Broadcast: Talking TV

As TV budgets tighten, does ad-funded programming offer a potential solution? Production companies are increasingly bringing brands in at the inception of a show, and baking advertising in from the beginning in a bid to get projects off the ground. As revealed in today’s episode of Talking TV, ITV alone has jumped from 3 or 4 AFPs a year in 2023 to around 15 this year.

Pete Fergusson, co-founder and chief executive of startup ...

It’s all change in TV land as Channel 4 unveils its new director of programmes and the BBC selects its BBC News director. Marian McHugh and Ellie Kahn join Heather Fallon to discuss all the latest changes and what it means for the two organisations.

Then Heather heads to the Lycett Arms, to talk to the now-pub landlord and comedian Joe Lycett about his love for the chaos of live TV, the show's mishaps and his big pitch to prod...

Talking TV returns amid a major shake up at Channel 4, which is cutting more than a quarter of its workforce.

To break down exactly what is happening and how this will impact the industry at large, hosts Heather Fallon and Rebecca Cooney hand over to Broadcast’s resident experts on the matter, Marian McHugh and Chris Curtis to discuss.

The pair cover what the cuts will mean for the incoming director of programmes, how they will...

Join the Talking TV team on the ground at the EICC for what will be the final Edinburgh TV Festival… or will it?

With YouTube taking centre stage this year, the annual event asked the big questions about the health of the UK production ecosystem and crucially, who is contributing to it. The Broadcast team spoke to the festival’s executive chair Fatima Salaria on her hopes for the event as it says goodbye to Edinburgh, a...

Channel 4 is on the hunt for a new director of programmes after spliting its chief content officer role into three. What kind of person would indies like to see in the role? What should the PSB's content mix look like going forward? What should its digital commissioning priorities be?

For the last episode in the current series, Broadcast's Rebecca Cooney is joined by a panel of C4 suppliers, including Strong Watch co-founder Tho...

Action For Freelancers project director James Taylor-Tovey shares the group's latest updates with Broadcast's Heather Fallon, and Ed Gamble chats to Broadcast Intelligence's Alice Redman about his new show Unacceptable.

As the industry continues to adjust to a world of tighter budgets and fewer commissions, James Taylor-Tovey unpacks what he, AfF and fellow support organisation TV Mindset have been doing to aid the legions of af...

In the last couple of weeks, the once solid terms of trade agreement for the UK television sector has suddenly found itself at the centre of debate. After what Broadcast dubbed a ‘terms of trade grenade’ was thrown by former Ofcom chair Michael Grade, suggesting they are not fit for purpose, the BBC then claimed the agreement was preventing the broadcaster from exploiting its IP.

So what comes next? And why should the pr...

Everyone's talking about the news that Sky has finally confirmed it plans to buy ITV's broadcast and streaming business as part of a £1.6bn deal - and so are we. First up, senior reporter Heather Fallon chats to Broadcast's editor in chief Chris Curtis and head of content for international Rich Middleton about the rationale behind the move and what it means for ITV's production arm, ITV Studios.

Later, news editor John Elmes is joi...

Peep Show writer Jesse Armstrong and Argonon's Amanda Goddard weigh in on the use of generative AI in production. In Broadcast’s most recent Indie Survey, 59% of indies surveyed told us they were keen to explore and use AI. Only 1% said they were unlikely to use it.

With the technology developing at a rapid rate, we hear from Jesse Armstrong about whether AI has a place in the creative process. Later, Amanda, who is Argonon&rs...

Twofour’s chief executive officer David Brindley and journalist, broadcaster and TV critic Scott Bryan join the podcast this week for a special episode marking Pride month.

Coinciding with the launch of the final series of BBC3’s I Kissed a Girl, a revolutionary dating series that centres on a gay kiss, Brindley unpacks the origins of the format as well as the reaction to the news of its cancellation. Meanwhile, Scott Br...

This week, Broadcast delves into the burgeoning world of microdramas. With some forecasts predicting that these one-minute long episode dramas could generate global revenues of $14bn this year, should scripted companies look to invest? Rebecca Cooney speaks to Banijay Entertainment’s chief business officer Frédéric Balmary and Broadcast’s own Rich Middleton to examine whether micro dramas are a passing fad or the next d...

Documentary legend Norma Percy makes her podcasting debut to talk about her latest project Brexit: A Very British Civil War, as well as sharing her interview tips and explaining more about her Grierson Trust fund to support factual filmmakers.

Later in the show, we share the highlights from a webinar run by Broadcast's sister platform Broadcast Intelligence, in which Channel 4's head of news and current affairs Louisa Compton, and H...

Rivals star Katherine Parkinson, writer Laura Wade and series producer Eliza Mellor join the Broadcast team to talk about Disney+ and Happy Prince's hit show.

As the second series races towards its mid-series finale, Laura and Eliza Mellor break down the joys and challenges of making Rivals as well as dropping a few easter eggs for TV lovers.

Later on, Katherine chats to hosts Heather Fallon and Rebecca Cooney about playing Lizzie Ve...

Welcome to the rebooted Broadcast podcast, where each week the team will bring you analysis, interviews and commentary exploring the week’s top stories and behind-the-scenes happenings from the world of telly.

Matt Brittin became director general of the BBC last week. Where should he start? Broadcast’s editor-in-chief, Chris Curtis and BBC correspondent Ellie Kahn join the show to sift through the things that are likely ...

This week, Talking TV is heading to Lock Keeper’s cottages as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Big Breakfast, which launched on 28 September 1992. Creator Charlie Parsons and producers Duncan Gray, Lisa Clark and Paul Sandler join us in Maple Street Studios to discuss how a company that made anarchic Friday night entertainment format The Word started making ten hours of breakfast telly a week on Channel 4. The group d...

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Produced by Rebecca Cooney and Heather Fallon at Broadcast. With production support from Daisy Kyakulagira and Ollie Peart at Rethink Audio.

Stay connected at broadcastnow.co.uk.

Produced by Rebecca Cooney and Heather Fallon at Broadcast. With production support from Daisy Kyakulagira and Ollie Peart at Rethink Audio.

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