Latest news with #GraemeArmstrong
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
BBC Axing One Of Its Longest-Running Shows But Ploughing More Money Into Scottish Drama
One of the BBC's longest-running shows is being axed in Scotland but nearly £100M ($130M) will be spent on drama in the nation over the next three years, an increase of around 25%. Soap River City, which has aired since 2002, will end next fall, the BBC has just announced, with actors union Equity and Directors UK reacting angrily to the news. More from Deadline Former Paramount Strategy Boss Heading To BBC BBC News Presenters Settle Three-Year Dispute Over "Sham" Hiring Process 'Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone' Gets Hundreds Of Complaints Amid BBC Investigation Into Hamas Links But with the criticism that canceling long-running shows attracts front and center of its mind, the corporation has already said that its investment in Scottish drama will rise to more than £95M cumulatively between 2026 and 2028, an average of at least £30M per year. A spokeswoman for BBC Scotland said this figure has been around the £25M mark for the past five years. BBC Scotland content boss Louise Thornton has already unveiled three new dramas: darkly comic thriller Grams from Line of Duty producer World Productions, The Young Team adapted from Scottish author Graeme Armstrong's debut novel and Counsels, which is being co-created by Skins creator Bryan Elsley. 'River City has been a wonderful adventure and of course we'll all be sad to see it go,' said BBC Scotland Director Hayley Valentine. 'The team have done a brilliant job and I know they have some big plans for the finale next year. But as viewing patterns change and competition intensifies, this is the right time to invest in the next generation of high-impact drama series from across Scotland showcasing storytelling across the UK.' Created by Stephen Greenhorn and produced by BBC Studios, Scottish soap River City has aired since 2002 and is set in the West End of Glasgow, following a cast of entertaining characters and winning a wealth of awards down the years. 'A disaster for Scottish television' The move to axe River City follows recent cancelations of long-running BBC dramas Holby City and Doctors, both of which attracted criticism. Regardless of the BBC's rising Scottish drama spend, Equity and Directors UK reacted immediately with annoyance. Equity General Secretary Paul Fleming called the cancelation 'short sighted' and 'a disaster for Scottish television.' 'Axing River City would have a devastating effect on acting and production roles for Scottish talent,' he said. 'There is simply no equivalent to a regular soap for getting your foot in the door of this notoriously cutthroat industry, especially for the many aspiring actors from working class backgrounds. The regular opportunities and wages simply do not exist in other show formats.' Directors UK boss Andy Harrower said the move is a 'killer blow to our members based in Scotland for whom the last couple of years have been really challenging in terms of having enough work to sustain a living.' 'The BBC has indicated that the money saved will be reallocated to other Scottish production,' he added. 'This must happen, and it must translate into work opportunities for Scottish talent. We will hold the BBC to account on this.' Scottish TV production has been in the spotlight of late over The Traitors, after the BBC and producer Studio Lambert were accused of painting a 'truly shocking picture' when it comes to the number of people working on the show who are based in Scotland. The accusation from a local director sparked a major debate. Best of Deadline Epic Universe: The Latest Images Of The New Universal Orlando Theme Park Which Colleen Hoover Books Are Becoming Movies? 'Verity,' 'Reminders Of Him' & 'Regretting You' Will Join 'It Ends With Us' The 25 Highest-Grossing Animated Films Of All Time At The Box Office
BBC News
18-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
BBC commissions new drama The Young Team adapted from Graeme Armstrong's best-selling novel
The BBC has commissioned six-part drama The Young Team, the scripted debut from one of Scotland's most exciting voices in literature, Graeme Armstrong. The series is adapted from Graeme's best-selling and award-winning debut novel of the same name. Set and filmed in North Lanarkshire, The Young Team is made by BAFTA award-winning indie Synchronicity Films (The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Mayflies, The Cry) and will air on BBC iPlayer, BBC Scotland and BBC One. 15-year-old Azzy Williams and his pals roam the streets of Airdrie on a Friday night, bottles of Buckfast in hand and techno playing from tinny speakers. Azzy is ready. Ready to smoke, pop pills, drink wine and fight. He longs to become fully initiated into local gang the Young Team Posse (YTP). But when Azzy, determined to prove himself, makes a bold move, a brutal gang conflict ensues with Azzy very firmly at its heart. The Young Team will follow Azzy on his journey from boyhood to manhood as he and his mates become postcode warriors in a toxic cycle that threatens to consume them. An unflinching look at the realities of addiction and gang violence, this ambitious series will tell a powerful, visceral story about the realities of life for young, disenfranchised people, and the fight for a different future. Creator and writer Graeme Armstrong says: 'I have been working on The Young Team project for 12 years. At the beginning, I was only 21 and in the first days of my recovery from a decade of territorial gang violence, substance abuse and addiction. To say it's been a labour of love is an understatement. Alongside creating a respectful representation of Scottish working class life and the trials of growing up amidst a 'young team' gang culture, entrenched for generations, the work on both page and screen has given me the opportunity to reach young people at risk, working in violence prevention to affect change in their lives. 'This has been the privilege of my life but it comes with enormous responsibility, as does our task to capture this unique culture on film. The impact of storytelling like this changed my destiny and ultimately, saved me. The BBC and Synchronicity adaptation will take this legacy to new peaks, creating powerful drama which connects with a current UK audience living under the shadow of rising violence, gangs and blade culture. We understand these profound challenges and are well placed to tell this story through lived experience and a shared commitment to accuracy. The solution lies in the community and that is where this story originated. I cannot wait to get stuck in and see The Young Team brought to life by such a trusted network as the BBC and with the tenacity and absolute passion of my friends and colleagues at Synchronicity Films.' Claire Mundell, Founder and Creative Direct of Synchronicity Films and executive producer on the series, says: 'Working with Graeme on the adaptation of his staggeringly accomplished debut novel The Young Team is at the heart of what we do at Synchronicity and it's an absolute honour to watch his brilliance as he starts his screenwriting career. Drama can change lives and we hope that the lives we depict in The Young Team, informed at the helm by Graeme's lived experience, will speak to an audience of young people on the margins, caught up in a cycle of intergenerational trauma and recreational violence and who rarely see themselves represented truthfully and without judgement in all their joy, swagger, humour and compassion. There are many more talented unheard young voices out there, just like Graeme, in working class communities and if this series inspires some of them to see creativity and self-expression as a way of reaching their potential that will be the greatest reward of all.' Louise Thornton, Head of Commissioning for BBC Scotland, says: 'It is exciting for BBC Scotland to continue our working relationship with Graeme Armstrong. Having explored gang culture in documentary form we're thrilled to be adapting Graeme's hit novel and bringing the complex characters to life on screen and showcasing The Young Team gang to viewers around the country. The Young Team has been such a culturally significant novel for Scotland and for the BBC to be the broadcaster bringing this powerful story to television truly is an honour.' Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, says: 'The Young Team's unflinching and compelling depiction of gang life, inspired by Graeme's personal experiences, has proven hugely popular with readers since its publication five years ago. We feel privileged that for his first TV drama Graeme has chosen to adapt his book for the BBC, working alongside the team at Synchronicity Films, and we can't wait to bring Azzy and co to the screen.' The Young Team (6 x 60') was commissioned by Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, and Louise Thornton, Head of Commissioning for BBC Scotland. The series is created and written by the novel's author Graeme Armstrong. Executive producers are Claire Mundell for Synchronicity Films, Gaynor Holmes for the BBC, and Gavin Smith for BBC Scotland. GK / LH2
