ITV STUDIOS GLOBAL ENTERTAINMENT TO LAUNCH MR SELFRIDGE AT MIPTV
NEW 10-PART DRAMA FROM ITV STUDIOS COMMISSIONED BY ITV1
ITV Studios Global Entertainment will be introducing buyers to brand new 10-part drama Mr Selfridge at MIPTV. The life of the flamboyant and visionary American entrepreneur, Harry Gordon Selfridge, is the subject of an ambitious new ITV1 drama to be produced by ITV Studios.
Created by Emmy-award winning writer Andrew Davies, Mr Selfridge (working title) tells the story of ‘Mile a Minute Harry’, a man with a mission to make shopping as thrilling as sex. Pioneering and reckless, with an almost manic energy, he created a theatre of retail where any topic or trend that was new, exciting, entertaining - or sometimes just eccentric - was showcased.
Maria Kyriacou, Managing Director, ITV Studios Global Entertainment said: “Mr Selfridge is a big ambitious drama with clear international appeal; we’re confident it will be a target for broadcasters looking to invest early in elaborate, high volume scripted content. We’re also delighted that Andrew will be joining us in Cannes to share with international buyers his vision for this fantastic series.”
The drama is set in London in 1909, at a time when women were revelling in a new sense of freedom and modernity. Harry wanted to indulge, empower and celebrate these women and so opened the doors of his lavish department store, on London’s famous Oxford Street.
Through the innovations and spectacular events Harry staged within the store, the stories will shine a light on hidden moments of the history of women, be it fashion, cosmetics, technology or domestic affairs.
Harry’s colourful life will play out against the rich tapestry of London at the turn of the century. In his leisure hours he was a gambler, and although happily married, he enjoyed the company of glamorous show girls and film stars. His womanising was legendary and he very much lived life in the fast lane.
Inspired by author Lindy Woodhead’s biography of Harry Gordon Selfridge and the story of his store, Shopping, Seduction and Mr Selfridge, the series will go into production in April in London for transmission on ITV1 during 2013.
Andrew Davies and his writing team have cherry picked the most intriguing aspects of Harry’s real life and used them as a spring-board to create a big, glamorous city story. There is a rich cast of fictional characters to fall in love with, and whose fortunes are all interlinked with his own extraordinary story. From the opulent life of London’s social elite, to the bright lights, glamour and back-stage intrigue of London’s theatres, from board rooms, private poker games and smoky music halls to the working men and women trying to make their own success, this is period drama firmly set in the advent of modernity.
Mr Selfridge (working title) will be produced by Chrissy Skinns (Marchlands, Secret Diary of a Call Girl) and executive produced by ITV Studios Drama’s Kate Lewis. Jon Jones (Titanic, Northanger Abbey) will direct and Andrew Davies (Bleak House, Pride and Prejudice) is writing scripts with Kate Brooke (Case Sensitive, Murder in the Outback) and Kate O’Riordan (The Bad Mother’s Handbook, The Kindness of Strangers).
Ten x 60 minute episodes have been commissioned and casting is currently underway in America for the actor who will play Harry. Further details of casting will be announced shortly.
For further information contact:
Tracey Jaques, 020 7156 7243 / 07730 637731, tracey.jaques@itv.com