UKTV announces new original drama series Flack, for W, starring Academy Award winner Anna Paquin

Network extends commissioning breadth and orders first scripted drama for entertainment channel W, co-commissioned with Pop and made by Hat Trick Productions and CASM

Monday 12 March 2018 UKTV has commissioned its first ever drama series for premium entertainment channel W. UKTV Original Flack (6x60), set in the world of high-stakes public relations, stars Academy Award winning, Golden Globe winning and Emmy(R)-nominated actress Anna Paquin (The Piano, True Blood, X-Men).

Flack stars Paquin as the sharp and witty publicity maven Robyn, whos an expert at her craft but a complete self-saboteur when it comes to her personal life.

The series is the first UKTV co-commission with an American broadcaster. The series is co-commissioned with US network Pop and co-produced by Hat Trick Productions and Anna Paquins production company CASM Films. The series was created by Oliver Lansley (Whites, Alices Adventures Underground) who will also executive produce. Lead director on Flack will be Peter Cattaneo, Oscar(R)-nominated for The Full Monty and director of the Bafta-winning BBC Two comedy Rev.

Anna Paquin said:

Oliver Lansley has written six of the best scripts Ive ever read. He walks that fine line between intense character driven drama and exceptionally intelligent humour. My character, Robyn, exists in a world where there are no moral absolutes and humour is used as a sharply executed defence mechanism to maintain the illusion of perpetual control. I am incredibly excited about tackling the creative complexities of Flack as an actress and for my company CASMs collaboration with W and Pop.

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Flack reflects on the brutal reality and complexities of modern life where problems can go viral in an instant. With PR serving as the perfect backdrop to explore these complexities, Flack centres on an American PR executive living in London (Paquin) who must figure out how to make the best of bad situations and somehow manage to get out unscathed.

Flack is produced by Mark Talbot, executive produced by Jimmy Mulville (Episodes) and Helen Williams of Hat Trick Productions and created by Oliver Lansley, who will also executive produce. The series will be directed by Peter Cattaneo and has been ordered by Richard Watsham, UKTVs director of commissioning and Steve North, genre manager for entertainment and comedy. Flack is commissioned by Pete Thornton, UKTV senior commissioning editor who will also oversee as executive producer for UKTV. Anna Paquin will also executive produce for CASM alongside Stephen Moyer, Cerise Hallam Larkin and Mark Larkin with Justin Rosenblatt for Pop.

Jimmy Mulville said:

Hat Trick is honoured to be bringing UKTVs first big drama series to W. Weve found a very supportive creative home for Oliver Lansleys fantastic series and we are assembling a stunning cast led by the brilliant Anna Paquin who is also starring in her first UK drama.

On UKTVs drama ambition, Richard Watsham commented: Its very exciting to announce Flack as the first original drama for W - it marks a new chapter in the ever-expanding story of UKTVs move into original programming. The response from independent producers to our call out for distinctive drama has been incredible and as well as moving into production on Flack, we are now developing a growing number of original drama series for Alibi and Drama.

Pete Thornton added:

This is an incredibly ambitious production, so its crucial for us to be in business with production partners who we can trust implicitly to deliver creative excellence on time and on budget. In director Peter Cattaneo and the multi-talented and award-winning teams at CASM and Hat Trick Productions, we know weve got exactly that.

Adam Collings, channel director for W added: Im beyond thrilled to be bringing Flack to Ws viewers as Olivers script is super-smart, wonderfully edgy and totally compelling. This, combined with the internationally recognised talent of Anna Paquin, makes Flack a perfect fit for W whose viewers expect the best in high quality, talent-driven entertainment. I cant wait for the first episode to air.

Flack is a co-commission with Pop who commented:

Flack is extremely poignant, smartly exploring an age in which for better or worse, news happens in a breath, said Justin Rosenblatt, EVP of Original Programming, This series captures the often funny and sometime damaging results with a dream lead in Anna Paquin.

The UKTV Original series will go into production this Spring and will TX in 2019 on W.

Series creator Oliver Lansley is an accomplished actor and theatre producer. He created Whites which was broadcast on BBC Two, and he has developed projects with HBO and FX. He additionally runs an award-winning theatre company, Les Enfants Terribles which was nominated for a 2016 Olivier Award for its production Alices Adventures Underground and recently returned to the Vaults.

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For more information please contact:

UKTV

Ben Duncan, Publicist, UKTV

Ali Laurie, Network Comms Exec, UKTV

Pop

Leslie Furuta / leslie.furuta@poptv.com / +1 323-856-4062

Hillary Povar / hillary.povar@poptv.com / +1 323-856-4140

About W

Sky 109/245, Virgin 124/191, BT & TalkTalk 407 / On demand on Sky and Virgin

W is UKTVs premium entertainment channel, offering audiences a dazzling mix of UKTV original series; Dr Christian Will See You Now, John Bishop: In Conversation With..., The Davina Hour, The Secrets In My Family and Inside the Ambulance alongside handpicked gems from the BBC and Channel 4 including series from Louis Theroux, David Beckham, Stacey Dooley as well as the same day repeat of EastEnders.

@wchannel | @wtvchannel

About UKTV

UKTV is a commercial broadcaster reaching over 40m viewers every month.

The award-winning independent has eleven imaginative brands - UKTV Play, Dave, W, Gold, Alibi, Yesterday, Drama, Really, Home, Eden and Good Food. These include

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