RTS Futures turned the spotlight on TV’s diversity – or lack of it – at its final event of the year where a panel of young Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) talent revealed their struggles and triumphs in the industry.
The panel was drawn from Broadcast’s 26 BAME Hot Shots of 2015, which the magazine announced in August.
Sir Lenny Henry admitted he was unusually nervous before the Midlands premiere of his latest TV drama, because his family was in the audience.
Oh, noooo. The D word. Surely not Donald? No, not that D word – the other one. The one that makes your heart sink a little, too. The one that reminds you of years of struggle. The one that tells of endless meetings with fellow campaigners in drab rooms, banging heads against brick walls.
(Credit: BBC)
With no Christmas special on Christmas Day, Series 12 of Doctor Who kicks off on New Year’s Day.
Following his speech, in a Q&A with diversity campaigner and advertising executive Karen Blackett, Lenny Henry described the pace of change in the hiring of women and disabled and ethnic-minority people behind the screen as “glacial”. His point was reinforced by the findings of Ofcom’s latest diversity report, discussed in earlier Cambridge sessions.
The Dudley-born comedian sent a message to the awards. “Thank you for sending me these films to peruse, enjoy and, in some cases, spit out my tea with laughter,” he said.
“The hard work and perspiration that has gone into these little gems is very easy to see. The makers care about their films and filled each frame with emotion, enthusiasm and energy. I laughed a lot at the winning entry, but I was also moved by the other pieces.”
Four part series A Very British History will tell the stories of various communities around Britain, including the Jewish community in Leeds, Afro-Caribbeans in Birmingham, Ugandan Asians in Leicester and Romany Gypsies in the home counties.
Photojournalist Don McCullin will travel the country, capturing its diversity in Don McCullin: Looking for England. After sixty years as a photographer, 83 year-old McCullin will visit communities around the UK, from inner cities to seaside towns, and lets TV cameras inside his darkroom for the first time.
Speaking at an event at the Houses of Parliament earlier this week, RTS Fellow Lenny Henry criticised new Ofcom diversity targets which only focus on those in-front of the camera, saying that it would promote “fake diversity”.
In the speech, attended by members of parliament, the public and representatives of the broadcast industry, he argued that the regulator should also require the BBC to report on the number of BAME staff working behind the scenes.
Sir Lenny Henry’s production company, Douglas Road Productions, has acquired the broadcast rights to the novel which follows the story of nine-year-old Leon discovering a new family where he leasts expects it.
Told from Leon's point of view, My Name is Leon is a story of love, identity and loss, seeing the process of foster care and adult decisions through the eyes of a child in 1980s Britain.
