Channel 5 has announced four new documentary projects for 2020, following Ben Frow’s channel controller session at the Edinburgh TV Festival.
The new programmes include One Thousand Years of Slavery (w/t), a landmark documentary series on Slavery from David Olusoga and Mike Smith’s production company Uplands TV; Miscarriage, the latest issue-led 90” documentary in the Modern Britain strand from ITV Entertainment; Talking Animals: Tales from the Zoo (w/t), a brand new hybrid docusoap series which explores life at the zoo from the unique perspective of the animals from Emporium Pictures, and Bettany Hughes: My Greek Odyssey (w/t), an epic new series from Sandstone Pictures where Bettany Hughes explores the ancient world of Greece.
From Uplands TV is a new series One Thousand Years of Slavery (w/t) that aims to “transform our understanding of slavery and the slave trade, uncovering forgotten stories, breathtaking locations, living communities and cutting-edge archaeology. It will reveal connections that link the history of slavery to modern communities across the world, and using drama-recon, it will bring to life key events in this thousand year history.”
One Thousand Years of Slavery is an Uplands Television Production for Channel 5. Executive Produced by Mike Smith and David Olusoga. The commissioner for the series is Guy Davies, Commissioning Editor (VP) – Factual.
A new 6 x 60” series from Sandstone Global Productions, Bettany Hughes: My Greek Odyssey (w/t), sees award-winning historian and classicist Professor Bettany Hughes undertake a journey through the original playground of the Greek gods and heroes, to uncover the myths and stories of heroes and their world. From Odysseus to Helen of Troy, Hughes will follow in the footsteps of these characters and meet the people who now call the Greek Islands their home.
The series was ordered by Lucy Willis, Commissioning Editor (VP) – Factual.
C5’s latest documentary in its Modern Britain strand is Miscarriage, a 90” film produced by ITV Studios Entertainment. Celebrities and public figures with personal experience of child loss, will talk about their experiences of miscarriage and stillbirth. The programme is commissioned by Emma Westcott, Commissioning Editor (VP) – Factual.
Emporium Productions has been commissioned to make Talking Animals: Tales from the Zoo (w/t), an innovative 6 x 60” docusoap series following daily life at Jersey Zoo from the animals; point of view. From gorillas to flamingos, the animals themselves tell their stories and voice their opinions about their lives. The executive producers are Emma Read and David Emerson. The series was ordered by Lucy Willis, Commissioning Editor (VP) – Factual.
Staff Reporter
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