Broadcast Magazine – 22 August 2019

broadcastnow.co.uk 23 August 2019 | Broadcast | 27

A capital place for TV production

Cardiff has become a major centre for UK drama since the Tardis first landed –

and with everyone pulling together, it can grow in factual too, says Clare Hudson

B

ehind an aspidistra plant at London’s

Langham Hotel is an odd place

for history to be made – especially

Welsh history – but it was there, with my

boss Menna Richards, then director of

BBC Wales, that I sat down to tea with

the inimitable Julie Gardner. Our discreet

meeting was to discuss what she could do

if she came to run drama at BBC Wales.

She did come, she brought Russell T Davies

with her and the magic began.

Doctor Who landed in Wales, and s/he

is still here. Casualty moved across the

bridge from Bristol to Cardiff, and shows

like Torchwood, Sherlock and Being Human

were invented here.

When the BBC started to build new drama

studios in the city, some even called it a

“drama village”. Davies always warned

against that, saying: “We’ve got to think

bigger; never let people underestimate us.”

The transformation from production back-

water to a major UK drama centre was the

result of that refusal to accept the withering

opinions of others, as well as the combination

of stellar talent, dogged hard work and

strategic vision. Government at both city

and country level has also played a key part.

There is now a wealth of excellent

programmes across a range of genres being

made in the city and the industry is a major

employer. The hugely talented but unruly

teenager that was the Cardiff creative sector

10 years ago is all grown up.

Bad Wolf, the production company set up

by Gardner and Jane Tranter, is busy making

His Dark Materials – one of the biggest

dramas ever made in the UK. Boom has just

made its first network drama, 15 Days, for

Channel 5. Set in rural Wales with a largely

Welsh cast and crew, the series builds on the

indie’s existing slate of factual and children’s

shows. A clutch of indies, new and old, are

making their mark in factual on UK and

international audiences.

But it isn’t just the scale of production

that’s changed: indies here are now taking a

longer view and building partnerships with

the public sector, rather than just scrambling

to win commissions.

Everyone has learned from setbacks as well

as successes. Last year, the city went all out to

win the coveted Channel 4 ‘creative hub’

status. Cardiff Council put its weight behind

the bid and brought together the whole sector –

broadcasters, indies, the Welsh government

and higher education – to create a compelling

proposal. It was a blow when the bid didn’t

win, but the council realised this collaboration

was too valuable to ditch.

Now the steering group, chaired by council

leader Huw Thomas, is tackling issues like

talent – including the challenge of fostering a

diverse workforce – and the development of

scale in the factual arena. Partnership with

Bristol is a key focus, and the group is keen to

help C4 deliver on its promise that Cardiff

will benefit from the Bristol Creative Hub.

Tranter said in her recent RTS Cymru

Lecture that indies and government must

work together more strategically to develop

the talent and skills that the industry needs.

And she has put her money where her mouth

is – Bad Wolf founded Screen Alliance Wales,

which aims to create training opportunities

for young people in South Wales. Broadcasters

too are getting more organised: BBC Wales,

C4 and S4C are co-funding a new scheme to

help strong factual producers make the all-

important leap to being showrunners.

Excellent talent pipelines are key to

delivering the ambition shared by indies and

public bodies in Cardiff – for Wales to get

a greater, and fairer, share of commissions

from broadcasters and to bring more

authentic voices and stories from Wales

to screens across the UK.

We know there is something in the DNA

here that will continue to make great things

happen – the buccaneering spirit that Davies

and Gardner ignited when they brought the

Tardis to Wales. n

➤^ Clare Hudson is a freelance executive^

producer and was formerly head of

productions at BBC Wales

His Dark Materials: Welsh indie

Bad Wolf is making the BBC and

HBO drama

PROMOTIONAL FEATURE

There is now a wealth of excellent

programmes across a range of

genres being made in the city and

the industry is a major employer. The

hugely talented but unruly teenager

that was the Cardiff creative sector

10 years ago is all grown up

Contact Ruth Cayford, Cardiff Council

Creative Industries and Culture Manager

Email [email protected]

Tel 029 2233 0977