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Lenny Henry has launched a new production company backed by Banijay U.K.
Titled Esmerelda, the new venture will focus on drama and comedy with an emphasis on under-represented voices.
Henry, an actor, comedian and writer, will take the position of joint co-managing director of the company alongside producer, writer and director Jon Sen.
Henry most recently starred in “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” and is soon set to launch his latest series, “Three Little Birds,” for ITV. Henry wrote the show while “Doctor Who” show runner Russell T Davies and Tiger Aspect’s Lucy Bedford exec produce.
Henry founded production company Douglas Road in 2014 and will stand down as CEO to focus on Esmerelda.
Douglas Road Productions will continue to be run by managing director Angela Ferreira.
Jon recently held a role at BBC Studios as an executive producer and development exec where he also helmed “Casualty” and “EastEnders.
Titled Esmerelda, the new venture will focus on drama and comedy with an emphasis on under-represented voices.
Henry, an actor, comedian and writer, will take the position of joint co-managing director of the company alongside producer, writer and director Jon Sen.
Henry most recently starred in “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” and is soon set to launch his latest series, “Three Little Birds,” for ITV. Henry wrote the show while “Doctor Who” show runner Russell T Davies and Tiger Aspect’s Lucy Bedford exec produce.
Henry founded production company Douglas Road in 2014 and will stand down as CEO to focus on Esmerelda.
Douglas Road Productions will continue to be run by managing director Angela Ferreira.
Jon recently held a role at BBC Studios as an executive producer and development exec where he also helmed “Casualty” and “EastEnders.
- 10/23/2023
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
![Lenny Henry in True Identity (1991)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTI4MjQ4NjQwMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNTA4NDgwMw@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR10,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Lenny Henry in True Identity (1991)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTI4MjQ4NjQwMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNTA4NDgwMw@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR10,0,140,207_.jpg)
Lenny Henry has launched a scripted production outfit backed by the £50M ($61M) Banijay UK Growth Fund.
Henry is helming Esmerelda Productions with former EastEnders and Casualty exec Jon Sen. It will produce drama and comedy shows with an emphasis on working with under-represented writers, cast and crew.
British comedy legend and diversity lobbyist Henry will step down as CEO of his current Banijay-backed production house Douglas Road, with MD Angela Ferreira taking the reins. That company just saw ITV launch Three Little Birds, Henry’s drama inspired by the experience of his family settling in the UK in the 1950s, which was exec produced by Russell T Davies.
Banijay’s investment will enable Esmerelda to build its team and slate, while the deal includes a first look with distributor Banijay Rights. Banijay’s Growth Fund has so far taken stakes in the likes of James Norton and Kitty Kaletsky’s Rabbit Track,...
Henry is helming Esmerelda Productions with former EastEnders and Casualty exec Jon Sen. It will produce drama and comedy shows with an emphasis on working with under-represented writers, cast and crew.
British comedy legend and diversity lobbyist Henry will step down as CEO of his current Banijay-backed production house Douglas Road, with MD Angela Ferreira taking the reins. That company just saw ITV launch Three Little Birds, Henry’s drama inspired by the experience of his family settling in the UK in the 1950s, which was exec produced by Russell T Davies.
Banijay’s investment will enable Esmerelda to build its team and slate, while the deal includes a first look with distributor Banijay Rights. Banijay’s Growth Fund has so far taken stakes in the likes of James Norton and Kitty Kaletsky’s Rabbit Track,...
- 10/23/2023
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
![Image](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZTkxMzgyMTUtNzc3ZS00YjhmLTg0ZWMtMDA1MzVmYmIxZmFhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTE0MzQwMjgz._V1_QL75_UX500_CR0,0,500,281_.jpg)
The first look images from Lenny Henry’s “Three Little Birds,” executive produced by “It’s a Sin” creator Russell T Davies, have been unveiled.
The series stars Rochelle Neil (“The Nevers”), Yazmin Belo (“What Just Happened”) and Saffron Coomber (“Tracey Beaker Returns”). Designed as a celebration of immigration, community and the strength of Black womanhood, the series is inspired by the stories of Henry’s mother. Set in 1957, it follows sisters Leah (Neil) and Chantrelle (Coomber) and their virtuous, bible-loving acquaintance, Hosanna (Belo), as they board a cruise ship from Jamaica bound for a new life in Britain. Once they reach they discover that life is not smooth sailing but are determined to succeed and overcome the many obstacles of integration and build a new life in Britain.
Yazmin Belo
The cast also includes Bobby Gordon (“Hollyoaks”), Arthur Darvill (“The Sandman”) and Beth Hayes (“Black Mirror”).
Charles McDougall, Yero Timi Biu...
The series stars Rochelle Neil (“The Nevers”), Yazmin Belo (“What Just Happened”) and Saffron Coomber (“Tracey Beaker Returns”). Designed as a celebration of immigration, community and the strength of Black womanhood, the series is inspired by the stories of Henry’s mother. Set in 1957, it follows sisters Leah (Neil) and Chantrelle (Coomber) and their virtuous, bible-loving acquaintance, Hosanna (Belo), as they board a cruise ship from Jamaica bound for a new life in Britain. Once they reach they discover that life is not smooth sailing but are determined to succeed and overcome the many obstacles of integration and build a new life in Britain.
Yazmin Belo
The cast also includes Bobby Gordon (“Hollyoaks”), Arthur Darvill (“The Sandman”) and Beth Hayes (“Black Mirror”).
Charles McDougall, Yero Timi Biu...
- 6/15/2023
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
![Image](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzI3OTEzNTEtOGFkZC00NmU1LWFmNGEtZTdhZTI0NmUyYmMxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTE0MzQwMjgz._V1_QL75_UX500_CR0,26,500,281_.jpg)
Exclusive: Sir Lenny Henry’s Banijay-backed indie Douglas Road Productions is to spotlight Caribbean culture in the UK in an upcoming BBC2 arts documentary.
Deadline hears production will commence next month in London on the show, which does not yet have a title.
Commissioned out of Factual/Arts Director Patrick Holland’s department, the series will explore Caribbean culture in the UK, a personal journey for the celebrated UK comedian whose parents emigrated from Jamaica to Britain in the 1950s. Henry was the first of his seven siblings to be born in the UK.
Henry presented 2018’s Lenny Henry: The Commonwealth Kid for BBC1, which saw him travel to the Caribbean to investigate his heritage and was also produced by Douglas Road.
He is in the midst of collaborating with Russell T Davies on Douglas Road and Banijay stablemate Tiger Aspect’s Three Little Birds for ITV, which is inspired...
Deadline hears production will commence next month in London on the show, which does not yet have a title.
Commissioned out of Factual/Arts Director Patrick Holland’s department, the series will explore Caribbean culture in the UK, a personal journey for the celebrated UK comedian whose parents emigrated from Jamaica to Britain in the 1950s. Henry was the first of his seven siblings to be born in the UK.
Henry presented 2018’s Lenny Henry: The Commonwealth Kid for BBC1, which saw him travel to the Caribbean to investigate his heritage and was also produced by Douglas Road.
He is in the midst of collaborating with Russell T Davies on Douglas Road and Banijay stablemate Tiger Aspect’s Three Little Birds for ITV, which is inspired...
- 10/28/2021
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
![Image](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZWU0ZTRhYjItNmYxOC00YjA0LWEzYzctNDViZTQ2NDExN2QyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTE0MzQwMjgz._V1_QL75_UX500_CR0,0,500,281_.jpg)
BBC Casts ‘My Name Is Leon’
BBC One has announced the cast for its adaptation of Kit de Waal’s debut novel My Name is Leon. Malachi Kirby (Small Axe), Monica Dolan (A Very English Scandal), Olivia Williams (Counterpart), Christopher Eccleston (The A Word), Poppy Lee Friar (In My Skin), and Sir Lenny Henry Cbe (The Lord of the Rings) headline the drama special. Cole Martin will play the lead, Leon, in his first TV role. Set in 1980s Birmingham, the drama tells the uplifting and incredibly moving story of nine-year-old Leon, a mixed-race boy, and his quest to reunite his family after being taken into care and separated from his blond and blue-eyed baby brother. My Name is Leon is produced by Douglas Road Productions in association with Tiger Aspect Productions, Ringside Studios, and Vicarious Productions. It is executive produced by Lenny Henry and Angela Ferreira for Douglas Road Productions,...
BBC One has announced the cast for its adaptation of Kit de Waal’s debut novel My Name is Leon. Malachi Kirby (Small Axe), Monica Dolan (A Very English Scandal), Olivia Williams (Counterpart), Christopher Eccleston (The A Word), Poppy Lee Friar (In My Skin), and Sir Lenny Henry Cbe (The Lord of the Rings) headline the drama special. Cole Martin will play the lead, Leon, in his first TV role. Set in 1980s Birmingham, the drama tells the uplifting and incredibly moving story of nine-year-old Leon, a mixed-race boy, and his quest to reunite his family after being taken into care and separated from his blond and blue-eyed baby brother. My Name is Leon is produced by Douglas Road Productions in association with Tiger Aspect Productions, Ringside Studios, and Vicarious Productions. It is executive produced by Lenny Henry and Angela Ferreira for Douglas Road Productions,...
- 3/1/2021
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
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Award-winner Shola Amoo adapted novel; Kibwe Tavares makes feature directorial debut.
13 Films will kick off Cannes virtual market talks on BBC Drama’s coming-of-age feature My Name Is Leon, set against the backdrop of the 1980s UK race riots.
Kibwe Tavares, an executive producer on BBC show Noughts + Crosses, makes his directorial debut on the feature adaptation, based on Kit de Waal’s bestseller My Name Is Leon.
Shola Amoo, whose Last Tree played in competition at Sundance 2019 and separately earned the Writers Guild of Great Britain award for best screenplay, adapted the novel.
The story follows the titular,...
13 Films will kick off Cannes virtual market talks on BBC Drama’s coming-of-age feature My Name Is Leon, set against the backdrop of the 1980s UK race riots.
Kibwe Tavares, an executive producer on BBC show Noughts + Crosses, makes his directorial debut on the feature adaptation, based on Kit de Waal’s bestseller My Name Is Leon.
Shola Amoo, whose Last Tree played in competition at Sundance 2019 and separately earned the Writers Guild of Great Britain award for best screenplay, adapted the novel.
The story follows the titular,...
- 6/22/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
![Martin Freeman](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjE0MjAwOTMzMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMDg1MjEyNw@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
![Martin Freeman](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjE0MjAwOTMzMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMDg1MjEyNw@@._V1_QL75_UY207_CR1,0,140,207_.jpg)
The BBC has commissioned a slate of four dramas from first-time TV writers, including a police series starring The Hobbit and Sherlock actor Martin Freeman as a night shift officer in the British city of Liverpool.
The Responder is written by Tony Schumacher, a former police officer who is fulfilling a lifelong ambition to write for the screen. He has been mentored by Accused scribe Jimmy McGovern and been part of the BBC Writers Room emerging writers initiative.
His six-part BBC Two series features Freeman as cop Chris, who works night shifts with his new rookie partner, Rachel. Each episode centers on a different shift, and the series is described as “wildly funny and painfully tragic.” Chris is dealing with a marriage that is breaking down while policing Liverpool’s criminal underbelly, and the show deals with the realities of policing in Britain and the complexities of Freeman’s character.
The Responder is written by Tony Schumacher, a former police officer who is fulfilling a lifelong ambition to write for the screen. He has been mentored by Accused scribe Jimmy McGovern and been part of the BBC Writers Room emerging writers initiative.
His six-part BBC Two series features Freeman as cop Chris, who works night shifts with his new rookie partner, Rachel. Each episode centers on a different shift, and the series is described as “wildly funny and painfully tragic.” Chris is dealing with a marriage that is breaking down while policing Liverpool’s criminal underbelly, and the show deals with the realities of policing in Britain and the complexities of Freeman’s character.
- 2/25/2020
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
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