News

‘Call The Midwife’ Renewed For Seasons 14 & 15 By BBC

Hit drama Call The Midwife will remain on the BBC for at least another three years following its latest double series order. Ratings for the Sunday night hit have continued to be strong throughout its lengthy run and an eight-part 14th and 15th have now been commissioned along with Christmas specials. Following a group of midwifes in mid-20th century London, Call the Midwife from Heidi Thomas and Neal Street has consistently been one of the BBC’s top-rated dramas over a decade-long period. It airs on PBS in the U.S. BBC Drama Director Lindsay Salt praised the returner’s “enduring popularity thanks to extraordinary creative talent and hard work.” Series 12 will wrap in two Sunday’s time and production on series 13 commences in the Spring.

Banijay & Laliga Form Laliga Studios

Laliga Studios has launched in Spain – a sport content company...

Exclusive: Former Disney exec David Levine is exiting kids entertainment powerhouse Moonbug Entertainment, Deadline has learned. The well-liked exec has been Head of Studios since December 2020.

London- and LA-based Moonbug launched in 2018 and quickly made a name for itself after its Little Baby Bum series became a YouTube sensation, with Levine hired two years later to expand its brands. These also include YouTube and Netflix hit CoComelon and Blippi.

Moonbug confirmed his exit in a statement to Deadline: “We thank David for his dedication and hard work leading Moonbug Studios through a period of significant growth.”

According to a LinkedIn post, Levine is now exiting to “explore new areas” and was “looking forward to new adventures.”

Levine is best known for a 16-year spell at Disney as Vice President of Media Networks and Content in Europe and Africa, during which time he oversaw local children’s channels, commissioned and developed the Emmy-nominated Evermoor,...

Exclusive: Netflix has cancelled YA skating drama Zero Chill after one series.

The 10-parter from All3Media-owned Lime Pictures, which has also produced three series of Netflix YA drama Free Rein and is behind upcoming Netflix non-scripted format Dance Monsters, dropped on the platform in March 2021, having been filmed in Sheffield, UK.

A Lime spokeswoman said: “There are currently no plans for a second series of Zero Chill. We are very proud of the show we made and its global success. Sheffield was a wonderful place to film in and we hope to return to the city with future projects.”

The series followed 15-year-old figure skater Kayla, whose life was up-ended from Canada to the UK when her twin brother received a place at a legendary hockey academy. Distraught at her parents’ decision to put her brother’s ambitions before her own, Kayla found her place on the ice again...

The forthcoming Addams Family TV series, Wednesday, has added 10 more faces to its cast.

The latest wave of cast members includes Thora Birch and Jamie Mc Shane.

Also joining the cast is Riki Lindhome, Hunter Doohan, Georgie Farmer, Moosa Mostafa, and Emma Myers.

They are joined by Naomi J. Ogawa (Skylin3s), Joy Sunday, and Percy Hynes White.

It was previously announced the series would be toplined by Jenna Ortega, while Catherine Zeta-Jones (Prodigal Son) was on board as Morticia Addams and Luis Guzmán as Gomez Addams.

Scroll down to find out who the new additions will be playing:

- Hunter Doohan will play Tyler Galpin. A townie who strikes up an unlikely friendship with Wednesday Addams. Tyler has a troubled relationship with his father, the local sheriff.

- Georgie Farmer will play Ajax Petropolus. A student at Nevermore Academy who also happens to be a Gorgon. Awkward and shy,...

Exclusive: Netflix is rounding out its cast for Wednesday, Tim Burton’s live-action Addams Family series, adding 10 series regulars. Joining Jenna Ortega, who stars in the titular Wednesday Addams role, are Thora Birch, Riki Lindhome, Jamie McShane, Hunter Doohan, Georgie Farmer, Moosa Mostafa, Emma Myers, Naomi J. Ogawa (Skylin3s), Joy Sunday and Percy Hynes White. In addition to Ortega, they join Catherine Zeta-Jones as matriarch Morticia Addams and Luis Guzmán who appears as Gomez Addams.

The coming-of-age comedy, written by Smallville creators Al Gough and Miles Millar and to be directed by Burton, is a sleuthing, supernaturally infused mystery charting Wednesday Addams’ (Ortega) years as a student at Nevermore Academy.

Exclusive: Ben Radcliffe (Pandora) is set for a recurring role opposite Sienna Miller and Michelle Dockery in Anatomy of a Scandal, Netflix’s six-part anthology series based on Sarah Vaughan’s bestselling novel, from Big Little Lies creator David E. Kelley, former House of Cards showrunner Melissa James Gibson, Liza Chasin’s 3dot Productions and Bruna Papandrea’s Made Up Stories.

Anatomy of a Scandal tells the story of a scandal among the British privileged elite and the women caught up in its wake.

Radcliffe will play Young James (Older James is played by Rupert Friend).

Kelley and Gibson will write, showrun and executive produce with S.J. Clarkson, who also directs, along with Chasin for 3dot and Papandrea, Steve Hutensky and Allie Goss for Made Up Stories. Vaughan and Margaret Chernin are co-executive producers.

Radcliffe just wrapped a leading regular role on the CW’s Pandora. He recently filmed Nightflyers,...

Jordan Loughran has been preparing for her role on Raised by Wolves her whole life: A science fiction fan since childhood, the London-born actress is very comfortable with futuristic worlds, having starred on recent Sff series Emerald City and Evermoor. When prepping to play Mithraic teenager Tempest on Ridley Scott’s far-future series, then, Loughran turned to an unusual but invaluable piece of reading material: the book Betrayal (on which the film Spotlight was based), which helped her dramatize Tempest’s loss of faith and subsequent losses of identity and community.

Tempest’s plotline is one of the series’ most sensitive, combining sexual assault (by a Mithraic cleric), teen pregnancy, and pro-life issues—the last because android caretaker Mother (Amanda Collin) will not allow abortion to even be considered. Traumatized and disillusioned by the church that was supposed to protect her, Tempest is forced to embrace her approaching fate as a mother,...

David Levine, Disney’s vice president of kids programming for the UK, Europe and Africa, is leaving at the end of June after a 16-year spell at the house of mouse.

Diego Londono, executive vice president of media networks and content in Europe and Africa, announced Levine’s departure in an email to staff.

He is leaving to “pursue new opportunities in media” and will remain based in London, Londono said. Disney declined to offer any further details on Levine’s next venture.

In addition to overseeing Disney’s children’s channels in Europe and Africa, he commissioned and developed the Emmy-nominated Evermoor, as well as First Class Chefs, The Lodge and 101 Dalmatian Street.

“A truly international programming executive, David’s extensive breadth of experience, his unique perspective and spirit of teamwork, took our kids channels to a higher level and helped make Disney a leading and genre defining kids brand across Europe,...

Disney+ hit 50 million subscribers globally in early April, shortly after it finally launched in the UK and other regions, and while the platform has still got a way to go until it gets close to Netflix’s 167 million-strong base, it’s not a bad result so far for a streaming service that only originally got off the starting blocks in November, 2019.

We’ll be bringing you a neat list of everything coming to Disney+ UK every month here at Den of Geek, so you can get an idea of just what you’re paying for. If you haven’t taken the plunge yet, a look ahead at the coming month’s content might also be an indication of whether now might be the time to sign up or not!

In May, the service is celebrating Star Wars Day by making the closing part of Lucasfilm’s latest trilogy, The Rise of Skywalker,...

Disney+ is out with its list of everything new coming to the streaming service in May.

Highlights include “Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian,” a docuseries on the making of the beloved series, premiering on “Star Wars” Day, May 4. Plus, the final episodes of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” and Season 1 of Nat Geo Wild’s “Heartland Docs, Dvm,” which was recently renewed for Season 2.

Get the full list below.

May 1

Awesome Animals (S1)

Birth of Europe (S1)

Bride of Boogedy

Buried Secrets of the Bible with Albert Lin (S1)

Car Sos (S1 – S7)

Disney Kirby Buckets (S1-S3)

George of the Jungle

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey

Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco

How to Play Baseball

In Beaver Valley

Lost Treasures of Egypt (S1)

Love & Vets (S1)

Nature’s Half Acre

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Prairie Dog Manor (S1)

Primal Survivor (S1-S4)

Prowlers of the...

April is a little over halfway gone now, so it’s time to start looking forward to what’s coming up next month on your favorite streaming services. Speaking of which, the Mouse House has been knocking it out of the park with substantial monthly additions to their new Disney+ platform and May is looking to carry on that tradition quite nicely.

See below for the full list of content coming next month:

May 1st:

Awesome Animals (Season 1)

Be Our Chef (Episode 1-06)

Birth of Europe (Season 1)

Bride of Boogedy

Buried Secrets of the Bible with Albert Lin (Season 1)

Car Sos (Seasons 1-7)

Disney Family Sundays (Episode 1-26)

Disney Kirby Buckets (Seasons 1-3)

George of the Jungle

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey

Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco

How to Play Baseball

In Beaver Valley

Lost Treasures of Egypt (Season 1)

Love & Vets (Season 1)

Nature’s Half Acre

One Day At Disney...

Exclusive: The team behind Netflix’s Ya horse drama Free Rein is saddling up for another scripted teen series for the streamer.

The Svod service has commissioned Zero Chill from All3Media-backed Lime Pictures.

The ten-part series follows 15-year old figure skater Kayla, whose life is up-ended from Canada to the UK when her twin brother Mac gets a place at a legendary hockey academy. Distraught at her parents’ decision to put her brother’s ambitions before her own, Kayla must find her place on the ice again in the shadow of her superstar brother.

Zero Chill was created by Doc Martin and Free Rein writers Kirstie Falkous and John Regier and the writers’ room is overseen by Ackley Bridge writer Adam Usden. Angelo Abela (Free Rein) and Tim Compton (The Evermoor Chronicles), who run Lime Pictures’ kids division, exec produce.

It stars newcomers Grace Beedie, who also has a...

Priscilla Quintana has been cast as the lead in the CW’s upcoming summer sci-fi series “Pandora.”

Other series regulars include Oliver Dench (“Ride”), Raechelle Bano (“Home and Away”), John Harlan Kim (“The Librarians”), Ben Radcliffe (“The Evermoor Chronicles”), Benita Sandhu (“October”), Martin Bobb-Semple (“Free Rein”) and Noah Huntley (“28 Days Later”).

Mark A. Altman and Steve Kriozere, Thomas P. Vitale, Karine Martin, and Chris Philip are executive producers.

Production has begun in Bulgaria, though the premiere date is still unknown.

Exclusive: Priscilla Quintana (Traffik) is set as the lead in Pandora, the CW’s upcoming summer sci-fi action series, from Mark A. Altman and Steve Kriozere’s (ABC’s Castle) Radioactive Fishtank, Vital Signs Entertainment and Starlings Television. Rounding out the series regular cast are Oliver Dench (Ride), Raechelle Bano (Home and Away), John Harlan Kim (The Librarians), Ben Radcliffe (The Evermoor Chronicles), Benita Sandhu (October), Martin Bobb-Semple (Free Rein) and Noah Huntley. Production is underway in Bulgaria. A premiere date has not yet been set.

Set in the year 2199, Pandora centers on Jax (aka Pandora), played by Quintana, a resourceful young woman who has lost everything after the death of her parents but finds a new life at Earth’s Space Training Academy where she and her friends learn to defend the Galaxy from threats, both alien and human. When secrets about the nature of...

Several industry executives have joined the BFI’s newly-launched pilot fund for children’s programming.

Several industry executives have joined the BFI’s newly-launched £57m pilot fund for children’s programming.

The BBC’s John Knowles and Hesham Sabry and Disney Channel Emea’s Harriet Williams are among six hires at the Young Audiences Content Fund (Yacf), which officially launched yesterday and is now open for applications.

Knowles will be the Yacf’s executive – production, while Williams takes on the same post in a development capacity. Sabry will be business affairs executive.

The other hires comprise Gill Biddle as project manager,...

Several industry executives have joined the BFI’s newly-launched pilot fund for children’s programming.

Several industry executives have joined the BFI’s newly-launched £57m pilot fund for children’s programming.

The BBC’s John Knowles and Hesham Sabry and Disney Channel Emea’s Harriet Williams are among six hires at the Young Audiences Content Fund (Yacf), which officially launched yesterday and is now open for applications.

Knowles will be the Yacf’s executive – production, while Williams takes on the same post in a development capacity. Sabry will be business affairs executive.

The other hires comprise Gill Biddle as project manager,...

Hat Hair Casting Breakdown

Summary

Hat Hair is an exciting new global TV series about two young American sisters

who embark on a summer in the UK and the trials and tribulations of their

new adventure – including friendships, boys and horse riding!

Hat Hair is being produced by Lime Pictures for a major international

streaming service.

Actors must have strong horse riding skills, and be over the age 16 with an onscreen playing age 13/14.

We are casting all ethnicities for these roles.

Please note: Series regular roles will require future options.

Production details

Production dates (eg. shoot, rehearsals): 8th August for 3 months

Production location: UK

Pay category: Equity

Executive Producer: Rebecca Hodgson (Evermoor, Rocket’s Island, Good Cop).

Producer: Angelo Abela (House of Anubis).

Company: Lime Pictures for Major International Streaming Service

Casting details

Casting Directors: Rob Kelly and Kerrie Mailey

Casting location: UK and Us

Casting details: We...

Disney Channel UK premieres its new, live-action fantasy series, The Evermoor Chronicles, Monday, November 9, 2015. The show is a spin-off of the Evermoor mini-series, which aired on Disney Channel UK; the Us Disney Channel; Canada's Family Channel; and Disney Channel Australia and New Zealand, in 2014. The Evermoor Chronicles is the first Disney series shot entirely in UK. The series focuses on Tara Crossley and her family, who have just moved to the village of Evermoor. Dwelling in Evermoor are the Everines -- mystical women who can predict and affect the future, weaving their tapestry -- and Tara is one. Tara just wants a normal life, but dark forces are threatening to destroy Evermoor.

The Evermoor Chronicles features Naomi Sequoia as Tara; George Sear as Sebastian Crossley; Georgia Lock as Bella Crossley; Finney Cassidy as Cameron; Jordan Loughran as Sorsha Doyle; Sammy...

Cbbc's online and interactive drama Dixi is set to return for a 3rd series. Claudia Jessie, April Hughes, Kerry Boyne and Jordan Loughran (hot from the set of Disney’s live action series Evermoor) are all returning, along with two new cast members:

Chloe May Cuthill (represented by Debbie Allen Associates), has previously appeared in Eastenders and The Midnight Beast and has recently filmed the feature Reason To Leave. She will play Zoe in the new series.

And also joining the cast is Shaquille Ali-Yebuah. Shaquille (represented by Identity Agency Group) has previously appeared in features Legacy and Social Suicide as well as the Radio 4 sitcom What Does The K Stand For?

This new series' plot sees the arrival of a new online menace as the gang are thrown together with a rival set of students to put on a showcase. The anonymous troll is determined to stop the show...

The Disney Channel has announced that it will produce a 22-part series of The Evermoor Chronicles, a live-action drama about a teenage girl who moves from the Us to start a new life in the spooky Evermoor Manor.

The four episode miniseries Evermoor, proved to be a ratings hit when it launched on Disney Channel UK last October. The four-parter attracted over 1.6 million viewers, making it Disney Channel UK’s second highest rated series.

Naomi Sequeira, a Disney Channel Australia graduate, will return as lead character Tara Crossley and the series, which explores “themes of teen friendship, family and romance, against the backdrop of a strange and mysterious world”, will continue to follow her adventures and her search to uncover the mysteries of the founding Everines. The series will feature characters from the first series, which included Georgia Locke, Jordan Loughran, George Sear and Finney Cassidy, as well as introduce...