Wanted: What UK Factual Entertainment Commissioners Want.

In the final of a series of reports from the Intelligent Factual Festival, the factual entertainment commissioners from Channel 4, Five, BBC and Sky One reveal what kind of programmes they are looking to commission. Photo by takomabibelot (CC BY-2.0)

Greenlit: Manson, History US, Five, History Television Canada

Manson (2×60′) – Docudrama about Charles Manson and the killing spree known as the Tate murders. Includes interview with Linda Kasabian who was the gang’s driver. Coincides with the 40th anniversary of the murders.
Channel: History Television (Canada), History US, Five
Producer: Cineflix
TX: 9 August 2009  (History Television, Canada).
Source: Realscreen
Watch: Trailer

Greenlit: True Horror, Five

True Horror (3×60′) – Explores classic horror legends using dramatic reconstructions and psychological analysis.  The series will cover Dracula, Frankenstein and the werewolf.
Channel: Five
Producer: Hardy Pictures
TX: Autumn 2009
Source: Broadcast

Greenlit: Revealed Strand, Five

Revealed (6×60′) – A factual history strand that has films from different filmmakers.

Jack the Ripper: Tabloid Killer – Former tabloid editor Kelvin McKenzie looks at the relationship between the press and Jack the Ripper (Lion Television)
The Real Goldfinger – Investigates whether the Bond film was based on a real-life plot by the Germans to attack [...]

Greenlit: Michaela’s Animal Roadshow UK, Five

Michaela’s Animal Roadshow UK (20×60′) – Ob doc series in which Michaela Strachan travels the UK to find injured animals and the people who nurse them back to health. Hidden cameras film the animals’ normal behaviour.
Channel: Five
Producer: True North Productions
TX: Summer 09
Source: Broadcast

Greenlit: Nigel Marven’s Great Snake Invasion, Five

Nigel Marven’s Great Snake Invasion (1×60′) – Nigel Marven  wrestles with reptiles in Florida.
Channel: Five
Producer: Image Impact Production
TX: TBC
Source: Broadcast

Greenlit: Head-Shrinkers of the Amazon, Five / Nat Geo

Head-Shrinkers of the Amazon (1×60′) – A documentary that explores the practice of head-shrinking. It examines piece of archive footage from a 1960 expedition to the Amazon that shows a human head being shrunk and then sets out to try to authenticate it.

Channel: Five / National Geographic
Producer: Diverse
TX: 22 July 2009
Source :Broadcast

Greenlit: You’re Nicked!, Five

You’re Nicked! (6×60) – Natalie Pinkham presents a series that reveals dramatic police chases and raids that have been captured on camera, and she talks to the officers involved to find out how they caught the criminals.
Channel: Five
Producer: Raw Cut TV
Source: Broadcast

Greenlit: Mad for Dance, Five

Mad for Dance (5×3′) – Five shorts funded by the Arts Council that profile people with mental health problems and show how dance has had a positive impact on their lives.
Channel: Five / Community Channel
TX: 12-18 April (Mental Health Action Week)
Source: Broadast

Greenlit: The Lion That Lived on Kings Road, Five

The Lion that Lived on Kings Road – A documentary that tells the story of John Rendall and Ace Bourke who bought a lion cub from Harrods in 1969. They reared Christian the cub in their basement and he became well known on the Kings Road in Chelsea. After meeting Virginia McKenna of Born Free, [...]