Bestselling author Ben Aaronovitch has partnered with new indie Pure Fiction and See-Saw Films to bring all nine of his hit Rivers of London novels plus accompanying short stories, novellas, and graphic novels together for screen adaptation for the first time.
The adaptations will also be made along with Unnecessary Logo, Aaronovitch’s own production company, recently established with fellow directors, John Berlyne and Keith Northrop.
Pure Fiction Television is the new company launched by Tom Winchester (Clickbait, The Capture, Endeavour) who recently exited his role as President of Heyday Television where he worked for over three years as the producing partner of David Heyman (Once Upon A Time… in Hollywood, Paddington 1 & 2, Harry Potter). During Winchester’s tenure Heyday Television was proactive in the high-end book space, optioning, amongst others, Liane Moriarty’s latest novel Apples Never Fall and New York Times bestseller The Push by Ashley Audrain.
See-Saw’s recent television output includes Slow Horses and The Essex Serpent for Apple TV+, both of which are based on best-selling novels, and Heartstopper for Netflix, written by Alice Oseman and based on her graphic novel of the same name.
Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London novels, published by Orion Books, have consistently featured on the Sunday Times Bestseller list since the first title was published back in 2011. The ninth novel, Amongst Our Weapons, went straight toNo.1, as did the eighth, False Value before it. Aaronovitch’s work has been translated into fourteen languages and sold in excess of five million copies worldwide. The Rivers of London world has expanded to include novellas, short stories, comics, games and graphic novels.
Winchester said: “Anybody that loves British fantasy knows the name PC Peter Grant and the world of Rivers of London, where gods and goddesses walk amongst us on the city streets. As a longstanding fan it is a huge honour to be partnering with Ben to bring his unique blend of contemporary urban fantasy and gripping detective stories to the screen.”
Aaronovitch is experienced writing for television, having started his career as a screenwriter on Doctor Who (Remembrance of the Daleks). He will be executive producing the series through Unnecessary Logo alongside Pure Fiction Television and See-Saw Films. He said: “It’s always a joy and privilege to be working with such talented people and I’m confident that together we can produce some ridiculously brilliant television.”
The deal was brokered by Simon Gillis, See-Saw’s COO, on behalf of See-Saw and Pure Fiction and by John Berlyne and Keith Northrop on behalf of Unnecessary Logo
Jon Creamer
Share this story
