Literary cravings - September 2018 - Royal Television Society
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September 2018 Literary cravings
VENUE: BUSINESS DESIGN CENTRE, LONDON N1 0QH RTS.org.uk/careersfair2019 #RTScareers
Journal of The Royal Television Society
September 2018 l Volume 55/8
From the CEO
Several of the articles valuable insight into what is a very such an impact earlier this year with
in this bumper issue dynamic part of the content sector. the hilarious Derry Girls.
of Television embrace The third piece with a literary The highlight of the busy RTS
literary themes. Centre theme is Mark Lawson’s profile of autumn programme is our London
stage is Andrew Billen’s Mike Bartlett, who is equally at home Conference, “Is bigger better?”. I hope
brilliant interview with writing for TV and stage. He is, of that many of you can join us: we have
Simon Cornwell, course, the screenwriter behind Doctor assembled an extraordinary line-up
whose company, The Ink Factory, was Foster and the RTS-nominated King of international speakers. Bob Bakish,
the driving force behind the seminal Charles III. His latest show, Press, is a Chief Executive and President of the
series The Night Manager. Simon’s latest workplace drama set in the world of global content business Viacom, will
John le Carré adaptation is The Little journalism. The series is bound to be deliver the international keynote.
Drummer Girl – a show that I am greatly one of the highlights of BBC One’s Don’t miss the interview in this issue
looking forward to watching. autumn schedule. of Television in which Bob assesses the
Staying with our literary theme, Without gifted writers such as Mike, state of our industry.
don’t miss Simon Shaps’s perceptive we wouldn’t have the rich content
analysis of why so many of today’s TV diet that we enjoy daily here in the
dramas are based on books, how UK and in other dynamic television
drama is raiding the bookshelves for markets. But writers need commis-
adaptation ideas – and why the pro- sioners. We have one of the first inter-
cess of getting from page to screen is views with Channel 4’s head of com-
sometimes so painful. This provides a edy, Fiona McDermott. Fiona made Theresa Wise
Contents
7 Dorothy Byrne’s TV Diary
Dorothy Byrne meets Britain’s oldest transgender woman
and praises the new generation of men who work in TV 23 Our Friend on the Isle of Man
Michael Wilson is fast discovering there is more
to the island than TT races and stunning scenery
8 The golden age of adaptation
From Patrick Melrose to Vanity Fair, TV series
based on books are driving the drama boom.
Simon Shaps investigates
24 The case for collaboration
UK broadcasters are against pooling TV ad sales,
but there are other ways to co-operate, explains
Gideon Spanier
11 Press to play
Mark Lawson talks to TV and stage writer Mike Bartlett
as his latest drama, Press, hits the screen 26
Doing comedy differently
Fiona McDermott, C4’s head of comedy, tells
Pippa Shawley that she is determined to build
on the success of Derry Girls
14 Viacom’s transformation man
Steve Clarke interviews Viacom CEO and President
Bob Bakish ahead of his RTS conference keynote
28 Local shows for local people
As competition bites, HBO Europe is ramping up original
production across the continent, reports Stuart Kemp
18 A global shift to home-grown
Kate Bulkley explains why Netflix and other
streaming services want to park their tanks on
the lawns of national TV networks 30 What Chinese viewers want
Marcus Ryder offers some advice to British producers
worried by the complexities of appealing to Chinese
audiences
20
The secret agent’s son
Andrew Billen meets Simon Cornwell, whose production
company, The Ink Factory, is best known for adapting
the novels of his father, John le Carré Cover: Gordon Jamieson
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 2018.
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 2018 3
RTS
CRAFT &
DESIGN
AWARDS
2018
26 NOVEMBER
LONDON HILTON
ON PARK LANE
BOOK YOUR TABLE AT:
WWW.RTS.ORG.UK
#RTSawards
RTS NEWS Your guide to
upcoming events.
Book online at
www.rts.org.uk
STEVE HEWLETT MEMORIAL EAST SCOTLAND
National events LECTURE 2018 Thursday 20 September ■ Jane Muirhead
Thursday 11 October TV quiz night ■ scotlandchair@rts.org.uk
RTS CONFERENCE Charlotte Moore, Director of Quizmaster: BBC Inside Out’s
Tuesday 18 September Content, BBC. David Whiteley. Please email SOUTHERN
RTS London Conference 2018: Joint RTS and Media Society rtseast@rts.org.uk for an entry Wednesday 17 October
Is bigger better? Will ‘the event. Tickets £10. All net profits form. Tickets: £10 per team of IBC 2018 review
consolidation game’ help tip the will go to the Steve Hewlett Bur- four or five. Panel discussion with Q&A. Joint
scales against the tech giants? sary Fund. 6:30pm for 7:00pm Venue: The Lamb Inn, Lamb Yard, event with RTS Thames Valley.
Sponsored by Viacom. Venue: The University of Orford Place, Norwich NR1 3RU 7:00pm for 7:30pm
Co-chaired by David Lynn, Westminster, 4-12 Little Titchfield ■ Nikki O’Donnell Venue: QMC Television Studio,
President Viacom International Street, London W1W 7BY ■ nikki.odonnell@bbc.co.uk Cliddesden Road, Basingstoke
Media Networks (VIMN), and RG21 3HF
James Currell, President, VIMN, RTS EARLY EVENING EVENT LONDON ■ Stephanie Farmer
UK, Northern and Eastern Wednesday 24 October ■ Daniel Cherowbrier ■ SFarmer@bournemouth.ac.uk
Europe. Confirmed speakers Who’s watching? The challenge ■ daniel@cherowbrier.co.uk
include: David Abraham, CEO, of digital TV measurement THAMES VALLEY
Wonderhood Studios; Bob Speakers: Rich Astley, chief MIDLANDS Wednesday 17 October
Bakish, CEO and President, product officer, Finecast; Tuesday 16 October IBC 2018 review
Viacom; Zai Bennett, director of Matt Hill, research and planning RTS Midlands careers fair Panel discussion with Q&A.
programmes, Sky Entertainment director, Thinkbox; John Litster, 10:00am-5:00pm. Tickets: £10, Joint event with RTS Southern.
UK and Ireland; Karen Blackett MD, Sky Media; Sarah Rose, with 300 early-bird tickets at 7:00pm for 7:30pm
OBE, UK country manager, director of consumer insight, £6. Group bookings available via Venue: QMC Television Studio,
WPP and Chair, MediaCom Channel 4; and Justin Sampson, RTSMidlands@rts.org.uk Cliddesden Road, Basingstoke
UK; Georgia Brown, director, CEO, Barb. Chair: Kate Bulkley, Venue: Edgbaston Stadium, RG21 3HF
European originals, Amazon journalist. 6:30pm for 6:45pm Edgbaston Road, Birmingham
Studios; Kate Bulkley, media Venue: The Hospital Club, 24 Endell B5 7QU Friday 23 November
commentator and journalist; Street, London WC2H 9HQ 2018 Winter Ball
Damian Collins MP; Tony Hall, Tuesday 20 November 7:00pm till late
Director-General, BBC; Tim RTS MASTERCLASSES RTS Midlands Awards 2018 Venue: De Vere Wokefield Estate,
Hincks, Co-CEO, Expectation Tuesday 13 Novermber Venue: Town Hall, Victoria Goodboys Lane, Reading RG7 3AE
Entertainment; Ian Katz, director RTS Student Programme Square, Birmingham B3 3DQ ■ Tony Orme
of programmes, Channel 4; Masterclasses ■ Jayne Greene 07792 776585 ■ RTSThamesValley@rts.org.uk
Carolyn McCall, CEO, ITV; and ■ RTSMidlands@rts.org.uk
Mark McLane, global head of Wednesday 14 Novermber WALES
diversity and inclusion, Barclays; RTS Craft Skills Masterclasses NORTH EAST AND THE BORDER Wednesday 5 September
Alex Mahon, CEO, Channel 4; Venue: IET London, 2 Savoy ■ Jill Graham Is CGI the next big win for
Anne Nguyen, partner and Place, London WC2R 0BL ■ jill.graham@blueyonder.co.uk drones?
managing director, London, Michael Surcombe, founder,
Boston Consulting Group; RTS AWARDS NORTH WEST Leaping Wing. 6:30pm
Trevor Phillips OBE, Founder, Monday 26 November Saturday 10 November Venue: BBC Wales Club,
Webber Phillips; Matthew RTS Craft & Design Awards 2018 RTS North West Awards 2018 Llantrisant Road, Llandaff, Cardiff
Postgate, chief technology London Hilton on Park Lane Venue: Hilton Deansgate, 303 CF5 2YQ
and product officer, BBC; Beth 22 Park Lane, London W1K 1BE Deansgate, Manchester M3 4LQ ■ Hywel Wiliam 07980 007841
Rigby, political correspondent, ■ Rachel Pinkney 07966 230639 ■ hywel@aim.uk.com
Sky News; Kate Russell, RTS FUTURES ■ RPinkney@rts.org.uk
technology reporter, BBC Click; Wednesday 30 January, 2019 WEST OF ENGLAND
Darren Throop, President and Careers Fair 2019 NORTHERN IRELAND ■ Belinda Biggam
CEO, Entertainment One; Jane Venue: Business Design Centre, Thursday 15 November ■ belindabiggam@hotmail.com
Turton, CEO, All3Media; Stephen 52 Upper Street, London N1 0QH RTS NI Programme Awards
van Rooyen, CEO, Sky UK & Venue: TBC YORKSHIRE
ROI; Kirsty Wark, writer and ■ John Mitchell ■ Lisa Holdsworth 07790 145280
broadcaster; Sharon White, Local events ■ mitch.mvbroadcast@ ■ lisa@allonewordproductions.
CEO, Ofcom; Deborah Williams, btinternet.com co.uk
executive director, Creative DEVON AND CORNWALL
Diversity Network. ■ Jane Hudson REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
Venue: Kings Place, 90 York Way, ■ RTSDevonandCornwall@rts. ■ Charles Byrne (353) 87251 3092
London N1 9AG org.uk ■ byrnecd@iol.ie
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 5
RTS Masterclasses 13-14 November n R TS Student Programme Masterclasses: 13 November n R TS Craft Skills Masterclasses: 14 November Venue: IET London WC2R 0BL BOOK YOUR PLACE: www.rts.org.uk
TV diary
Dorothy Byrne meets Britain’s
oldest transgender woman and
praises the new generation of
men who work in TV
T
V current affairs and editorial director. I assume at first that regret that it didn’t inspire me to do
documentaries are he is in charge of everything, but it anything at all.
obsessed with the turns out there are other people even
new. That means we more in charge than he is. Hard for an ■ Meanwhile, comments are pouring
can ignore problems outsider to comprehend. But what we in about Kate Quilton’s film Breast-
which continue over do all know is that the more people feeding Uncovered, which showed how
decades. My month there are in charge of making pro- uncomfortable young women can be
begins with watching Channel 5’s grammes, the better they are. made to feel feeding their children
Raped: My Story for a panel I’m on. in public.
It’s a really daring programme pre- ■ Sometimes, a job like mine means So many women felt she spoke for
cisely because there is nothing new that you have to give up on excit- them. It demonstrates that, for journal-
in it; it is a devastating document of ing experiences. I’m due to go to an ism to have an effect, it doesn’t always
the way rape ruins lives and survivors event in Parliament where I would have to be a long-term investigation.
are denied justice. And that’s a story listen to lots of MPs talking at length.
we need to tell again and again. But, sadly, I am too busy to attend. I ■ And finally, a conversation in the
At the same time, we are finalising bear it bravely. office about men. It’s clear to me
a Dispatches, The UN Sex Abuse Scandal, that if you are a decent man, you
another programme that could have ■ An event I am able to turn up to is must feel somewhat under siege
been broadcast at any time over the an auction to raise funds for the won- when you open the papers every day
past several decades. As it happens, derful Hospice Biographers, set up by and turn on the news to see your
the first film I ever produced and my old Granada colleague Barbara gender exposed yet again.
directed when I worked on World in Altounyan. The idea is that trained I have to say that the young men I
Action was about marital rape. volunteers (who might be journalists work with now behave so much
One of my male colleagues at the or anyone with a professional ‘listen- better than some of the men I
time commented, “That’s not a story.” ing’ background record the life stories worked with in television in the past.
“You’re right,” I replied. “It’s not a of people in their last days. I realise that I am older and in a
story, it’s a national scandal.” One can just picture how much senior position – and I did attend a
those stories would mean in future to, Bafta event some time ago in which
■ Big news at BBC News. I don’t for example, the children of a young young women told some horror sto-
refer to the Cliff Richard case, which woman who died. The auctioneer is ries. But I genuinely think men have
has worrying potential implications Britain’s oldest transgender woman, improved.
for all of us – there are times when who changed sex at the age of 81. At the very least, they keep their
it is vital to name police suspects. Apparently, it was having a knee trousers zipped up in the office,
No, the news that catches my eye is replacement that gave her the idea which is a definite improvement.
that there’s a restructure and several that she could dare to become the
new job titles have been created. woman she had always felt herself to Dorothy Byrne is Channel 4’s head of
I see one person has been appointed be. I have had a knee replacement. I news and current affairs.
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 7
The golden age
of adaptation
‘
You have to remember what a partisan of
the novel I am… and that it had long been
’
one of my ambitions to have my novels
defeat all attempts to put them on screen
Interview with Jonathan Franzen,
New York Times, 26 June 2018
T
he best-selling Ameri- From Big Little Lies to Patrick Melrose,
can novelist Jonathan Drama The Handmaid’s Tale to American Gods,
Franzen is, as it turns more and more of the most critically
out, no enemy of televi-
sion. In 2001, having
From Patrick Melrose acclaimed, talked-about TV is based on
books. Novels dominate, but there is a
initially criticised Oprah to Vanity Fair, TV series growing appetite for non-fiction titles.
Winfrey and her hugely influential TV A recent example is John Preston’s A
book club – claiming that she had no based on books are Very English Scandal, the source material
literary taste – Franzen accepted her
selection of his novel The Corrections for
driving the drama for BBC One’s destined-for-awards
dramatisation of the Jeremy Thorpe
the book club. The Winfrey endorse- boom. Simon Shaps scandal. There are countless other
ment was helpful. The Corrections went “based on a true story” productions,
on to sell more than 1.5 million copies. investigates many with a strong bias towards crime,
And, like many other authors who as well as large doses of epic history.
had previously turned their noses up many scripts, the involvement of the And we can add new and powerful
at TV, Franzen began to wake up to the normally unstoppable Scott Rudin, and adaptations of the classics: Howard’s
strengths of drama series in the era of the attachment of Daniel Craig as lead. End, Vanity Fair (a judgement based at
“peak TV”, championing programmes Franzen’s experiences with televi- the time of writing purely on the
such as Friday Night Lights, The Killing, sion are by no means unique. For weight of promos in prized slots dur-
Orphan Black and Breaking Bad. (I have every John le Carré – with successful ing ITV’s World Cup coverage), The
not met a writer, particularly a male BBC adaptations of many of his books Woman in White and Parade’s End. And
writer, who isn’t a fan of Breaking Bad.) in the 1970s and, more recently, of The then, as it draws to a close, there is the
But then came Franzen’s moment Night Manager – there are many, many mighty, all-conquering Game of Thrones.
of truth. What would television do more authors who try and fail to get Statistics on this phenomenon are
with his novels, other than simply their books developed for TV. Or, per- hard to come by, but research con-
endorse them, so that people could haps worse, fail at the end of a long ducted by K7 Media, the international
read them for themselves? and tortuous development process. media consultancy for television, tells
The answer seems to be that his And yet we are not merely witnessing a fascinating story. K7 analysed more
“ambition”, revealed in his New York a golden age of television drama, we are than 300 new drama series launching
Times interview a couple of months witnessing a golden age of adaptation. in the UK and US between Jan 2016
ago, has been fulfilled. To date, his For all the failures, the stalled or seem- and June 2018.
novels have, indeed, defeated all ingly interminable development work, In that period, almost one in three
attempts to put them on screen. the polite rejections from broadcasters of the shows launched, 31%, were based
An HBO adaptation of The Corrections (perhaps citing a policy decision the on books.
got to a pilot, but then wasn’t picked pitch has unwittingly breached – “too Dig a little deeper, and significant
up. More recently, TV development of much period”, “too many Russians”, “no trends emerge. In 2016, 26% of new
his fifth novel, Purity, set up at Show- more dystopia for the time being”), series in the UK and US were based on
time, seems to have stalled, despite adaptations are delivering. books; in the first half of 2018, that
8
Vanity Fair
ITV
number had risen to 36%, with 42% of dystopian work dedicated to Margaret rising number of adaptations. Books
new US series based on books. Atwood. Eleven UK production com- are a treasure house of material for a
One more number to note: last year, panies bid for the book, with the rights TV writer: they supply plot and char-
more than half, 52%, of new SVoD won by Jane Featherstone’s Sister acter, tone of voice and world, and,
scripted series were based on books. Pictures. usefully, dialogue.
Moreover, those figures do not include While television has some way to go A writer once told me that, having
the many series based on articles, to match the $5m paid recently for the been hired to adapt a book only to be
particularly long-form journalism, film rights to David Grann’s Killers of the replaced by another writer, the few
that often form the basis of a book Flower Moon, sums paid by television words of dialogue to make it to screen
the author is in the process of writing. companies for options are rising: from his version of the script were
The K7 numbers, of course, repre- £50,000 to £60,000 for an 18-month lifted verbatim from the novel. He was
sent a rising percentage of a larger pie: option is not unknown. still paid handsomely for his efforts.
the number of drama series launching Given that the average published Given a choice between a blank page
each year has been growing across all author earns less than the minimum or a book to build on, the book often
platforms in both US and UK markets. wage, these sums matter to them. They wins out.
Small wonder, then, that the demand also open up the prospect of really So, the doyen of adaptations, Andrew
for “hot” new titles among producers is life-changing sums if the book makes Davies, can move at what feels like
greater than ever. Last year, UK televi- it to screen, particularly if it becomes a lightning speed, particularly for a man
sion experienced a bidding war for the long-running series. in his eighties, from War and Peace to
rights to Naomi Alderman’s The Power, a There is a simple explanation for the John Updike’s Rabbit novels, taking a �
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 9
Amazon Prime
American Gods
� quick detour to adapt Jane Austen’s
unfinished Sanditon. LAST YEAR, For that, Benedict Cumberbatch
deserves enormous credit.
Critically, these are authors and MORE THAN There are no reliable figures on the
titles that broadcasters can sell to
audiences. With the almost infinite HALF OF NEW ratio between books optioned –
which generally give a producer at
viewing choices that audiences now SVoD SCRIPTED least 18 months’ exclusivity to
have, these are titles that – to use the
vogue phrase – “cut through”. SERIES WERE develop the material for television
– and series produced.
To service this demand, increasing BASED ON My guess is that authors stand no
numbers of UK producers now
employ specialist book scouts, many
BOOKS better than a one in 10 chance of their
work ending up on screen, once it has
with experience of working in pub- been optioned.
lishing, to try and identify suitable So there is something in Franzen’s
titles, often pre-publication. be a tricky business. Novels, not just caution, and his desire to protect the
Among the platforms, Netflix has literary fiction, are brilliant at captur- magic of the written word.
gone one step further, employing the ing the interior life of characters, with It just happens to be the case that
respected literary scouting agency, plot sometimes secondary to that we are now living in an era of insatia-
Maria B Campbell Associates, to buy mission – but TV consumes story. ble demand for material, for the stories
books direct, rather than wait for Sky’s Patrick Melrose may be the most gifted authors tell. n
producers to knock on their door extreme example in many years of a
with a stack of acquired titles under TV series that succeeded, despite the Simon Shaps is the founder of Simon
their arms. novels’ limited plot and the notorious Shaps Ltd. He also works as a TV and
And yet, despite all of this, as Jona- difficulty of making addictive behav- film consultant for the literary agency
than Franzen suggests, adaptation can iour and mental collapse watchable. Georgina Capel Associates.
10Ben Chaplin
and Charlotte
Riley in Press
BBC
Press to play
T
heatre playwrights and modern entertainments. Over the
TV screenwriters tend Screenwriting past decade, two major plays at the
to be different animals National Theatre (Earthquakes in Lon-
who spend most of don and 13) and a couple at the
their time in one cage. Mark Lawson talks to Almeida (King Charles III and Albion)
Sir David Hare occa- TV and stage writer have alternated with four original
sionally takes a break between series for TV: The Town, Doctor Foster,
National Theatre commissions to write Mike Bartlett as his Trauma and, from the first week of
a TV series, such as BBC Two’s recent
Collateral, and Dennis Potter did a sin-
latest drama, Press, September, Press, a six-part BBC One
series about newspaper journalists in
gle theatre play, Sufficient Carbohydrate, hits the screen a time when their industry is strug-
but these were recognisably excur- gling to find money and trust.
sions from their main creative space. Confirming the success of Bartlett’s
One of the striking things about multiskilling, King Charles III, a mock-
Mike Bartlett is that the 37-year-old Shakespearean fantasy about the
writer moves smoothly and fre- coronation of the current Prince of
quently between the ancient and Wales, secured an Olivier award �
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 11� and a Tony nomination in its theatre
version and an RTS nomination for its
TV adaptation.
“The more I do, I come to realise how
different TV and theatre are,” says Bart-
lett. “Far beyond the obvious things,
such as the visual being more signifi-
cant on screen. You don’t get rehearsals
in television, really. So, if, from theatre,
you’re used to finding and honing the
script through five weeks in a rehearsal
room, you really have to adjust.
“The other thing I really notice is the
different rhythm of it. In TV, if you’re
involved as an executive producer, a
show can be a full-time job for two
years. Whereas, in theatre, you have
the moment of writing it and then the
moment of it going on, but [you] do all
this other stuff in between those two
bursts of energy.”
The largest adjustment, though, is
in the definition of a script. It would be
normal for a theatre director and writer
to discuss the style, tone or length of
their next piece – but in TV these cal-
culations are often preordained by slot
or genre.
Rupert Goold, who directed King
Doctor Foster
Charles III on both screen and stage, as
well as several other Bartlett stage
plays, thinks that the dramatist had to drummer in a band and he has often He remembers originally pitching
learn how to negotiate the expecta- said to me that he tends to think of Press, long before Doctor Foster, to various
tions of commissioners and viewers. “I writing in eight- to 12-line sections, broadcasters, as “a ‘story of the week’
think he felt with The Town, which was rather than a single line, scene or act. show, in which a gang of journalists
not a ratings success, that – for various He hears the music of a script.” would deal with a politics story one
reasons – it hadn’t quite worked out as While Bartlett’s compositions for TV, week, then a sports or showbiz one the
he hoped,” says Goold. “So he was so far, look very different superficially, next. It would be a bit West Wing-ish.
wary of TV at that point. one uniting factor is that, regardless of “But I was told that viewers weren’t
“But he watches everything on TV and what direction the shows go in or the interested in media stories. Then, with
he learns how to make it work for him. I phone-hacking and the Leveson report,
think he’s fallen in love with TV: with its everyone got much more interested in
reach and its ability to communicate.” ‘I THINK HE HAS journalism again. And, at the same time,
Goold suggests that Bartlett’s drive to
get things right is central to his success FALLEN IN LOVE the industry – post-digital – was going
through, if not a collapse, then at least a
in both forms. In the theatre rehearsal
room, dramatists are king, whereas, on
WITH TV’ revolution. And then the whole ‘fake
news’ debate started.
a TV production, they are more likely “So, the show became more about
to have the rank of the Duke ideas they deal with, there tends to be those issues, although using the frame-
of Bognor. a particular job at the heart of the work of a workplace drama in which
There are stories of theatre writers action: medic (Doctor Foster, Trauma), you, hopefully, fall in love with the
being shocked by the number of hands heir to the throne (King Charles III) and, characters.”
on a TV script, but Goold says that now, journalist (Press). Press moves between the Herald, a
would never be a problem for Bartlett: This list wins a thoughtful pause from liberal newspaper with a high mind
“He works and works and works, Bartlett: “I’d never really thought about and a low circulation, and the Post, a
and hits deadlines. So many theatre that. But I’ve always loved TV dramas tabloid where the equation is reversed.
writers, the first blast is everything where what characters do for a living Ben Chaplin plays the editor of the
– and it’s quite hard to get them to do is crucial to it. I’m thinking of The West Post and Charlotte Riley, a key per-
the second, third, fourth, fifth drafts. Wing, The Good Wife and even Breaking former for Bartlett – having been in
“But Mike doesn’t have any trouble Bad, where the point is that he moves The Town and played the Duchess of
with that.” from one occupation to another. Also, Cambridge in King Charles III – is the
The theatre director also has a strik- if you’re telling a long-form story, you news editor of the Herald. (“Mike has
ing insight into the writer’s unusual pretty soon have to ask: well, what does always written particularly well for
attitude to form: “Mike used to be a this character do in the world?” women,” says Goold.)
12“No,” he says. “But I think the form
that Press plays with is the TV work-
place drama: The West Wing, Ally McBeal,
The Good Wife. It plays with that, but also
subverts it. It looks like a ‘story of the
week’ show, but I want viewers to be
uncertain which of the stories will
complete that week or play out over the
whole series. Which reflects what it’s
like working on a newspaper but also
gives a different form to the show.”
One of my grandfathers was a County
Durham coal miner, and I mention to
Bartlett that Press made me reflect on
the irony that his grandson had ended
up in a profession, journalism, that now
feels terminally threatened, as coal
mining was in the 1980s.
“Yes,” he responds. “But what I’d say
– and Press explores – is that we could
do without coal, but we can’t do with-
out energy. To take that analogy to
journalism, we might – might – be able
to manage without newspapers, but we
can’t manage without news or facts. If
All pictures: BBC
we base everything on opinion, civili-
sation would collapse quite quickly.
We have to find a way of verifying
objective truth.”
King Charles III
Rupert Goold expects much more
TV work from Bartlett: “I tease him
Both Riley and Chaplin’s characters, important cause – is hugely under- that, when we did King Charles III on
though, are given sympathetic and mined by the fact that it flew a heli- stage, he wrote it and left the produc-
unsympathetic elements. And, while copter over his house. tion up to me. But, when we did it on
red-top tactics are dramatised – such “If you want to stand up for principle, screen, every single costume he had a
as the “death knock”, seeking an inter- you have to have principles in your view on. So, I think he does have that
view with grievously bereaved parents daily work. American-style ‘showrunner’ in him.
– the upmarket publication is also “But I’d also like the viewers to think He likes to be over it all.”
indicted for hypocrisies, including, for about their own professions: when you Bartlett seems to confirm that view:
example, putting salacious images go to work, how principled are you, “In Press, in the Post’s office, in the
online under the pretext of “debating corner, there’s a cartoonist and they
the morality” of them. designed an office decorated with
“Yes. That was always important,” ‘HE HEARS cartoons from across his whole career.
says Bartlett. “The series presents the
two approaches to the news – in THE MUSIC And I was devastated that I hadn’t writ-
ten any of that into the show. I could
shorthand, broadsheet-serious and
tabloid-populist – but, on any given
OF A SCRIPT’ have done a whole episode about the
cartoonist!”
day, one style may get closer to the Press has the potential to run to more
truth than the other. And it’s really and, if you’re not, what are the conse- series, but that will depend on ratings
important to present those approaches quences for your industry?” and, appropriately, press. BBC One and
without pre-existing prejudices. It’s on Rupert Goold confirms the writer’s its viewers might also like a third
the BBC, written by a playwright who careful open-mindedness: “I think his series of Doctor Foster, with Suranne
has previously shown leftist tenden- greatest gift is that he writes with Jones as the media-friendly GP.
cies, but I don’t want to appeal only to enormous compassion towards all But Bartlett says: “There’s nothing
people who read the Guardian. And I sides. He’s a very political man, and happening at the moment. Suranne is
hope it doesn’t.” a moralist. But, in King Charles III, he super-busy. And I’ve got other things
Commendably, Bartlett even suggests wanted to present the monarchist coming up.
that there may be messages in Press for voice, and, in our stage play Albion, “I think, in all our minds, there’s no
the broadcaster that is screening it. He the Brexiteer voice, even though those hurry: there has to be the right time
thinks that “a really good example” of aren’t his own positions.” and the right storyline.
the current media crisis of credibility So, with Press, did Bartlett study previ- “The second series took two years.
“is the BBC thing with Cliff Richard. ous fictions about journalists, such as the We’ve never wanted to make it for the
The BBC’s ability to stand up for the movie The Front Page or David Hare and sake of making it. So we’ll have to wait
freedom of the press – which is an Howard Brenton’s stage play Pravda? and see.” n
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 13I
n a media world hit by both
consolidation and fragmenta-
tion, flagship brands are daily
demonstrating their value. And
they are central to the strategy
of Bob Bakish, CEO and Presi-
dent of global entertainment power-
house Viacom, who has occupied the
hot seat since December 2016.
Names such as Comedy Central,
MTV and Nickelodeon are more cru-
cial than ever to Viacom’s US and
global success in a crowded and fluid
media market.
This applies to content that cuts
through using the right distribution
channels and platforms, but also to
live events and movies (Viacom owns
Paramount), where profile fuels popu-
larity and revenues.
“It’s certainly an interesting time to
be in the media,” Bakish reflects in a
phone call from the group’s Manhattan
HQ. “You can look at it as glass half
empty or glass half full. I tend to look
at the whole world as half full, because
there is opportunity in change.”
The former Booz Allen & Hamilton
Viacom
executive joined Viacom in 1997, rising
through various positions, such as Steve Clarke
business development and advertising
sales. From 2007, he ran Viacom Inter- interviews Viacom
national Media Networks and its pre-
decessor, MTV Networks International.
CEO and President
During this period, he more than dou- Bob Bakish
bled the division’s revenues.
In autumn 2016, the comparatively
ahead of his RTS
low-key Bakish was appointed Via- conference keynote
Viacom
com’s acting CEO and President. He
had impressed Shari Redstone,
Viacom’s transformati
non-executive Vice-Chair of the Via- On being appointed to the top job, we were trying to achieve,” he says.
com board and the daughter of the Bakish, straight talking and bullish, Step two was to have the right team
legendary Sumner Redstone. One of immediately began devising a trans- in place. “We made extensive changes
the giants of the US entertainment formation plan. Today, it is reshaping to the Viacom management team,” he
business, Redstone bought Viacom in Viacom into a leaner, more focused explains. “The most extreme case was
the late 1980s in a hostile takeover. company capable of punching its full Paramount, where I changed the entire
Today, Bakish heads a complex weight against traditional competitors senior team.”
company that reaches a cumulative and the digital behemoths. The final – and perhaps hardest
4.3 billion TV subscribers. In the UK, “One of the first things I did when I – step is the task of executing the plan.
Argentina and India, Viacom is the took over as Viacom CEO in 2016 was “I am happy to say, sitting here a year
owner or co-owner of high-profile TV very quickly work on a plan and then and a half in, that we’ve consistently
networks – Channel 5, Telefe and roll it out publicly. People, including moved the ball forward,” says Bakish.
Colors, respectively. our employees, needed to know what “We’re not the same company that we
14were two years ago. We’re in much Viacom’s brands to have what he calls
healthier shape. “true, multi-platform expression”, and Pinky Malinky
“We have a ways to go. I encourage that the likes of Nickelodeon and MTV
you, for example, to watch what hap- are leveraged in more than one space.
pens at Paramount during the next “We know that there is tons of
year, because you’ll see it once again consumption in digital,” he says. “His-
be one of the pre-eminent studios in torically, we’ve looked at that as canni-
the world.” balistic but, with fragmentation, it’s an
He adds: “I think it’s a great time to opportunity to reach people you might
be doing it. There’s actually a lot of not otherwise reach.”
noise out there. A lot of big companies Six months ago, the company
are in a state of chaos because of M&A launched Viacom Digital Studios. Here,
or potential M&A, [whereas] we’re just the strategy involves reimagining its
playing through, building share, brands for younger audiences, with
improving sequentially.”
Consistent with the policy of focus-
content destined for such platforms as
YouTube and Facebook Watch. Titles Bob Bakish
ing on maximising the power of Via-
com’s flagship brands, under Bakish’s
announced to date include Cooking in
the Crib with Snooki, a new take on
… on the
streamers
Netflix
leadership the Paramount brand today MTV’s Cribs franchise, and animated
encompasses a range of activities – in shorts The JoJo & BowBow Show for You-
other words, Paramount Pictures, the Tube, featuring Nickelodeon’s JoJo Siwa.
world’s oldest film studio, represents “This content is only starting to hit ‘Sure, they’re frenemies, but we do
only part of what Paramount does. the screen, and we’ll be building on business with all of them. We’ve
Production has been ramped up at this,” notes Bakish. “I am tremen- just announced a deal for a new
Paramount Television, as Bakish dously excited about what’s going � animated series that will be shown
explains: “Our Paramount television by Netflix, Pinky Malinky, produced
production business didn’t exist four by Nickelodeon.
years ago. This year, the division will ‘I was with a very large Euro-
generate more than $400m in revenue. pean distributor two weeks ago.
It is profitable and it is The conversation was about: ‘We
producing hits.” These have channels on this platform.
include 13 Reasons Why, We have on-demand on this plat-
made for Netflix, and The Alien- form.’ They’re looking to have more
ist, made for TNT in the US. original content as they focus on
On 4 July, Paramount Network, having a cornerstone position in
a free-to-air service featuring their country.
drama, comedy and movies, was ‘To them, Netflix is a frenemy,
launched in the UK, following its too. On the one hand, they get
US debut in January. The move was some revenue, on the other, they
described as “a critical milestone” by don’t want people just going to
[the streamer]. That, in turn, led to
on man
a conversation about partnering
on more original content that they
could have, in this case, for an
exclusive first window.
‘Yeah, the world is a complicated
place where, historically, customers
are competitors, and people who
London-based Jill Offman, executive Nickelodeon weren’t in the business are now in
vice-president of Comedy Central and star JoJo Siwa the business.
Paramount Network International. ‘But, as I watch other companies
With Viacom operating 20-plus TV vertically integrate… AT&T, Time
network brands in the US, Bakish Warner, and we’ll see what hap-
highlights the importance of focusing pens with Fox… there’s actually an
on the flagship brands. “In the US, they incredible opportunity for Viacom
are Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Cen- to do what it does best, which is to
tral, BET and Paramount,” he says. “We create great content and partner
were too fragmented in the US... we with others. That is exactly what
Nickelodeon
needed to concentrate our resources we’re focused on. I think that is a
on a subset of those brands.” good hand to play.’
He believes that it is essential for
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 15� on there.” Last month, Viacom con-
firmed that it had bought Awesome-
ness TV, further evidence of the firm’s
determination to position itself as a
leading digital publisher for younger
audiences, competing with the likes
of Vice and Buzzfeed.
However, reinventing even a world-
conquering brand such as MTV in
today’s choice-saturated environment
presents challenges. The CEO acknow
ledges that, in the past, mistakes were
made regarding MTV’s US strategy.
“In the US, MTV went down a
scripted path and saw ratings degrada-
tion and some real loss of uniqueness.
You’ve got to focus on what the brand
represents and what your position is.
“Outside the US, when I was running
International – and still today – we
were committed to a unique brand
position that combined music with
heavy reality, unscripted shows. We
grew share under that strategy.”
A shift in policy in America with MTV
returning to reality shows is paying off.
“We’re now in the fifth straight quarter
of ratings growth,” says Bakish. “We’re
doing a lot of work, day in and day out,
with MTV in the digital native space.”
He cites the example of reviving the
Total Request Live (TRL) franchise and
introducing a segment entitled TRLeva-
tor, in which the Backstreet Boys get
The Alienist
into a lift alongside MTV staff and
proceed to sing to the amazed workers
Carpool Karaoke-style. The clip has been years. Nowadays, their popularity is era. Perry is producing 90 episodes of
a massive hit on YouTube. driven by social media. The biggest drama and comedy series per year for
“When we brought back TRL, we MTV events are the MTV Video Music BET and other Viacom networks. The
quickly found that consumption was far Awards, held last month in New York, company also secured exclusive distri-
stronger online than on TV,” says Bakish, and the MTV Europe Awards, to be bution rights to Perry’s short-form
adding: “That way, we’re able to attract, staged in Bilbao this November. video content and Paramount Pictures
retain and, ultimately, monetise today’s Says Bakish: “Those are top-of-the- gained first-look rights to his feature-
youth, who like to consume content pyramid events. They showcase what film ideas.
that way.” MTV is all about in music and pop “The deal with Tyler Perry came out
This is all well and good, he suggests, culture. They’re supported by teams, of a conversation that led to me getting
but “in this digitally interconnected research and investment. Strictly on a plane, flying down and meeting
world, there is no substitute for the real speaking, it’s not about doing it in the him. That, ultimately, led to Tyler sign-
thing. That’s where our events fran- same old way but it’s always about ing to join Viacom instead of Lions-
chises come in.” As the music business being true to the brand and the fan.” gate.” Bakish recalls.
learnt the hard way, live performances He adds: “Year-to-year attendance at This aside, competition is unlikely to
long ago surpassed record sales in Viacom events is doubling to about ease up, especially as Apple joins Net
terms of their ability to generate reve- 2 million people.” flix and Amazon in the high-end con-
nue. Historically, Nickelodeon and MTV Ultimately, though, Viacom remains tent space.
have been big players in live events. a content company at heart. Famously, Does Viacom have anything to learn
Nickelodeon’s SlimeFest made its it was Sumner Redstone who coined from these companies? “I think the
debut in the US in June, having previ- the phrase, subsequently adopted as an most important thing you can do in life
ously staged sell-out shows in South entertainment business mantra, “Con- is to continue to learn,” says Bakish.
Africa, Australia, Italy, the UK and Spain. tent is king”. “You can learn from all over the place.
SlimeFest UK, a partnership with Live In this context, Viacom’s signing of If you look at what happened with TV
Nation, will take place in the Arena at Tyler Perry, the African-American Everywhere, it was a significantly
Blackpool Pleasure Beach in October. writer, director, producer, playwright missed opportunity.
MTV’s international events have and actor, in July last year may turn out “An inferior product was created
helped reinforce the brand for many to represent a landmark for the Bakish because the partners in the ecosystem
16Channel 5
Jane McDonald & Friends
Bob Bakish… on the UK’s Channel 5
‘Channel 5 is a fundamental part of our happened. All we have to do is play
international strategy. Actually, when through. The good news is that it is not
we acquired it almost four years ago, going to affect Viacom’s commitment
we saw a tremendous opportunity in to the UK and London. We have a tre-
combining our pay-network position in mendous team there and they’re doing
WE CONTINUE the UK with a general entertainment,
free-to-air position in the UK.
great work.
‘We have valuable media assets in
TO BE ON THE ‘From a commercial standpoint, we
believed there would be synergies – in
London. That is not going to change.
‘In the short term, and we’ve seen
LOOKOUT FOR advertising sales, content creation, this to date and, unfortunately, we will
ACQUISITIONS cross promotion – and so drive larger
audiences for the combined company.
continue to see this for a little while,
Brexit is affecting our commercial abili-
IN THE UK ‘We believed, frankly, that it would ties and monetisation [in the UK].
Netflix
create opportunity for our employees. ‘Brexit has not been a positive for
And all that together would drive growth. the UK ad market. That costs us some
That’s exactly what happened. We con- money. I am not happy about that. But
– the distributors and the program- tinue to be very pleased with Channel 5, we’re in it for the long haul. Through
mers – basically fought each other to even though one thing that we didn’t this period, we have chosen to increase
get the best economic outcome for predict when we bought it was Brexit. our investment, even though revenue
themselves. This allowed a new ‘We can’t control the fact that Brexit hasn’t been what we had hoped.’
entrant to come in on an OTT basis
and create the product we should have
had. It attracted triple-digit millions of
subscribers and created a market cap
…on potential UK acquisitions
that dwarfs the traditional guys.
“The lesson there is that, [while] I ‘We’re always looking for something ‘We continue to be on the lookout
don’t think you can do everything, interesting that fits in and is likely to for acquisitions in the UK. I can’t tell
you’ve got to see how to work with accelerate our strategy. [Such deals] you for sure if there’s going to be
people and you’ve got to do it pretty are hard to find and hard to get done. anything in the UK, because we look
quickly and unlock opportunities. Unfortunately, most deals don’t get done. broadly.’
“If you don’t, someone else will
show up. I don’t know if that’s purely a
lesson from the digital guys. The digital
guys are able to exploit that a lot
…on the drama boom
because of their capital structures.
“At the moment, they have immense ‘Viacom is, at core, a content company, never been more access to content.
resources that they can throw at some- so it’s a good thing. Excluding 13 Reasons Companies – whether… their core
thing if they choose to. Why, The Alienist and Tom Clancy’s Jack [activity is entertainment], or they are
“That teaches you to be focused and Ryan for Amazon, we have 22 other new entrants looking to drive their
not to hang around.… Watching them, scripted shows set up with networks. businesses using entertainment… to
seeing what they are able to create and ‘There’s no doubt that some of pull people into the funnel – are buying
how they use data, targeting and those will convert to orders. Why is product. I think that’s going to last for
measurability, you have to replicate that happening? It’s because there has a while.’
some of that. So, there are lessons.” n
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 17Video streaming
Kate Bulkley explains A global shift to
why Netflix and other
streaming services
want to park their tanks
home-grown
on the lawns of national
TV networks
T
he old saying
“Think global, act
local” is the new
mantra for the
Netflix-led, global
tech platforms as
they push for ever greater numbers
of subscribers. In recent months,
Netflix, Apple and Amazon have all
started to open offices, staffed largely
by locally grown TV commissioners,
in the UK and other non-US markets.
Simultaneously, the tech platforms are
ramping up local marketing efforts.
Amazon has also jumped into local
sports markets, purchasing major live
sports rights for the UK, including a
Premier League football package and
US Open tennis rights.
In June, YouTube launched its sub-
scription video service, YouTube Pre-
mium, in the UK and staffed up a local
commissioning office.
The message is clear: the tech giants
are taking the next steps in what some
Netflix
characterise as Silicon Valley’s assault
on broadcasters and local creative
industries around the world. Indeed, international markets if Netflix is to emphasised the importance of com-
BBC Director-General Tony Hall has continue on its fairly relentless growth missioning shows that “are incredibly
called the onslaught of the big SVoD trajectory. To support that, it can sell US relevant in their home territories – and
services a “fight for the future” for PSB content into those markets; but, to reach the nice windfall is they get viewed all
and commercial broadcasters alike. maximum potential, Netflix needs con- over the world”.
Traditionally, the BBC and similar tent that appeals to local preferences.” He highlighted such localised shows
networks have presented their ability Netflix is expected to pour $8bn into as the Danish series The Rain and Ger-
to commission and screen local con- original content this year, much of it man drama Dark, plus the forthcoming
tent as a core strength. Who else can directed towards the UK, Germany and new season of Spain’s Las Chicas del
reflect Britain back to itself better than Spain. Two years ago, its portion of Cable and Ghoul from India; Netflix sees
the BBC or ITV? original programming coming from the last as a key growth market.
The reasons for the shift to local outside the US was just 23%, but this “It’s really, I think, accelerating the
were underlined by Netflix’s recent year it is on track to be nearly double, brand perception of Netflix as not just
quarterly results. Significantly, the at 45%, according to Ampere Analysis. an out-of-towner, but someone who’s
company missed its own, rather con- Half of the non-US originals will hail producing content that you care about
servative, subscription targets by a from Europe, particularly the dynamic in every part of the world,” explained
telling 1 million – and its share price UK market. This is because Europe has Sarandos.
dropped 14% in a single day. the most potential for new subscrip- And it is not just Netflix that is
“Domestic growth for Netflix has tion growth. There is good broadband boosting local content and moving
slumped in the US, where it already availability, coupled with willingness beyond a focus on commissioning
has high penetration,” says Richard and ability to pay for content. scripted, episodic drama. Amazon is
Broughton of Ampere Analysis. “The Indeed, in its recent results, Netflix’s heading in the same strategic direction,
new growth needs to come from chief content officer, Ted Sarandos, raising non-US original programming
18box-set rights to broadcasters. Indeed,
the recent row between Virgin Media
and UKTV, which led to all 10 of its
channels disappearing for three weeks
during vexed negotiations over box-set
rights, was telling. Both Virgin and
UKTV’s joint owner, the BBC, need no
reminding of the escalating value of
certain on-demand rights.
The commercial and branding issues
may not be easy to sort out, either, but
White’s statement that the rise of SVoD
has “profound implications for UK
television” speaks volumes for what
is at stake.
In July, she urged broadcasters to
“work together to reach people who
are turning away from TV” in order to
compete in the digital age.
The recent talk about reviving what
is being described as “Kangaroo 2” is
clearly underpinned by a regulatory
green light. This is ironic, because it
was competition regulators who shot
down Project Kangaroo nine years ago.
That would have seen the major British
broadcasters form an SVoD alliance.
Carolyn McCall, ITV’s new Chief
Executive, unveiled a “strategy refresh”
at the broadcaster’s half-year financial
update in July, including plans for a
new subscription streaming service
focused on distinctive British content.
ITV already operates the BritBox
streaming service in a joint venture with
the BBC and AMC in North America.
For the UK service, McCall said she
is talking to a number of potential
Netflix commissions from office. And, in partners. “Ninety-two out of 100 top
Denmark, Spain, India and Germany July, Netflix programmes [viewed by UK consum-
announced that ers] are British programmes,” she said.
from 3% of the total in 2016 to a pre- it had chosen Madrid as the site for its “There is a bit of a gap and a bit of a
dicted 11% this year, according to first European production hub. window. We have a strategic intention
Ampere Analysis. For YouTube and Facebook, the to do something more in this area.”
In the UK, Amazon hired former BBC strategy is a bit different. Their current A big part of that fightback is about
and FremantleMedia commissioning monetisation models are not geared to distinctive, local content. Media analyst
and acquisitions executive Georgia producing the high-end, premium Paolo Pescatore says: “We shouldn’t
Brown last year to lead commissioning programmes that broadcasters and underestimate the value of local con-
for Europe. The UK is, of course, a Netflix covet. But that looks to be tent and regional differences. With this
crucial strategic growth market for changing, particularly with the launch in mind, it is paramount that the lead-
Amazon, given its recent investments of YouTube Premium and Facebook’s ing global OTT providers invest in
in premium football and tennis rights. push into video via Facebook Watch. locally produced content” to continue
Other Faang (Facebook, Apple, Ama- So how should the legacy broadcast- to grow their services.
zon, Netflix and Google) companies ers react? When Ofcom CEO Sharon Pescatore believes that broadcasters
also have highly experienced local White says that she would “love to have should not be fighting against the Net
commissioners in their game plans a British Netflix”, it seems the timing flixes and Amazons. “As the Faangs
– Apple hired former Channel 4 chief might be right for a unified fightback spend more on local programming,
creative officer Jay Hunt as creative from the BBC, ITV, Channel 5 and then there is no reason why they
director for Europe, based in the UK, Channel 4. Similar moves are under- shouldn’t partner with broadcasters
late last year as part of its original way to create joint broadcaster-led whose strength is in local content.
development push. SVoD services in France and Germany. “It’s a great match for both tradi-
At Netflix, ex-Canal+ documentary Creating this kind of SVoD platform tional providers and the Faangs.
boss Diego Buñuel is overseeing docu- is not without its challenges, particu- Embrace change by partnering rather
mentaries from a central London larly given the value of catch-up and than fighting the new world.” n
Television www.rts.org.uk September 2018 19I The
n the treacherous world of espio- British spooks employ a civilian, has
nage there may no trickier riddle, not gone unnoticed by Cornwell.
wrapped in no greater mystery, Otherwise, he assures me, it will be
inside no more elusive enigma very different: “From an early view of
secret
than the following question: will the results it is, in a good way, unlike
there be a Night Manager II? Some anything I’ve ever seen on television.
doubt there can be a follow-up to the It’s stunningly, beautifully, amazingly
2016 BBC One thriller because John le shot, hugely cinematic.”
Carré did not write a sequel on which Drummer Girl will be followed, with
agent’s
it could be based. Others, just as filming starting “next year”, by The Spy
cogently, argue that the BBC and The Who Came in from the Cold, based on
Ink Factory, the production company le Carré’s first great novel. It was pub-
which made it to such acclaim and lished in 1963 and swiftly made into a
son
ratings, will not be able to resist. film starring Richard Burton. I suggest
“Actually, not being cute, I really don’t that the movie’s greatness carries its
know,” says Simon Cornwell, The Ink own problems.
Factory’s Co-Chief Executive and son “It was, absolutely, a perfect film,” he
of le Carré. “We don’t have scripts for agrees. “I mean, to drop names for a
it yet, and we would only think about moment, we made a movie a couple of
making a second series of The Night years ago with Ang Lee and Ang would
Manager if it was going to be really good. cite The Spy Who Came in from the Cold as,
“And I’m sure that Hugh [Laurie] and in his view, a formally perfect film in
Tom [Hiddleston] and Olivia [Colman], lots of ways, and I think that’s right.
who are not exactly underemployed “I guess the beauty of revisiting it is
actors, won’t want to come back unless that we have a completely fresh
it’s excellent, frankly. And, you know, approach to it. Last year, my father
we have all of le Carré’s body of work published A Legacy of Spies and a big
to pick from.” section of that is essentially a prequel
We are sitting, mid-heatwave, in The to [The Spy Who Came in from the Cold]. It
Ink Factory office in Covent Garden, not fills a several-year hole in Smiley’s life
far from the Circus, the fictional intelli- between the end of what is actually his
gence HQ in le Carré’s Smiley novels. first novel, Call for the Dead, and the start
Cornwell, 61, a tall, well-built man, is of The Spy Who Came in from the Cold.”
wearing – unbuttoned – a long, oat- But what of Smiley? Can anyone fill
coloured waistcoat. Alec Guinness’s BBC costume depart-
I have a sensitive question. How is it ment brogues? “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
The Ink Factory
that le Carré’s screen rights have fallen was a long time ago and the Smiley in
into the laps of Simon and his writer The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is
brother Stephen (the company’s other much younger. He’s in his late thirties,
Co-CEO, who works from LA)? Was it early forties, I guess.”
a gift? Their inheritance? If so, what Does that mean casting an actor who
about the novelist’s two other sons? will continue to play him in subsequent
Did he have to negotiate the deal, I The Billen profile Smiley adaptations? “I hope we cast a
ask. “Yes, furiously.” Smiley who stays with us. Obviously,
It wasn’t just done over a brandy one it’s a big ask of any actor to stay with us
night? “I wish it had been done over a Andrew Billen meets over multiple stories, multiple years and,
brandy one night. For all kinds of appro-
priate reasons to do with fairness within
Simon Cornwell, whose of course, Smiley himself grows quite a
lot older over the sequence – but I think
the family and, actually, to do with the production company, that it’s certainly fun to try.”
law of the land, it needed to be a bona
fide, arm’s length deal. And so it is.”
The Ink Factory, is best Both of the new serials have been
secured by the BBC. Cornwell fears,
Whatever the future of The Night known for adapting however, for public service broadcast-
Manager II, the Cornwells do have two ers’ ability to afford such series in the
BBC le Carrés in gestation. The first, the novels of his father, future. The Night Manager cost £3.5m
emerging this winter, and now in
post-production, is The Little Drummer
John le Carré per episode. Thanks largely to the
demand for drama from Netflix and
Girl, starring Florence Pugh and Alex- Amazon, costs have since risen by 40%.
ander Skarsgård, and directed by Park The solution for The Ink Factory has
Chan-wook. been co-productions with AMC in the
It is the story of how Pugh’s charac- US and its own fundraising, recouped
ter, an actress, is recruited on a Greek through foreign sales. As things stand,
beach by Mossad to bring down a ter- Cornwell estimates that the BBC’s tariff
rorist ring. The similarity to the prem- for Drummer Girl would finance just one
ise of The Night Manager, in which and a half episodes.
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