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ITV make some fantastic shows - but don't screen them!

And BBC productions for other broadcasters. (March 2005)

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BR
Brekkie
IIRC, BBC3's quite excellent Casanova is a co-production between RED, BBC Wales and "Granada" - i.e. ITV.

ITV, now in the guise of Granada, make some brilliant shows for other channels - ranging from Come Dine with Me and Countdown in the C4 daytime line-up to University Challenge and What the Papers Say during prime-time BBC2.

It's most famous production for the BBC is probably The Royle Family.


Obviously there is money to be made in this, but are ITV companies under any obligation to make programmes for other channels - and do HTV Wales still make programmes for S4C - and if so under what name.

Also, apart from for S4C, do the BBC make any programmes for other broadcasters?
NW
nwtv2003
One thing that I found surprising is the amount of documentaries that Granada (as in Granada Manchester and London) make for Channel 4 and Five, they come out with some good programmes too, just a shame they don't show them on ITV, it would be a nice bit of variety.

As for University Challenge, ITV had it for many years until 1987 when it was being shown at 10.00am on a Weekday morning after it used to be in Prime Time for many years, but the axe fell. Where as for 'What The Papers Say' that used to be on ITV late at night, then it got moved to Channel 4 in 1983 and I don't know when it moved to BBC Two.
SP
Spencer
Brekkie Boy posted:
Also, apart from for S4C, do the BBC make any programmes for other broadcasters?


There are quite a few BBC productions for UKTV... although as it's a joint BBC venture, that's not a surprise. The Christmas Day Queen's Speech is produced by either the BBC or ITN for all channels that take it. There are also quite a few co-productions such as Supervolcano which IIRC was made with the Discovery Channel.
IS
Inspector Sands
Brekkie Boy posted:
IIRC, BBC3's quite excellent Casanova is a co-production between RED, BBC Wales and "Granada" - i.e. ITV.



The reason behind this was explained by Russel T Davies in last Mondays Guardian:
http://media.guardian.co.uk/mediaguardian/story/0,7558,1431733,00.html
Quote:
It was originally meant for ITV ("who are lovely, I won't knock them, they've been very good to me") but it wanted a two-hour version rather than the three hours Davies had written. "They said they liked it, but they didn't believe that people would come back to it."

So, the scripts went to the BBC where Julie Gardner, the then new head of drama at BBC Wales with whom Davies has since worked on Doctor Who, championed its making. The corporation was keen but, on account of it being an idea of Michele Buck's at Granada, "an extraordinarily complicated contract" had to be drawn up naming her and Damien Timmer as executive producers along with Gardner and Davies. Then, it transpired that the only money available to make the drama was from a pot earmarked for regional independent producers.

And so, Davies was reunited with the Manchester-based Nicola Shindler and Red. "I had a great moment of phoning up Nicola, who reads everything I do anyway, and asking her if she wanted to make it. She was out walking by a reservoir with her baby. It was pure luck. Brilliant luck. So although it reads like a ridiculous list of executive producers [Shindler makes five], it wasn't a problem. We all loved it and we all wanted to make the same show."


It just bows down to who wants it. If one of Granada's production units comes up with an idea and ITV don't want it, then it goes elsewhere.
WE
Westy2
nwtv2003 posted:
Where as for 'What The Papers Say' that used to be on ITV late at night, then it got moved to Channel 4 in 1983 and I don't know when it moved to BBC Two.


Was it ever shown in the Midlands ITV area ?
TT
Thomas TV
Westy2 posted:
nwtv2003 posted:
Where as for 'What The Papers Say' that used to be on ITV late at night, then it got moved to Channel 4 in 1983 and I don't know when it moved to BBC Two.


Was it ever shown in the Midlands ITV area ?


Back in the 80s it was shown in the Thames, Granada, and probably also Tyne Tees regions I think. Whether it was shown on ATV (don't think it was on Central) I don't know.

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