax credit where you have got to founder of Sid Gentle Films
have a budget of at least £1m per hour
to qualify. That immediately had an Born: 6 February 1964 in Chatham.
inflationary effect. A lot of crew rates Brought up in Teddington.
had been flat for a very, very long time, Parents: Stan Woodward, produc-
and then rates jumped.” tion designer, and Lorna Wood-
We marvel at the production values ward, fashion designer
of Matthew Weiner’s The Romanoffs on Married: Henry Gentle, picture
Amazon but also of the British-made restorer; two sons, one daughter, all
The Crown on Netflix. in their twenties
“The Crown money is in just a differ- Education: Twickenham Girls’
ent stratosphere in comparison with School; Goldsmiths College, Lon-
what most human beings have got to don University (BA Hons English
cope on. It’s great, though. It’s not like and drama)
The Durrells
ITV
they’ve wasted it.”
It is a very different television world 1986 Assistant administrator,
seems to include more than its fair from the one Sally Woodward was Chelsea Arts Club
share of enthusiastic LGBT viewers. born into 54 years ago. She was 1988 Limelight Films, rising to head
“I think so. Even though there’s very brought up in Teddington, where, for of television
little sex in the show, I think it feels years, Thames Television had studios. 1995 Executive producer, Kudos
quite sexy and it feels quite charged.” Her father, Stan Woodward, was a Productions
Sid Gentle happens to be behind one production designer at the company 1996 Managing Director, Kudos
of my other current favourite dramas, (he retuned the family TV so that, Productions
The Durrells. While definitely pre- when switched on, it showed ITV not 2000 Joins BBC, becomes creative
watershed stuff, it has a nose-thumb- BBC One). director of in-house drama
ing, anti-genre quality that distinguishes Her mother, Lorna, was a fashion 2007 Creative director, Carnival
it from the usual heart-warming, early- designer – whose influence can surely Films
Sunday-night ITV shows. be seen in her extremely stylish 2013 Founds Sid Gentle Films
“I love doing something that the daughter. The old studios are now
whole family enjoys but Simon [Nye, riverside apartments, but Teddington Hits: Tipping the Velvet, Waking the
the writer] is such a genius, he has also was, she says, a creative hub in the Dead, Whitechapel, The Durrells,
made it slightly subversive and a bit 1970s, filled with TV folk. George and Killing Eve
naughty. It doesn’t feel too saccha- Mildred’s house was there, and Love Thy Near miss: SS-GB
riney. It’s not soppy, and any kind of Neighbour’s. Benny Hill was chased Watching: This Country, Succession,
soppy moments that come along are around the bushes of Normansfield Transparent, Game of Thrones
undercut.” psychiatric hospital. What’s on her bedside table? ‘A
The series, and not just its fourth She became an ITV rent-a-child. load of unfinished books. I can only
season, is, as we speak in November, “We’d get a phone call: ‘Can you come really relax reading something if I
about to wrap, which will mean fewer down to Magpie and taste Easter eggs?’ know the rights have gone.’
visits to Corfu for Woodward Gentle, My dad worked on Rainbow, so we Hobbies: Barefoot running and
although I suspect that she will holiday were always the children on it picking marathons with her daughter
there for ever. Keeley Hawes, who the apples or playing with puppies.” �
Television www.rts.org.uk January 2019 17� She watched television a lot, too, to be able to say, ‘I want to do a little thought heroic for putting their family
and loved it (it always surprises me bit of this and a little bit of that. I don’t first, and women get penalised for it.”
that so many of my profile subjects mind this one being a loss leader.’” In fact, she says, her early bosses in
harbour few strong feelings about the Here, she has made Neil Gaiman’s the independent sector were sympa-
programmes of their childhoods). Likely Stories for Sky Arts (the loss thetic to her domestic obligations. As
Her ambition was to direct, how- leader), SS-GB and, of course, The Dur- a name, Sid Gentle (christened after
ever, rather than act. Directing was rells and Killing Eve. her dog) may not sound as feminist as
quickly superseded by the fun of Her hit rate over the years has been Jane Featherstone’s company, Sister
bringing talents together as a producer. extraordinary, from Tipping the Velvet Pictures, but women narrowly out-
After studying English and drama through Any Human Heart (she knew number men on its staff and she
at Goldsmiths’ College, she took her the book’s author, William Boyd, from ensures equal opportunity for the
first job on the periphery of show Chelsea) to Whitechapel, but she vol- mothers among them. Her head of
business, as an assistant administrator unteers that it has been at a cost to development, Henrietta Colvin, who
at the Chelsea Arts Club. Her duties her children. “I had three under the has twins, works two days in the
included cashing up, chucking out, age of four at one point.” office and one at home.
and cleaning the vomit from the And she was working throughout? “When I worked at the BBC with
urinals. “Yeah. I was a bad mother. It was Jane Tranter, I did a four-day week.
On the plus side, it was there, hell on earth. Well, I didn’t take any She was amazing. She said, ‘Listen,
alongside Quentin Crisp, Laurie Lee jobs that took me abroad, so I stayed don’t even think about it for a minute
and Francis Bacon, that she met a here, but I worked very long hours. I because I know the hours that you
clumsy barman, supplementing his think that women overcompensate put in and I know that on the fifth
earnings as an apprentice picture when they become mothers. They day you’re thinking about it, on the
restorer, called Henry Gentle. They make themselves more available sixth day you’re thinking about it, and
have been together ever since, mar- because they don’t want on the seventh day.’”
rying after the second of their three to be seen as not being On her mind now are future
children was born. available. And that is Sid Gentle projects. She sees no
From there, she finally got a foot- so bad.” reason why Killing Eve, about to
hold in television, working as a floor So it’s back to reach post-production on its
assistant and in the costumes depart- women having to second series, should not run
ment at Thames, before joining Lime- be better than for as long as the writers
light Films, where she started as Steve men doing the want it to. The company is
Barron’s assistant (he now directs The same job? “I adapting Nicole J Georges’s
Durrells), following him to North Caro- think it is. I graphic novel Fetch!, which
lina to make Teenage Mutant Ninja Tur- think men will be filmed in the US.
tles. “People would go, ‘What’s that?’ are There may even be, she
And I’d go, ‘I promise you: you will reveals, a new series from
hear of it.’” Simon Nye to fill the hole
She rose to head of TV at Lime- that will be left by
light and then moved to The Durrells.
Kudos, where she brought Can she tell me about
in Jane Featherstone. it? “Might be Durrellsy,
For seven years, but not necessarily.
from 2000, she There’s been no commit-
worked high up in ment from ITV, yet.”
the BBC drama Durrellsy? From a book
department under by another Durrell?
Jane Tranter, just as “Maybe what the Dur-
reality television began to rells did later on. We’re
challenge the orthodoxies just going to start that
about what made prime-time pretty soon, actually.”
television. “I remember having First, however, the
those conversations about the experi- long goodbye to The
ence those shows gave people that Durrells itself continues.
drama was not currently giving them.” She is off to Twicken-
In 2007, she left to become creative ham, where the dra-
director of Carnival Films, shortly ma’s interiors are
before Downton Abbey came along. filmed, to see Josh
In 2013, she founded Sid Gentle, O’Connor, who plays
“because I thought it was time to Larry, do his final
try and do it by myself and be scene. We shall see
self-determining”. him next as Prince
Was she fed up with bosses saying Charles in The Crown.
no? “A little bit of that. Actually, I was Like Sid Gentle, he is
BBC
given enormous free rein but I wanted Killing Eve going places. n
18You can also read
