At this year’s Steve Hewlett Memorial Lecture, former BBC Director-General Mark Thompson recounted a conversation he had had with Netflix CEO Reed Hastings in 2007, during discussions concerning the launch of the iPlayer. According to Thompson, Hastings told him: “I don’t know why you’re bothering, Mark, you’ll never beat my algorithm. Why not just give us all your content instead?”
Earlier, the RTS convention had been told that, as a brand, Netflix today enjoyed the same high levels of public trust as the BBC. As for the TikTok-using, mobile-addicted members of Generation Z, the BBC looked to be completely under the radar.
Now it was the time for Tony Hall, the BBC’s Director-General, to respond. He did so in a wide-ranging, troop-rallying speech, and argued that, in today’s age of uncertainty, characterised by propaganda and disinformation, the BBC and public service broadcasting were more important than ever.
What a difference two years makes. In 2017, Sky was one of the crown jewels of the vast Murdoch media empire, beloved by investors and publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange. Spool forward to 2019 and Sky is part of Comcast, the US cable conglomerate, which successfully outbid Disney to buy Europe’s biggest pay-TV provider for a staggering $39bn.
The eight-part series will air two episodes in a double bill every night starting on Monday 4th November, with the entire series available to stream on All 4 following premiere's double bill.
Jessica Barden reprises her role as mouthy and brazen runaway Alyssa, but the fate of James (Alex Lawther) is yet to be determined.
New images show Alyssa dressed as a bride outside a remote woodland café and in a diner uniform in the forest.
Powerhouse Helen Mirren takes on the role of longest-ruling female leader of Russia, Catherine II, in new four-part mini-series Catherine The Great.
The 80s inspired sci-fi show, created by the Duffer Brothers, follows the residents of Hawkins, Indiana, as they struggle to uncover truth behind a series of supernatural happenings occurring within their previously quiet town.
The new series tagline, ‘We’re not in Hawkins anymore’, suggests that Stranger Things will explore The Upside Down in a new location.
Giving the third Steve Hewlett Memorial Lecture at London’s Westminster University, he accused policy makers of largely concentrating “on tightening the funding pressure and other constraints on the BBC further” including “the disastrous withdrawal of funding free licence fees for the over 75’s” agreed in the 2016 Charter now coming into full effect.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings talks to Kirsty Wark about the investment in storytelling, production and talent which helps Netflix keep its crown as Queen of the SVoDs.
They join Tahar Rahim (The Looming Tower) who will play real life serial killer Charles Sobhraj, one of the most evasive criminals of the 20th century.
The series, written by Richard Warlow and Toby Finlay, follows Sobhraj’s murderous spree, which was estimated to have taken place between 1975 and 1976 across India, Thailand and Nepal’s ‘Hippie Trail’.
He was the chief suspect in almost 20 unsolved murders of young Western travellers during this time and by 1976 was Interpol’s most wanted man, with arrest warrants on three different continents.
