London Screenings 2022

Thatcher & Reagan: A Special Relationship

Type: Factual
Length: 2 x 60 minutes
Producer: Plimsoll Productions
Broadcaster: BBC2 (UK)

There’s a moment in BBC’s two-part doc in which Ronald Reagan, upon receiving some harsh words from Margaret Thatcher, holds up the phone to 30 members of the military in the room and declares: “Isn’t she magnificent?”

The ‘special relationship’ between the UK and the US has weathered many global crises and personality clashes over the decades, but it arguably reached its zenith in the 1980s, when Thatcher and Reagan forged a unique friendship that grounded their political strategising in mutual respect.

Thatcher biographer Charles Moore, who was The Telegraph’s political correspondent throughout the era, traces their relationship through a turbulent decade of global political upheaval reshaped by UK and US efforts to thaw East/West relations and ultimately work towards tearing down the Iron Curtain.

But don’t expect a personal polemic. The doc, which airs on BBC2 this spring, is a pacy retelling of the era that extracts humour from its interviewees and humanises its subjects. Filmmaker Chris Durlacher, behind Emmy-winning George Orwell – A Life In Pictures, is attached as series producer and director.

“It’s a very warm, personable piece and Charles secures great access to, and emotion from, their politicians and their close aides,” says Magnify Media head of sales and co-productions Anthony Appell. “I like the fact it’s not his views, but the words of those who knew them best.”

Thatcher was and remains a divisive figure, but Appell believes this doc can be filed alongside her portrayals by both Meryl Streep in the film Thatcher and Gillian Anderson in The Crown as a three-dimensional portrait of a resilient leader.

“She cuts an aggressive, pushy figure who wasn’t to be bullied by any leader,” Appell adds. “But the interviews she gave to camera offer a warmer look at her. She’s quite vulnerable at times when she’s in conflict with Reagan and doesn’t have her allies around her. I find it endearing and personable – I learned a lot from it.”

Reagan, meanwhile, comes across as “a very big, easy-going, tolerant guy”, who knew how to handle Thatcher, and vice-versa. His words were always “just let her be”. “He thought of her as the perfect English lady - even though he couldn’t get a word in edgeways,” says Appell.

The doc’s global appeal is evident, and the shorter international cut (2 x 50 minutes, minus some archive) has already been subject to a bidding war in Australia – won by public broadcaster SBS – and the US, where it has an as-yet unnamed, VoD home.

Plimsoll is known globally for its blue-chip natural history (such as Netflix’s Night On Earth and ITV’s A Year On Planet Earth) and this doc signals a new direction under head of documentaries Richard Klein – exec producer on the series – and potentially a returning format.

“Richard’s a genius and I hope this will be the first of many from him in this sphere,” says Appell. “There is talk of other relationships we might be able to work up if this is successful.”

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Handmade Good with Wood

Distributor: Magnify Media
Length: 6 x 60 minutes
Producer: Plimsoll Productions
Broadcaster: Channel 4 (UK)

We’ve had competitive cake baking, glassblowing, tattooing, make-up, dressmaking, flower arranging and pottery, but now it’s time for woodworking to get the TV treatment.

Handmade: Good With Wood follows the traditional pattern of a skills-based reality competition show: nine woodworking enthusiasts battle it out across six weeks in a bid to be crowned Britain’s Best Woodworker.

The series takes place in a custom-built workshop filled to the brim with tools and wood.

Each episode centres around a ‘Big Build’, in which the contestants create imaginative wooden structures and objects, as expert judges scrutinise their designs, techniques and skills.

The judges are RIBA Stirling prize-winning architect and so-called ‘King of Wood’ Alex de Rijke, and the London School Of Furniture Making founder Helen Welch.

Hosting the show is comedian Mel Giedroyc, who previously hosted The Great British Bake Off with her comedy partner Sue Perkins.

The show is produced by Plimsoll Productions, whose credits include Meet The Meerkats and Tiny World, and is being sold internationally by its distribution company Magnify Media, which is handling tape and format sales.

Even so, Magnify had to bid for the rights as there was a deficit in the budget, says chief executive Andrea Jackson. “There was intense competition to secure the rights, but I’m delighted we did as we have already recouped our investment through pre-sales,” she adds.

Earlier this year, Fremantle acquired format production rights for Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Hungary, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Poland, Israel, India, Indonesia, Mexico and Australia.

Jackson is confident it will resonate on the international market. “All countries have traditions of woodworking, so we see this as a very strong format pitch,” she says.

The completed programmes are selling very well, adds Jackson. “Our role as distributor means that we need to carefully manage the rollout of both sets of rights.”