成人论坛

Current affairs commissioning

We鈥檙e the home of exciting new journalism that examines the biggest topics and reflects the world of our audience. Compelling revelation has to be at the heart of all our content. To reach the broadest audiences we want to seek stories with storylines or contain elements that are unexpected and surprising.

How our content appears on iPlayer is a big priority for us and a key thing to think about when you bring us your ideas. Panorama is increasingly viewed on the platform and other titles across our output have also outperformed their terrestrial audience when viewed on-demand. Impact is vital. Really think about a programme title and main image that will maximise that impact and make it stand out on the platform. For example, Laura Kuenssberg: State of Chaos married a striking title with an image that gave a visual explanation of the content.

The other key element to a good idea is news impact. Because we are so closely aligned to 成人论坛 News we want you to bring us ideas which will also make headlines on 成人论坛 News platforms. That way we can use the power of 成人论坛 News to start conversations and boost the reach of your ideas. Liar: The Fake Grooming Scandal for 成人论坛 Three revealed details of the police investigation into the Eleanor Williams case for the first time, and content from the film also featured on 成人论坛 News bulletins and online pieces watched and read by over 10 million people.

Programme title over an image of a woman with a heavily injured face
Liar: The Fake Grooming Scandal

Panorama

Panorama is the 成人论坛鈥檚 award-winning, flagship current affairs strand with a global reputation for revealing the truth about stories that matter, and an emphasis on challenging and ambitious investigative journalism.

We produce 39 half hour programmes a year and at least seven 60-minute specials.

We鈥檙e looking for journalistically ambitious films that deliver genuine revelation and can make an impact on 成人论坛 One, 成人论坛 iPlayer and the 成人论坛鈥檚 news outlets. The stories need to reflect and be relevant to a broad and diverse audience, with a wide-ranging and varied mix of topics, tones, formats and talent.

Ideas for Panorama should be pitched to Adam Grimley via PiCoS.

A woman seen through a window llooks distressed next to an image of a large building.
Undercover Hospital: Patients at Risk,

Other opportunities

As well as Panorama we have opportunities for a range of current affairs short series and singles on 成人论坛 Two and Three, which also need to work well on iPlayer. We're interested in:

Important stories

We want important new journalism, testimony or analysis that offers compelling narratives and fresh insights from talented programme makers. Recent examples are Ukraine: Enemy in the Woods, The Shamima Begum Story or Putin vs the West.

Ukraine: Enemy in the Woods from director Jamie Roberts tells the story of a unit on the Eastern Front of the conflict, using body-worn footage to present an intimate and shocking portrait of the war and the impact it is having on lives.

The Shamima Begum Story directed by Josh Baker offers detailed context alongside long-term access. Putin vs the West series two delivered by Norma Percy, Tim Stirzaker and team was timely, with privileged access allowing stories to be told with added insight. These were both particularly high performers on iPlayer because they had instant narrative appeal and clear propositions. Both also offered newslines which could be used to create impact on 成人论坛 News and beyond.

 

Programme title over an image of Putin partially hidden behind a red curtain
Putin vs the West

Access documentary series

We鈥檇 like to find privileged and unique access to major public institutions or commercial entities relevant to our way of living today that can also capture the imagination. Universal Credit: Inside the Welfare State is a perfect example of that because it allowed the filmmakers to tell the real-life stories of our benefit system from the point of view of the customers, staff and decision-makers.

Short series and singles

We want to uncover and explore levels of complexity in the subjects and stories we tell. This could be by focusing on systemic or societal complexity or by engaging in a level of analysis which reveals stunning new layers of detail. For example, 成人论坛 Two鈥檚 Britain鈥檚 Housing Crisis: What Went Wrong collated the long history of housing policy across successive governments, with a pattern emerging that helped inform our understanding of the present.

For 成人论坛 Three our singles need to feel engaging to our 16-24 audience鈥檚 immediate world, bringing complexity through investigation, new insight and an interesting fresh approach to storytelling. For example, Tim Westwood: Abuse of Power broke a headline grabbing story using exclusive testimony. Liar: The Fake Grooming Scandal revealed for the first time details of an investigation into a thankfully rare crime, but one which shocked an entire town and left a 22 year old woman imprisoned for perjury. Andrew Tate: The Man Who Groomed the World? offered a deeper dive into an existing story, with Matt Shea鈥檚 ongoing investigation revealing new detail which kept the story moving forward.

Andrew and Tristan Tate being questioned on the street by reporter Matt Shea in Bucharest
Andrew Tate: The Man Who Groomed the World?

Current affairs for all

We live in a constantly evolving news environment and we want our current affairs output to really engage all audiences of all ages and demographics and feel instantly accessible and appealing. This can be done through clever, clear concepts and talent with broad appeal. In Simon Reeve's Return to Cornwall Simon added depth and context to the news headlines by uncovering the human stories behind the cost of living crisis. Why Planes Vanish: The Hunt for MH370 took the latest science about aviation鈥檚 biggest modern mystery to chart a way forward in the search for answers for the families affected by MH370鈥檚 sudden disappearance. And Electric Cars: What They Really Mean for You drew big audiences, informing a national conversation that came to a head right at the point of transmission. All these programmes delivered audience numbers well above average.

What we aren鈥檛 currently interested in

  • Content which is too historic. We only really have room for stories which touch on the past when it stills feel relevant to today鈥檚 news and policy agenda.
  • Compendiums of information which is already in the public domain, for example a televisation of an existing investigation or a book, with no further fresh insight. No matter how beautifully told, we exist to broadcast new journalism.
  • Soft features labelled as investigations, fronted by talent but without significant new information or headline-grabbing journalism at the heart.
  • Live event television.
  • Straight social affairs or access documentaries with predictable narratives. Without further design these are unlikely to have enough impact on iPlayer.
  • Partial/campaigning ideas. Is the treatment you are writing truly acknowledging all the forces at play, even if you don鈥檛 agree with them?
Programme title over images of a plane and flight map
Why Planes Vanish: The Hunt for MH370

Unscripted on iPlayer

Read about how we commission unscripted content in an iPlayer first-world, along with advice and further resources to maximise the impact of your programme on the platform.

Current affairs commissioners

How to send us your ideas

All ideas must be submitted via PiCoS to the genre commissioners listed on this page How we commission

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Contacts and support packages to help your company How we support indies

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