Celebrating three years since the BBC’s historic commitment to the North East – Director-General Tim Davie met with local leaders Kim McGuinness and Ben Houchen at the Darlington Hippodrome today (1 August 2024), to discuss the region’s future.
- The BBC and the North East Screen Partnership (NESIP) are celebrating the three-year anniversary of a five-year commitment.
- The partnership has created 293 local jobs to date, contributed £18.6m of value to the region*, and is on track to create a £50m a year production sector in the area by 2027.
- Event to mark the anniversary in Darlington attended by Sara Davies (Dragons’ Den), Charlotte Crosby and Vicky Pattison, and Mayors Kim McGuiness and Ben Houchen.
- The BBC is on track to exceed their target investment of £25m in the North East by 2026.
- The BBC shared first-look images of brand-new series The Big Idea Works – presented by Sara Davies and made by Gateshead-based TwentySix03.
- Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes set to return for a third series – produced by North East-based Signpost Entertainment and Rivers Meet Productions.
- Brand-new comedy Smoggie Queens and CBBC’s The Dumping Ground are currently filming in the region.
The event, which marked three years since the BBC first signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the North East Screen Partnership (NESIP) as part of its Across the UK plan, was also attended by Dragons’ Den star Sara Davies, Charlotte Crosby, Vicky Pattison, and major North East based production companies. Other guests included Dani Harmer, Jill Halfpenny, Kema Kay, Steven Moore, and Carol Malia.
Yesterday, Tim Davie also visited the set of CBBC’s The Dumping Ground – which is filmed in Hexham, Northumberland, and employs local talent at all levels of production. The Dumping Ground’s trainee scheme has seen over 80 participants take part from the region, securing a pipeline of local creative talent.
It was also announced that Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes would return for a third series. Made and produced in the North East by the locally-based Signpost Entertainment and Rivers Meet Productions, Robson will once again explore the wonderful coast and countryside of the North – joined this time by presenter Helen Skelton, former world champion boxer Nicola Adams, and comedian Rosie Jones. The series will continue to showcase the unbeaten tracks around Northumberland, County Durham, North Yorkshire, and the Lakes.
Brand-new BBC series The Big Idea Works, featuring Dragons’ Den star Sara Davies, also revealed a first-look image. Made by Gateshead based company TwentySix03, Sara will open a “one-stop ideas workshop” in the North East for aspiring inventors to transform their ideas into wonderful working prototypes. TwentySix03 are also making Joanna Page’s Wild Life for BBC Two which has just finished filming in Surrey. Joanna Page has a passion for animal welfare and will take audiences on her journey as she takes steps towards qualifying as an Animal Care Assistant (ACA).
Since the MOU was signed in 2021, the BBC has worked closely with its North East partners to boost “homegrown storytelling” from the region – providing key funding for production, employment, and the development of the area’s media industry. This included additional funding for North East Screen, and was part of the BBC’s Across the UK programme – to better reflect, represent, and serve all parts of the UK.
The BBC is comfortably on track to surpass its initial target to invest £25m before 2026. The BBC’s latest comedy Smoggie Queens, written by and starring local actor Phil Dunning, is currently filming in Middlesbrough and stars Mark Benton, Alexandra Mardell, Patsy Lowe, and Elijah Young. Set in Teesside, the programme will showcase the region’s LGBTQ+ community, and received funding from the North East Production Fund (NEPF) – managed by North East Screen.
To date the BBC partnership has contributed £18.6m GVA* in the region and created around 293 full time jobs. So far, the total amount of production spend has increased around 89% and significantly boosted the overall number of filming days (a 78% increase).
The BBC’s work with NESIP has been part of a wider growth of the North East’s production sector – with major companies Fulwell 73, Northern Child, TwentySix03, and Chatterbox all relocating to the North East and facilitated new collaborations and companies emerging (Signpost Entertainment and Rivers Meet Productions, Schnoobert Productions). True North and Run VT Production houses are investing in a brand-new bases, and new production studios are currently underway in Hartlepool and Sunderland.
The BBC has supported new and emerging North East based production companies win paid scripted comedy developments (Schnoobert Productions, Sea and Sky Pictures, Motif, Candle and Bell), scripted comedy audio commissions (Candle and Bell, Motif), and their first broadcast unscripted commissions. These include a commission for BBC One series Our Lives (Wander Films) and Morning Live inserts (Wander Films, Sea and Sky Pictures, and Second Draft). In addition, Hat Trick productions, Tiger Aspect and Film Nation are all supporting indigenous talent development.
In the last three years, the BBC has also brought events to the North East, like The BBC Festival of Proms which returned to Sage Gateshead earlier this month; the BBC 2024 Reith Lecture in Sunderland; making Newcastle Upon Tyne the first BBC City of Comedy in 2022 with three days of live events and regional partnership scheme; and with BBC One’s crime-drama Boat Story (2023) being partially filmed and set in the region.
The BBC also launched a brand-new product and technology hub at its recently refurbished Newcastle base and have already recruited over 60 new roles, with further growth planned this year. Additionally, the BBC established a dedicated online news service for Wearside in January 2024.
Tim Davie, BBC Director-General, says: “The BBC is proud to play a part in this landmark commitment to the North East. By boosting investment, allocating the right resources, and moving people outside of London – we’re making sure that authentic, home-grown stories from this amazing region are being told. It is our mission to bring people together and make sure the BBC continues to serve and reflect audiences from across the UK. We’re committed to our vision of supporting the North East’s vibrant media industry for the future.”
Alison Gwynn, Chief Executive of North East Screen, said: “The landmark BBC partnership was a substantial catalyst for the growth the screen industry in the North East. Over the past two years production has grown by 86% making our region the fastest growing in the UK. We have welcomed home grown and inward productions from the BBC, ITV, C4, Sky, Netflix, and Amazon, as well as major feature films. We have generated £12.7m of GVA (calculated by Saffery Champness on behalf of NE Screen) and secured regional jobs equivalent to 264 FTEs.
The BBC has played a key role in giving broadcasters confidence in our production companies, talent, regional-based crew, our world-class locations, and the business-winning supply chain companies based here.
With growing strength in our local production companies and infrastructure, and studio developments already underway, we will continue the delivering alongside our partners to ensure the North East has a sustainable screen industry that will see global content produced in the region all year long.”
North East Mayor Kim McGuinness says: “Our North East has been the backdrop for iconic TV shows and films, and talent and creativity runs through our DNA as a region. Work by the BBC and North East Screen has helped kick start a renaissance in local production, job creation and investment in the North East’s screen industry. However, this is just the start. As Mayor I want to go further – so our region and talent is seen on screens across the globe. Just this week, I approved £25 million investment to begin work on the Crown Works Studios, which will create world-class film and TV production facilities in Sunderland. This will help make our area the home of real opportunity, ending the days where people have to leave the North East to pursue a career in creative industries.”
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen says: “Our region has fantastic locations, amazing talent, and huge potential as a centre for TV and film making – so it has been great to see the development of new shows in our area as part of this growing partnership with the BBC.
“We are building a growing reputation as a place where opportunities in the creative and digital sectors are thriving. This is why the expansion of the BBC in places such as Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool is so important as it not only shows off the best of our area but provides long-term careers for local people in well-paid skilled industries.”
Robson Green says: “I’m having the best time filming series 3 of ‘Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes’ with friends, family, and familiar faces. Once again, we take roads less travelled to a multitude of hidden gems that showcase the North in all its glory and we remind ourselves that we can seek serenity right on our doorstep, creating a wonderful comfort blanket for the soul. For me, it’s the best series yet!”
Sara Davies says: “Having just finished filming The Big Idea Works with TwentySix03, I can tell you first-hand that the creative and production power of the North East is second to none. The BBC’s commitment to the region is a reflection of this wealth of talent, and long may it continue. We have much more to offer and, thanks to relationships with people like North East Screen, the viewers will see this in action. We all know that television is a challenging industry, but my goodness – there is a great deal to recognise in the region, and we need to make sure that production talent is preserved, nurtured and supported.”
The BBC recently reasserted its commitment to backing homegrown British storytelling and bringing people across the UK together with iconic cultural moments.
By celebrating the MOU’s three-year anniversary and its current achievements, the BBC and its partners are ensuring that the North East’s growing legacy as a major entertainment producer is safeguarded for years to come.