James R | On 17, Feb 2022

BBC Two has acquired the UK TV rights to Australian drama The Newsreader.

The six-part series, starring Anna Torv (Mindhunter, Fringe) and Sam Reid (Prime Suspect 1973, Lambs of God), centres on the frantic, busy heart of a commercial TV newsroom set in the 1980s, while following the relationship between an ambitious young TV reporter and the star female news anchor.

Created by Michael Lucas (Offspring, Five Bedrooms), the series depicts the dramas and tensions of this high-octane workplace as well investigating the political and personal power struggles of the world. Torv plays Helen Norville, a glamorous and talented newsreader and, in the chauvinistic world of TV news, often overlooked. Helen finds herself partnered with junior reporter Dale Jennings (Reid) and their personal and private relationship will be set against the very public pressures of reporting some of the most iconic news stories of the era to the nation. 

In addition to Torv and Reid, The Newsreader features a ensemble cast that includes Robert Taylor (Longmire), Logie Award winners Stephen Peacocke (Five Bedrooms, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot), William McInnes (Unfinished Sky, Blue Heelers), Chum Ehelepola (Lodge 49, Lady Dynamite), Michelle Lim Davidson (Utopia, Get Krack!n), Chai Hansen (The New Legends of Monkey) and Marg Downey (Fast Forward, Top of the Lake: China Girl).

Sue Deeks, Head of Programme Acquisition, BBC, says: “The Newsreader is a superbly made drama which cleverly interweaves key news events from the period, 80s nostalgia, office politics and personal relationships in a thoroughly engaging and entertaining style.”

The series is produced by multi-award-winning Werner Film Productions, for the ABC in Australia. The series is directed by Emma Freeman (Stateless) and executive produced by Joanna Werner and Stuart Menzies (The Cry) with ABC executive producers Sally Riley and Brett Sleigh.

Expect it on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer later this year.

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