Prime Video has announced that it has invested more than £1bn in TV, movies, and live sport since 2018 at the Prime Video Presents event today.

The event also showcased new greenlights and casting news where Prime Video UK Head Chris Bird was joined at The Londoner Hotel by Amazon Studios’ Georgia Brown and Dan Grabiner and acting, directing, and writing talent, including Louis Theroux, KSI, Jessica Raine, Peter Capaldi, Nikesh Patel, Katherine Ryan, Jez Butterworth, Naomi Alderman, and some of the stars and creator of U.S. Original series The Boys.

“It was important to bring people together at Prime Video Presents to not only showcase our brilliant upcoming shows and movies, but to demonstrate how committed we are to the UK in the long term,” explained Chris Bird, MD Prime Video UK. “We’ve spent a long time building a service that offers customers a variety of ways to access the TV shows and movies they love–either included as part of their subscription, as an add-on channel or being able to rent or buy at a low price. We have invested more than £1 billion on TV series, movies, and live sport since 2018. But it’s just as important that we’re investing in the UK’s world-leading production and creative industries, with a growing number of UK Originals; through a £10 million commitment to training and skills schemes; and by taking a long-term lease at Shepperton Studios.”

New UK Originals were announced, including Fifteen-Love, a scripted drama from World Productions. Created and written by Hania Elkington (The Innocents) Episodes One-Three of Fifteen-Love are directed by Eva Riley (Perfect 10), and Episodes Four-Six by Toby MacDonald (Extraordinary). It is produced by Natasha Romaniuk (The Suspect) and executive produced by Jake Lushington, World’s head of drama, along with Elkington, Riley, and MacDonald. Fifteen-Love is an “enthralling exploration of the dangerous lines where personal and professional relationships collide, set amid the glamorous cut-and-thrust world of elite tennis.”

Two new true-crime series were announced. The first, The Disappearance of Patricia Hall (working title) from ITN Productions, is the real-life story of the disappearance of Patricia Hall from a small town in Yorkshire and the subsequent investigation in which her husband, Keith Hall, appeared to admit to her murder, before questions were raised about the reliability of his “confession.” The Disappearance of Patricia Hall (working title) is directed by Sam Hobkinson (Misha and the Wolves), produced by Vivienne Perry (The Changin’ Times of Ike White), and executive producers Nathaniel Lippiett (Secrets of the Krays) and Ian Rumsey (Lost Boy: The Killing of James Bulger).

Three Mothers (working title) is a new three-part series from Firecrest Films. Set in the wild west days of the infancy of the internet, it tells the story of three women who all found themselves in the middle of an “unbelievable series of events that captured the world’s attention.” Director Alice McMahon-Major, producer Zehra Yas, and executive producers Nicole Kleeman and Vari Innes “bring this powerful story, told through firsthand testimony, along with a wealth of extraordinary archive material spanning two continents and decades.”

Ben Stokes: Phoenix from the Ashes sees the new England cricket captain discuss the highs and lows of his record-breaking career with Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes (1917) in a new UK Amazon Original documentary. Produced by Whisper, the film tells the story of Ben’s phenomenal career, examining his World Cup triumph and heroics at the Headingley crease, as well as the lows which saw him take time away from the game and came at a huge personal cost. Mendes also executive produces the film.

“We have supercharged Prime Video’s UK slate with a diverse range of high-quality, distinctive programmes across documentary, drama, comedy, entertainment, and film,” said Dan Grabiner, Head of UK Originals, Amazon Studios. “It’s such a thrill seeing the slate grow in partnership with some of the UK’s most talented creatives, from first-time creators to legends of British television.”

In other news, actor and Arsenal fan Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah) has been signed up as the narrator of All or Nothing: Arsenal.

 

Jon Creamer

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