Thursday round-up: Latest news, deals & hires

Task, The Chair Company get S2 greenlights

HBO has extended Brad Ingelsby’s drama Task and Tim Robinson’s The Chair Company into second seasons.

Task stars Mark Ruffalo as an FBI agent in Philadelphia who attempts to bring an end to a series of robberies. Ingelsby (Mare of Easttown) is showrunner, with Wiip and Public Record attached.

The Chair Company follows a property development exec who starts to explore a conspiracy about a furniture manufacturer. It completes its first season run on HBO on 30 November.

Maria Zuckerman strikes Fox pact

Fox Entertainment Studios has struck a multi-year first-look producing deal with Maria Zuckerman to develop and produce scripted series and feature films.

The deal also covers non-fiction projects, including documentaries and limited and ongoing series.

The Emmy Award-winning producer has been shows including HBO’s 100 Foot Wave, Grey Gardens, Spencer, The Mauritanian, Nanny, and Theatre Camp.

ABC orders Marc Fennell docuseries

Australian PSB the ABC has ordered The Assembly indie Helium Pictures and New Mac to co-produce a three-part documentary series fronted and produced by journalist Marc Fennell (Stuff the British Stole).

The State of Man will examine what it means to be a man in Australia today, looking at modern masculinity and the rise of the online ‘manosphere’.

The series is developed and produced in association with the ABC, with development assistance and production funding from Minderoo Pictures. Director is Melissa Maclean, who exec produces with Mark Fennessy, Luke Clark and James McPherson.

5, PBS drama All Creatures Great and Small extended

Paramount-owned 5 in the UK has ordered a 7th and 8th season of All Creatures Great and Small, the drama produced with PBS’s Masterpiece in the US.

The double commission comprises six hour-long episodes, plus Christmas Specials. The series is based on James Herriot’s books and produced by Playground, in association with distributor All3Media International.

S6 aired on 5 in September and will debut on PBS’s Masterpiece from 11 January next year. The story is set in the UK’s Yorkshire Dales and follows a vet and his family, with S6 set in 1945.

Aussie drama Treasure & Dirt to be sold by Sphere Abacus

Sphere Abacus (SA) has secured worldwide distribution rights to Australian producer Easy Tiger’s thriller series Treasure & Dirt.

The 6 x 60-minute show, produced for the ABC in association with the BBC and the South Australian Film Corporation, is based on the novel by Chris Hammer.

It stars Michael Dorman (Territory), Liv Hewson (Yellowjackets), Sarah Peirse (The Twelve: Cape Rock Killer) and Thomas M. Wright (Wolfram).

The show explores what happens when a miner is found murdered in a dying opal town in the middle of the desert, where law and order are little more than myths.

UK cities to bid to host Edinburgh TV Festival

Edinburgh TV Festival has launched a process inviting UK cities to bid to host the major industry event from 2027 onwards.

The festival, which has been a staple in the TV events calendar since 1976, has always been held in the Scottish city but will now be opened to other regional UK locations.

It comes as part of a strategic review, focused on the long-term growth of the festival and how it can best serve delegates.

The review does not necessarily mean that the festival will withdraw from Edinburgh but will allow the organisation to explore alternative cities and regions. Read more

Riot Women extended by BBC

The BBC has ordered a second series of Sally Wainwright’s Riot Women, following a solid performance from the recently ended debut run.

Produced by Drama Republic, the BBC1 title follows a group of menopausal women in West Yorkshire’s Hebden Bridge who form a punk rock band to take part in a local talent contest. The first series was a co-production with BritBox International but it is not clear if they are again attached.

Created, written, directed and exec produced by Wainwright, the drama stars Joanna Scanlan (After Love), Rosalie Craig (Moonflower Murders), Tamsin Greig (Green Wing, Suspect), Lorraine Ashbourne (Sherwood) and Amelia Bullmore (The Buccaneers) as the band members. Read more

Arrow & Cantina wrap Nat Geo show

Production has wrapped on Toronto Airport Uncovered, the 10 × 60-minute factual series being produced for broadcasters including Nat Geo in the US and EMEA.

The show offers unprecedented access inside Canada’s largest and busiest travel hub, Toronto Pearson International Airport, and will also air on Corus Entertainment for Canada, with SBS Australia boarding as a presale partner.

Arrow Media and Cantina Media are producing, with the latter’s parent Serial Maven Studios distributing.

The show marks the first time Toronto Pearson International Airport has granted a documentary team full access to film its 24/7 operation.

Seventy7 Ventures, Zig Zag eye £20m pipeline

The Football Academy producer Zig Zag has teamed up with capital advisory firm Seventy7 Ventures to launch a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to finance film, TV and sports entertainment.

The newly fashioned subsidiary is targeting £20m from investors to fund a pipeline of productions across scripted and unscripted and sports-led entertainment formats.

Zig Zag will provide production and operational services for potential investors, while Seventy7 handles capital-raising duties.

Projects brought into the SPV will have a six-month exclusive financing option and should a project not secure financing within this period, Zig Zag may extend the term or reassign the project and introduce replacements.

Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home

Banijay Rights has landed further international sales for Expectation’s BBC1 documentary Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home.

The 1 x 60-minute film has been acquired by the ABC in Australia, TV 2 in Denmark, VRT in Belgium, yesTV in Israel and Bell Media for Canada. It has previously been licensed by Peacock in the US.

The documentary was filmed over three years with the couple, their children Kelly and Jack and their friends, to reveal the final stage of their lives together and as Ozzy prepares to perform for the last time.