Channel 4 has announced three new drama commissions: adaptations of Ben Macintyre’s The Siege and Michael Magee’s Close to Home, plus Wrong Move from Roughcut Television.
Danny Dyer, David Morrissey and Motaz Malhees will lead the cast of The Siege, adapted by Will Smith and directed by Lewis Arnold. Patrick Spence serves as EP for AC Chapter One as the drama tells the true story of the 1980 siege of the Iranian embassy in London. It is being co-produced with ARTE France. NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution will sell it worldwide.
Ian Katz, chief content officer at Channel 4, said: “The Iranian embassy siege and the daring raid which ended it was an iconic moment that forged the ferocious reputation of the modern SAS. The show is a heart-stopping, emotional thriller that reveals the little-known motivations of the hapless hostage-takers and the very human reality of what went on inside the embassy as the world looked on and Britain’s most lethal soldiers practiced their high-stakes assault. It will change the way people understand the siege and reveal how close the famous SAS operation came to disaster. We’re thrilled to be working with Will Smith, Ben Macintyre, Lewis Arnold, Patrick Spence, and the remarkable cast. This major commission underlines Channel 4’s commitment to dialling up exceptional drama in its slate of original British programming.”
Alexandre Piel, deputy head of drama at ARTE France, said: “The Siege is our first co-production with the U.K., and we are truly honoured to be associated with Channel 4 on this fantastic project. Will Smith is a brilliant author; his adaptation of Ben Macintyre’s novel masterfully blends a gripping thriller with the emotional depth of this tragic event. He made it an intense, moving, and funny story all at once. It has been wonderful to stand at Patrick Spence’s side in his adventure. It’s a unique opportunity, the one that allows you to witness the unfolding of a historical moment turning into a disaster in front of the whole world. And we are also more than happy that this project enables us to have worked for the first time with the esteemed Channel 4 team.”
A four-part drama that will be distributed by Fremantle, Wrong Move is billed as a darkly comic thriller that Gwawr Lloyd, interim head of drama at the broadcaster, says “captures the pressure of moving house and reveals the hidden lives of both the vendors and the buyers. It cleverly exposes just how high the stakes can be within the property chain and how much of a roller coaster the process becomes for our characters. It’s such a smart and entertaining premise for a show and we’re very excited to be working with Ben Edwards and the Roughcut team.”
Alex Smith, creative director at Roughcut, added, “Wrong Move takes the seemingly ordinary world of the property chain and reveals the power, ambition and human cost beneath it. Channel 4 is the ideal partner for this thrilling new series from Ben Edwards’ brilliant mind and we are very excited to work with them and continue growing Roughcut’s slate of hit dramas.”
Wrong Move begins filming in the spring.
Close to Home has been commissioned from Element Pictures, a Fremantle company. Author Magee will lead the adaptation. ” “Developing Close to Home for television has been an intensely fulfilling creative experience, a dream come true, really, and I’m incredibly grateful to Michael Dawson and Clare Dwyer Hogg for all the work they’ve done with me on the scripts, and to Diarmuid Goggins and Gemma Boswell and the whole team at Element and Channel 4 for the passion and creative energy they’ve put into bringing this story to life,” he said.
Gemma Boswell, commissioner editor for Channel 4, said, “It is a privilege to bring Mick’s award-winning novel to Channel 4. Close To Home explores the emotionally rich landscape of West Belfast through the eyes of Sean, played by the fantastic Anthony Boyle. We’re delighted to showcase Mick’s beautiful writing with this timely and evocative story of a young generation finding their place in the world.”
Filmed with support from Northern Ireland Screen and Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland and filming soon in Belfast, it will be sold worldwide by Fremantle.
