A pair of former BBC continuing drama execs have joined forces to launch a Birmingham-based scripted indie.
Mill Bay Media will specialise in low-tariff dramas with an emphasis on family-oriented drama and “cosy crime” in the mould of BBC shows such as daytime series Father Brown [pictured] and Shakespeare and Hathaway.
It has been founded by Ollie Kent, a former BBC head of continuing drama who oversaw EastEnders, Casualty, Holby City and Doctors, and Will Trotter, who previously ran the corporation’s Drama Village in Brimingham and was an executive producer on Doctors.
The pair plan to set up a model similar to Drama Village, working with a pool of local talent, setting up writers’ rooms and pairing junior writers with more experienced names throughout production.
The company is the first scripted label in 53 Degrees Global’s stable and will sit alongside unscripted labels Spun Gold, Penny Lane and Love Monday in its portfolio.
On their development slate is an adaptation of broadcaster Jeremy Vine’s novel Murder on Line One, which is eyed as a returning series.
