Red Production Company
Encyclopedia
Red Production Company is a British
independent television
production company, formed in 1998 by Nicola Shindler
, an experienced television producer who had worked on such prestige dramas as Our Friends in the North
and Cracker
. Based in Manchester
in the north of England
, Red's first production was the controversial drama Queer as Folk, written by Russell T Davies and based around the lives of three gay men in the city. This was screened on Channel 4
in early 1999 and drew much comment and praise.
The same year, Red followed this up with another series for Channel 4
, an anthology of six half-hour plays about love entitled Love in the 21st Century. Queer as Folk 2 arrived in 2000, and since then Red has expanded to produce acclaimed dramas for nearly all of the main British television channels. The company's success led to an attempt by Granada Television
— in whose Quay Street building the company rents offices — to buy it, but Shindler turned down their offer, wanting to retain control of her own company.
For BBC Two
For BBC Choice
For BBC Three
For ITV1
For Channel 4
For Sky One
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
independent television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
production company, formed in 1998 by Nicola Shindler
Nicola Shindler
Nicola Shindler is a British television producer and executive, the founder of Red Production Company, one of the foremost independent television drama production companies working in the UK today....
, an experienced television producer who had worked on such prestige dramas as Our Friends in the North
Our Friends in the North
Our Friends in the North is a British television drama serial, produced by the BBC and originally broadcast in nine episodes on BBC Two in early 1996...
and Cracker
Cracker (UK TV series)
Cracker is a British crime drama series produced by Granada Television for ITV and created and principally written by Jimmy McGovern. The series is centered on a criminal psychologist , Eddie "Fitz" Fitzgerald, played by Robbie Coltrane. Set in Manchester, it consists of three series which were...
. Based in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
in the north of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Red's first production was the controversial drama Queer as Folk, written by Russell T Davies and based around the lives of three gay men in the city. This was screened on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in early 1999 and drew much comment and praise.
The same year, Red followed this up with another series for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
, an anthology of six half-hour plays about love entitled Love in the 21st Century. Queer as Folk 2 arrived in 2000, and since then Red has expanded to produce acclaimed dramas for nearly all of the main British television channels. The company's success led to an attempt by Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
— in whose Quay Street building the company rents offices — to buy it, but Shindler turned down their offer, wanting to retain control of her own company.
Programmes
For BBC OneBBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
- Clocking OffClocking OffClocking Off is a British television drama series which ran on the BBC One network for four series from 2000 to 2003. It was produced for the BBC by the independent Red Production Company, and created by Paul Abbott...
(2000–03) - Linda GreenLinda GreenLinda Green is a British television comedy-drama series that lasted for two series, screened in 2001 and 2002. The twenty half-hour episodes were broadcast on BBC One and produced for the BBC by the independent Red Production Company....
(2001–02) - SparkhouseSparkhouseSparkhouse is a BBC drama, originally shown in 2002, written by Sally Wainwright which is a modern take on Wuthering Heights.-Synopsis:Two young lovers battle against the odds to be together...
(2002) - The Good Housekeeping Guide (2006)
- Magnolia (2006)
- New Street LawNew Street LawNew Street Law is a British legal drama television series produced by Red Production Company in association with One-Eyed Dog Ltd for BBC One. The series was created by G. F. Newman and Matthew Hall, and starred an ensemble cast headed by John Hannah and Paul Freeman...
(2006–07) - Single Father (2010)
For BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
- Flesh and Blood (2002)
- Indian Dream (2003)
For BBC Choice
BBC Choice
BBC Choice was a BBC TV station which launched on 23 September 1998 and closed on 9 February 2003. It was the first British TV channel to broadcast exclusively in digital format, and was the first new channel from the BBC since BBC Two launched in 1964...
- Having It OffHaving It OffHaving it Off is a one-off TV comedy series for BBC Choice made by Red Production Company in 2002.It was set at a cheap hairdressing salon in Eccles, Greater Manchester...
(2002)
For BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
- Burn ItBurn ItBurn It was a drama series, with touches of dark comedy, following the lives of three twenty-somethings in present-day Manchester.-About:The series followed Carl, Andy and Jon as three self-proclaimed Generation X-ers going through life without any real responsibilities to worry them...
(2003) - CasanovaCasanova (2005 TV serial)Casanova is a 2005 British television comedy drama serial, written by television scriptwriter Russell T Davies and directed by Sheree Folkson...
(2005) - ConvictionConviction (2004 TV series)Conviction is a British television crime drama that premiered on BBC Three on 7 November 2004. The six part series was written by Bill Gallagher and stars William Ash, David Warner, Ian Puleston-Davies, Reece Dinsdale, Nicholas Gleaves, Laura Fraser and Jason Watkins...
(2004)
For ITV1
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
- Bob & Rose (2001)
- The Second ComingThe Second Coming (TV serial)The Second Coming is a two-part British television drama first screened on ITV in the UK in February 2003. It concerns the realisation of Steve Baxter that he is in fact the Son of God, and has just a few days to find the human race's Third Testament and thus avert the Apocalypse.It was written...
(2003) - Mine All MineMine All MineMine All Mine is a British television series produced by Red Production Company for ITV. It was written by Russell T Davies and starred Griff Rhys Jones...
(2004) - Big Dippers (2005)
- Dead Man WedsDead Man WedsDead Man Weds is a 6-part comedy series shown on ITV on British TV in January and early February 2005 .The series was written by Dave Spikey who played the part of Jerry St Clair in Phoenix Nights...
(2005) - Jane HallJane Hall (TV series)Jane Hall was a six-part British television comedy drama on ITV, written by Sally Wainwright and starring Sarah Smart and Stephen Mangan, revolving around Jane Hall's job training to be a bus driver and her home life in Hounslow, "the arsehole of London"....
(2006) - UnforgivenUnforgiven (TV series)Unforgiven was a three-part British television drama series written by Sally Wainwright which was first broadcast on ITV in January 2009...
(2009)
For Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
- Queer as Folk (1999–2000)
- Love in the 21st Century (1999)
- Legless (2005)
- The Mark of CainThe Mark of Cain (2007 film)The Mark of Cain is a British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award-winning British television film first broadcast in 2007 following three young men as they experience the extremity of war for the first time, and the permanent effects of what they have seen and done as they return from their...
(2007)
For Sky One
Sky One
Sky1 is the flagship BSkyB entertainment channel available in the United Kingdom and Ireland.The channel first launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, and is the fourth-oldest TV channel in the United Kingdom, behind BBC One , ITV and BBC Two...
- Now You See Her (2001)