Exclusive programming for BBC iPlayer
January 26, 2015
Following on from the success of BBC iPlayer exclusive content in 2014, Victoria Jaye, Head of TV Content for BBC iPlayer, has announced 16 titles to kick off 2015.
On Friday 13 February, nine original comedy shorts will go live on BBC iPlayer to mark Valentine’s Day. Nine comedians have created a short Funny Valentine to bring their unique take on the international day of love.
Multi-award-winning artist and style icon Tinie Tempah will host his iPlayer exclusive Private View of Alexander McQueen’s forthcoming exhibition ‘Savage Beauty’ – a collaboration with the V&A. Further Private Views will follow later in the year for Grayson Perry and Jackson Pollock’s 2015 exhibitions in collaboration with Turner Contemporary and Tate Liverpool respectively.
Abbey Clancy will also return to BBC iPlayer, taking an in-depth look at London Fashion week 2015 – a collaboration with the British Fashion Council.
Following on from the success of Original Drama Shorts in 2014, BBC iPlayer will offer a second season for three shorts in collaboration with BBC Three. The writers and directors of Oakwood, Playing Ball and Is This Thing On? will all be receiving their first ever TV drama credit.
January is also the month that sees the launch of one of iPlayer’s most significant commissions to date – Bitter Lake – written and directed by acclaimed journalist Adam Curtis. This experimental epic explores what really happened in Afghanistan and its legacy, by drawing on the unedited rushes of almost everything the BBC has ever shot in Afghanistan. Bitter Lake has been available since 25 January exclusively on BBC iPlayer.
According to Jaye, BBC iPlayer presents a huge creative opportunity to push the boundaries of storytelling and engage audiences in new ways. “Our exclusive content for 2015 demonstrates how established and emerging British artists, along with cultural organisations, are seizing this opportunity to create bold, original new work. This is a glimpse of iPlayer’s next wave of innovation,” she stated.