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Channel 5 is joining The Forsytes.
The Paramount network has taken UK rights on PBS Masterpiece’s splashy adaptation of John Galsworthy’s The Forsyte Saga, which stars Doctor Who’s Millie Gibson and Francesca Annis as formidable matriarch Ann.
Penned by British screenwriter Debbie Horsfield (Poldark), the series chronicles the lives of four generations of an upper-class family of stockbrokers, set against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving late-Victorian world. True Blood star Stephen Moyer (Sexy Beast) also features alongside the likes of Jack Davenport (The Morning Show) and Gibson.
This is the third Forsyte Saga adaptation. A version aired in 1967 on the BBC and 35 years later on ITV. The new show is made by ITV Studios-backed Mammoth Screen and is a rare example of a British show being greenlit by an American network, with Channel 5 coming in at a later date. Channel 5 also combines with PBS Masterpiece on its hit All Creatures Great and Small reboot.
The news was revealed by Channel 5 content boss Ben Frow at a showcase in London, as Channel 5 and streamer My5 officially rebrand under one unified brand titled 5.
Frow also revealed new series The Trial (w/t), a one-off drama starring Derry Girls breakout Saoirse-Monica Jackson, The Crown’s Ben Miles and Claire Skinner. The Trial explores a chillingly plausible near-future in which parents are held legally responsible for the crimes of their children, raising unsettling questions about justice, culpability, and the limits of state control.
Channel 5 has recently moved into the single drama space and says it will break records by having more than 100 hours worth of drama on the network this year. High profile shows set to launch include David Suchet-starrer The Au Pair, Jason Watkins and Robson Green’s Cat and Mouse and the latest season of All Creatures.
Frow said: “There is huge breadth of new content on streaming for viewers to discover, but the heart of 5 will always be our commitment to originated, UK produced public service content – including our award winning factual and more hours of original drama than we have ever commissioned. With an unmissable nationwide marketing campaign that is bigger than anything we’ve done before, I hope we can open the eyes of those who haven’t previously watched with us to some of the fantastic shows we have to entertain them.”
