Written by Ben Richards (The Tunnel) and directed by Zara Hayes (Poms), Showtrial follows Talitha Campbell (Celine Buckens, Warrior), the estranged daughter of a wealthy property developer who is charged with conspiring to murder fellow university student Hannah Ellis.
Scandal shows the dark side of politics, the shady backdoor deals, selfish betrayals and hurtful lies.
Watch Jed Mercurio in conversation with William Gallagher as he talks about the upcoming series of Line of Duty, adapting on set to the pandemic, and shares his advice on how to write drama for TV.
In post-production, she mimics the actors’ steps and actions – and, for the BBC thriller, the gruesome murders – to add authenticity to the sound. Her craft is named after Jack Foley, who pioneered performing effects live and in sync with the pictures on early Hollywood talkies.
What does the job involve?
Set in contemporary London, the six-part series portrays the death-defying and life-saving work of the Metropolitan Police Bomb Disposal Squad, also known as “Expo”.
A summer terrorist campaign wreaks havoc on the capital, and it’s up to Expo to defuse a series of improvised explosive devices.
Vicky McClure (Line of Duty) plays the experienced but reckless operative Lana Washington. As Lana begins to suspect her unit is the bomber’s true target, she sets out on a desperate search for proof and the bomber’s identity.
Adapted by Emer Kenny (Save Me Too) from Val McDermid’s novel The Distant Echo, the drama will follow a young Scottish female detective in the picturesque university town of St. Andrew’s.
While she may not be the type of unorthodox, slick copper who rises effortlessly through the ranks, the refreshingly normal Karen’s quick thinking and silver tongue lands her a promotion to Police Scotland’s Historical Cases Unit.
More than 350 people attended a series of workshops, masterclasses and panel events run by industry professionals from across the creative sector.
BBC Studios talent manager Julie Forbes and BBC NI senior resourcing advisor Nicola McConville ran a CV masterclass. The duo offered advice on how to break into the competitive TV and film industries, and gave one-to-one “creative clinics” to hone interview skills and CVs. Their tips included: “Never send the same CV twice – get to know the companies around you.”
Melvyn Bragg was talking at a special live edition of The South Bank Show, featuring four of the UK’s leading TV writers – Jed Mercurio (writer and creator of hit police corruption thriller Line of Duty); Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith (black comedy anthology Inside No. 9); and Heidi Thomas (period drama Call the Midwife) – discussing their craft.
It’s 4pm on a Friday afternoon, a time of the week when most of us are preparing to wind down the working week. Not Gurinder Chadha, co-creator and director of ITV’s new period drama, Beecham House, otherwise known as “Downton in Delhi”.
She’s at work in a Soho edit suite, putting the finishing touches to another project, her latest movie, Blinded by the Light. The film is based on journalist and broadcaster Sarfraz Manzoor’s memoir, Greetings from Bury Park.
In 2018, BBC iPlayer received requests for 3.6 billion programmes throughout the year.
Among the top ten requested shows per series included Bodyguard, Killing Eve, McMafia, Doctor Who, Keeping Faith, The Cry, Dynasties, Our Girl, Bing and MOTD Live.
“In 2018 we saw people who use iPlayer increasing the amount of time that they spend watching programmes on it,” said Dan McGolpin, Controller of Programming for the BBC.
