The 2022 London Screenings (March 1-4) unfold next week in a capital where COVID-19 restrictions have just been removed entirely, and buyers from all around the world are expected to attend in person and virtually to acquire the best of British and international programming. All the major distributors have a plethora of content to offer across genres and formats, and a series of screenings, meetings and events are taking place both in-person and online.
Variety has surveyed the goods from international distributors including Banijay Rights, Fremantle, Entertainment One, Endeavor Content, BBC Studios, Blue Ant International, DCD Rights, Passion Distribution, Studiocanal, All3Media International, ITV Studios, TVF International, Boss Nova, Rabbit Films, Warner Bros. and more. Here are 20 buzzy titles sure to whet buyers’ appetites:
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"Secrets of Royal Gardens"
Image Credit: Passion Distribution Narrated by “Downton Abbey” actor Hugh Bonneville, this four-part series goes behind the scenes of iconic royal residences, including Sandringham, Highgrove, Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and more to reveal their wildlife and centuries-old history, alongside some royal horticultural hot tips.
Distributor: Passion Distribution
Broadcaster/Platform: More 4 (U.K.)
Episode order: 4 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K. -
"Rain: The Untold Story"
Image Credit: TVF International The factual series delves into the science of rain, humankind’s evolving cultural relationship with rain and future solutions for the global lack of freshwater.
Distributor: TVF International
Broadcaster/Platform: BBC Alba (Scotland), TG4 (Ireland), LIC (China)
Episode order: 3 x 60′
Rights available: Worldwide excl. Ireland, U.K. and Greater China -
"Murder First On Scene"
Image Credit: Boss Nova The U.S. and U.K.’s most notorious murder investigations are told through the eyes of the professionals in this series that’s about to be reordered.
Distributor: Bossa Nova
Broadcaster/Platform: CBS Reality (U.K.)
Episode order: 10 x 60′
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K. -
"Rat in the Kitchen"
Image Credit: ITV Studios A whodunnit cooking format and a game of high stakes cat and mouse where viewers get to play detective and a mix of professional chefs and home cooks compete in a series of cooking challenges. They earn cash for every dish that impresses the judges, but they will have to prevent the meddling of an undercover mole (the Rat).
Distributor: ITV Studios
Broadcaster/Platform: TBS (U.S.)
Episode order: 10 x 60′
Rights available: N/A -
"Parental Guidance"
Image Credit: Fremantle An explosive social experiment that follows 10 sets of parents with differing parenting styles.
Distributor: Fremantle
Broadcaster/Platform: Nine (Australia)
Episode order: N/A
Rights available: Worldwide excl. Australia. -
"Starstruck"
Image Credit: Banijay Rights Members of the public team up to transform into some of the world’s biggest music icons, from Tina Turner to Freddie Mercury.
Distributor: Banijay Rights
Broadcaster/Platform: ITV (U.K.)
Episode order: 7 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K. -
"Prince Charles’ Grand Green Design"
Image Credit: Blue Ant International An exclusive inside look at a secret project that Prince Charles has been working on for over a decade — the purchase and restoration of Dumfries House, a rundown estate in one of the most deprived parts of the U.K., with the goal of instilling hope and pride to a community.
Distributor: Blue Ant International
Broadcaster/Platform: ITV (U.K.)
Episode order: 1 x 60′
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K. -
"Vanishing Act"
Image Credit: DCD Rights The story of a high-roller who allegedly embezzled over $20 million before disappearing into thin air.
Distributor: DCD Rights
Broadcaster/Platform: Nine (Australia)
Episode order: 3 x 45’ / 1 x 75’ & 1 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. Australia -
"Chivalry"
Image Credit: Channel 4 Steve Coogan and Sarah Solemani write and star in a drama that skewers and satirizes the complex state of contemporary sexual politics.
Distributor: BBC Studios
Broadcaster/Platform: Channel 4 (U.K.)
Episode order: 6 x 30’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K. -
"Life After Life"
Image Credit: BBC/House Productions/Nick Wall An adaptation of Kate Atkinson’s bestselling novel, where a person lives and dies in different circumstances only to be reborn into a new, alternative iteration of life once more, with a cast that includes Thomasin McKenzie (“Last Night in Soho”) and Sian Clifford (“Fleabag”).
Distributor: BBC Studios
Broadcaster/Platform: BBC (U.K.)
Episode order: 4 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K. -
"The Holiday"
Image Credit: All3Media International The thriller based on the bestselling novel by T.M. Logan, follows Kate, who makes a discovery while on holiday that leaves her questioning whether her husband Sean is having an affair and that the other woman is one of her best friends — but the stakes are higher than she imagined.
Distributor: All3Media International
Broadcaster/Platform: Channel 5 (U.K.), acquired by Viaplay (Nordics)
Episode order: 4 x 60′
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K., Nordics. -
"Mobile 101"
Image Credit: Rabbit Films Based on true events, the series details the close calls and the uncertain first steps of a small Finnish electronics company becoming a global titan of the mobile phone industry.
Distributor: Rabbit Films
Broadcaster/Platform: CMore (Sweden) + MTV3 Finland
Episode order: 6 x 50′
Rights available: Worldwide, excl. first SVOD window in Nordics and Baltics -
"After the Trial"
Image Credit: Entertainment One A crime drama about four very different people who meet on jury duty as part of a murder trial. As they return to their normal lives, they wonder if the young woman they’ve declared not guilty is actually a killer.
Distributor: Entertainment One
Broadcaster/Platform: Nine (Australia)
Episode order: 6 x 60′
Rights available: Worldwide excl. Australia. -
"Infiniti"
Image Credit: Empreinte Digitale - Federation Entertainment Belgique - Viktoriya Abramova On the International Space Station, a French astronaut forms an unlikely partnership with a Kazakh cop to unofficially investigate the unusual death of an American astronaut.
Distributor: Studiocanal
Broadcaster/Platform: Canal Plus (France)
Episode order: 6 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excluding territories granted to Canal Plus in French-speaking Europe. -
"Marie Antoinette"
Image Credit: Banijay Rights The story of the modern and avant-garde young queen, barely 14 when she left Austria to marry the Dauphin of France, who grows from a stubborn young princess navigating the rules of the French court to a fashion icon.
Distributor: Banijay Rights
Broadcaster/Platform: Canal Plus (France), pre-bought by BBC (U.K.)
Episode order: 8 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K. and Canal Plus French speaking territories. -
"The Big D"
Image Credit: Warner Bros. A dating competition series following recent divorcees as they search for romance in paradise with one catch – their exes will be along for the journey.
Distributor: Warner Bros.
Broadcaster/Platform: TBS (U.S.)
Episode order: 10 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.S. -
"Litvinenko"
Image Credit: Courtesy of Everett Collection David Tennant (“Doctor Who”) plays Alexander Litvinenko, a former Russian spy, Kremlin critic and British citizen who is poisoned — and the evidence points to President Vladimir Putin. The timing of this true crime drama could be tough for buyers given the current political situation.
Distributor: ITV Studios
Broadcaster/Platform: ITV (U.K.)
Episode order: 4 X 60′
Rights available: N/A -
"The Twelve"
Image Credit: Endeavor Content The English-language adaptation of a Belgian series is a courtroom drama starring Sam Neill that tells the story of 12 ordinary people who are selected for jury duty in a murder trial as traumatizing as it is controversial.
Distributor: Endeavor Content
Broadcaster/Platform: Foxtel (Australia)
Episode order: 10 x 60′
Rights available: Worldwide excl. Australia -
"Frozen Planet II"
Image Credit: BBC Studios Eleven years after the successful first series, “Frozen Planet” returns with a journey through magical icy lands.
Distributor: BBC Studios
Broadcaster/Platform: BBC One (U.K.)
Episode order: 6 x 60’
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K., U.S., China, Germany, France. -
"This Sceptred Isle"
Image Credit: Courtesy of Fremantle The tale of some of the most devastating events to ever befall the United Kingdom, and of a prime minister leading in unprecedented times.
Distributor: Fremantle
Broadcaster/Platform: Sky (U.K.)
Episode order: 5 x 60
Rights available: Worldwide excl. U.K., Germany and Italy.