Monday round-up: Latest news, deals & hires

Rock Networks buys Apple TV+ drama

Asian broadcaster Rock Networks has picked up Apple TV+ drama See.

The show, produced by Chernin Entertainment and Fifth Season, was on Apple TV+’s inaugural originals slate five years ago and starred Jason Momoa, running to three seasons.

It will make its linear TV debut on Rock Networks pay TV channels and its catch-up VOD services from 21 September, following the deal with distributor Fifth Season. The deal covers exclusive first linear window to all seasons of See in South East Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

It comes four days after the BBC acquired the first three series of Apple TV+ sitcom Trying for BBC1 and iPlayer, in a landmark deal for the corporation.

Shed Media co-founder dies

The former Shed Media chief and LWT managing director Eileen Gallagher has led tributes to the “extraordinary” Waterloo Road creator Ann McManus, who has died at the age of 67.

As well as co-creating the BBC Manchester school-based long-running soap, McManus co-founded the indie Shed Productions in 1999 with Granada Television colleagues, writers and producers Eileen Gallagher and Waterloo Road creative partner Maureen Chadwick.

The company produced seminal British hits, written by McManus, including ITV’s prison drama Bad Girls and cult classic Footballers’ Wives, as well as US tentpoles Supernanny, The Real Housewives of New York City and Long Lost Family. The label was part of Shed Media Group, which grew to become one of the original large-scale production groups – buying Who Do You Think You Are? indie Wall to Wall in 2007, and a forerunner for today’s super-indie model.

Warner Bros. acquired a majority stake in 2010, then took full control and rebranded the company in 2014 as Warner Bros. Television Productions UK. Read more

BBC, ZDF buys Arte archaeology doc

The BBC in the UK and Germany’s ZDFinfo have pre-bought 1 x 52-minutre doc The Mystery of the Desert Kites from Arte Distribution.

Produced by Ma Drogue À Moi for France Télévisions, the doc follows two teams of archaeologists as the investigate thousands of ancient geoglyphs – ancient stone structures that resemble kites – that date back to 7000 BC and are located across Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

PBS science strand Nova has also boarded the doc as a co-pro partner.

CEE-focused NEM sets event dates

Organisers of the NEM branded markets in CEE have confirmed dates for their upcoming events.

NEM Zagreb 2025 will be held on 8-9 December at the Esplanade Zagreb Hotel, while NEM Dubrovnik will, as is tradition, be held at the Dubrovnik Palace Hotel from 8-11 June 2026.

Sanja Božić-Ljubičić, founder of NEM Dubrovnik and NEM Zagreb, said the latter would “take a new direction” this year with the inclusion of creators and leading brands, alongside TV and film. NEM Dubrovnik will continue to focus on global and regional companies, industry leaders, and experts from the TV, streaming, telecommunications, and technology sectors.

UK prodco Osun options Yrsa Daley-Ward novel 

London-based Osun Group has optioned supernatural novel The Catch by Yrsa Daley-Ward, marking the company’s first book adaptation.

The Catch follows estranged twin sisters whose lives take a turn when one of them spots a woman who looks like their long-vanished mother. The adaptation is in early development as a returning series, with head of drama Sheila Nortley (Supacell) set to executive produce alongside Daley-Ward and Luti Fagbenle.

Osun Group is in the process of attaching a showrunner, director and on-screen talent. Nortley and Daley-Ward have previously worked together in 2011 on the indie feature David is Dying. The Catch is the debut novel of London and LA-based Daley-Ward, who is also an actor and poet.

MGM+ orders Words + Music

Amazon’s linear channel and streaming service MGM+ has greenlit docuseries Words + Music from Gunpowder & Sky and the e-retailer’s brand, Audible.

The show is based on Audible’s audio series of the same name and features artists sharing stories about songs pivotal to their careers, followed by new performances of those songs either solo or with a band. 

The screen version of Words + Music will include performances from Elvis Costello, Sheryl Crow, John Legend, and Alanis Morissette. It will premiere on 30 November. on MGM+ in the US, the UK, Canada and Australia. Audible and Amazon MGM Studios share an overall pact together to develop projects inspired by the audio firm’s library, led by Audible’s head of TV and film, Jackie Levine.