Scottish Indie Friel Kean Films has won two new commissions from BBC Scotland: Hercules the Bear – A Love Story and a second series of Inside Barlinnie.
Hercules the Bear – A Love Story is a feature-length documentary that tells the story of Hercules, the world’s most famous grizzly bear, through never-before-seen home video footage and moving interviews. In 1975, Scottish wrestler Andy Robin and his wife Maggie adopted a nine-month-old bear cub and called him Hercules. Against all odds, they raised him as part of their family—taming one of the world’s fiercest animals and forming an unbreakable bond. What followed was a remarkable story of wrestling, international fame and love.
Executive producer and director Michelle Friel says, “The story of Hercules is in essence a love story, between Andy and Maggie and the bear that they made part of their family. It is such a heart-warming story and we hope that audiences will fall in love with Hercules all over again.
Following the success of its first series, Inside Barlinnie (3 x 60mins) returns to shine a light on life inside Scotland’s most notorious prison. The new series will go even deeper into the lives of prisoners and their families, exploring the emotional and practical impact of incarceration. In this series, the two worlds of ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ will be brought together by following prison visits, family centre meetings, community work and funerals. As well as that there are multiple release stories that highlight the return of prisoners into society and their inevitable struggles as they to try to ‘make it’ on the outside.
Executive producer Michelle Friel says, “It is a privilege to be working so closely with the staff and inmates inside HMP Barlinnie and there are extraordinary stories to follow that shine a light on so much in the fabric of our society. We are so pleased to be able to share their story and work at the cutting edge of documentary making with the recommission of Inside Barlinnie.”
Both projects were commissioned by David Harron for BBC Scotland and iPlayer, who says: ‘These latest documentaries from Friel Kean Films again highlight the range and depth of storytelling that they bring to our audiences. Hercules the Bear – A Love Story is a beautiful film that will connect emotionally with viewers of all ages. And Outside Barlinnie will again have the remarkable access to the lives of prisoners and staff which was the hallmark of the previous series.’
Jon Creamer
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