Idris Elba to take over BBC Three for a week
David Farnor | On 16, Mar 2017
Idris Elba will take over BBC Three this month.
From Monday 27th March, the Luther star will lead a unique and ground-breaking season of content created and curated for the online TV channel.
The week-long collaboration will cover topics from comedy, drama, music and documentary, working with some of the best new and emerging talent in all fields and tackling issues that are relevant to young audiences today.
The season – produced by Green Door Pictures – will be released across BBC Three’s iPlayer channel, YouTube channel and BBC Three’s website, telling the stories of young people from a modern and diverse Britain.
Idris Elba says: “There’s a part of me in every aspect of this season; comedy, drama, documentary, sport, all made by a truly diverse team both on and off screen.”
Damian Kavanagh, Controller, BBC Three says: “Idris is passionate about giving opportunities to new and exciting talent, as is BBC Three. As well as being able to provide a platform to those on and off screen, we’re passionate about telling stories for young people, made by young people. The Idris Takeover is a unique collaboration which I know our audience will enjoy.”
Ana Garanito, Head of Scripted, Green Door Pictures, adds: “The BBC Three curation is such a unique and exciting opportunity for Green Door Pictures to showcase new and emerging talent as well as tell engaging and sometimes untold stories. This is at the heart of the Green Door DNA which are a shared set of values with BBC Three, so we are beyond excited to be building this curation with them.”
The season will include:
Romesh: Comedians In Pubs Talking Comedy
Comedian Romesh Ranganathan presents these six hilarious comedy shorts with some of the UK’s most loved comedians, including Jack Dee, Sharon Horgan, Russell Howard, Jayde Adams, Humza Arshad and Tim Renkow. In these one to one, frank and funny conversations, they discuss their earliest memories in their comedy careers – from show flops to patronising fans and facing their fears through an engaging, empathetic and relatable pub chat.
Five by Five
Idris Elba stars in BBC Three’s Five By Five, a series of short films from new writers featuring new on-screen talent working alongside established on-screen talent. Set in London, the five standalone films feature chance encounters people face which question identity and change perception.
Moses: Strong Man
Nigerian born Moses Adeyemi has had a tough upbringing. Raised by his aunty, at the age of 16 he became embroiled in a world of crime. After being convicted, he turned his life around to become a personal trainer. Now drawing on his own experience he helps people cope with life trauma through mental and physical training.
Amazing Humans
As part of BBC Three’s Amazing Humans series, we explore three new inspiring stories: Wheelchair Boxing, featuring paraplegic boxer and weightlifter Marcus Perrineau-Daley; Lady Line Backer, following Zoe Johnson, who rediscovers her self-confidence after an abusive relationship and eating disorders through American football; and From Child Soldier To Jockey, which sees Abdul Kareem Musa Adama rebuild his life through his love of horses as he learns how to become a professional jockey, after after his family were killed and the farm destroyed in an attack by rebels.
Inspire (Music Video)
Music mogul and entrepreneur Jamal Edwards has worked with new and emerging MC’s and artists from across the UK to create a brand new track and video, produced by up and coming producer Komenz. The finished product will see C-Cane (London), Shogun (Scotland), Truemendous (Birmingham), Berna (London), Eaton (Wales), Alika (London) and Olivia Louise (Chester) as they work together on a collaborative track: Inspire.
Shogun Documentary
In this documentary, we shine the light on Joe Heron AKA Shogun, a 19 year old MC from Paisley, Scotland, who with no connections but plenty of talent has racked up 1.75 million YouTube hits for his brand new track and has gone on to support acts such as Bugzy Malone and Pharaoh Monch.
Working Class Barrister
How and why does a 25 year old working class woman from an underprivileged background have a burning desire to fight for injustice and enter one of the most traditional, exclusive law professions? We follow Leila Taleb, an aspiring Barrister from Bradford as she struggles to win one of the few scholarships available.
Seventeen
Director Mollie Mills has already gathered a fan base following her films exploring youth subcultures with a truly mesmerising visual style. In this one-off documentary, she follows five groups of 17 year olds in Scarborough and unpicks what their hopes and dreams are in marginalised Britain today.