Acorn TV revives Sky show as first original

Acorn TV, the North American SVoD service dedicated to international television, has ordered its first series by reviving a Sky comedy.

Agatha Raisin S2 debuts on Acorn TV this year

The service will fund new episodes of Agatha Raisin, the comedy based on novels by MC Beaton that stars Ashley Jensen as a PR guru turned detective.

Acorn Media Enterprises (AME), the UK-based development division of Agatha Christie owner RLJ Entertainment, has partnered with Free@LastTV and Company Pictures to coproduce the new season.

The show was first commissioned by European satcaster Sky’s UK arm in 2014, but the pay TV broadcaster is not on board the new episodes.

Acorn Media International will distribute the 3×90’/6×45′ show in all English-speaking territories, while All3Media International will handles sales in the rest of the world.

Barry Ryan and David Walton will continue to produce the series with Michele Buck from Company Pictures remaining on board as executive producer and Guy Hescott as producer.

Season two of Agatha Raisin begins production in April and will debut on Acorn TV in late 2018.

“When the UK broadcaster chose not to renew it, Acorn decided to step in and fully commission the show itself in order to keep this terrific series going for our subscribers,” said Shane Murphy, MD of AME.

Other series Acorn TV has come on board include BBC comedy Detectorists, ITV drama Girlfriends and Irish legal drama Striking Out.

These sit alongside exclusive titles such as A Place to Call Home, Delicious, The Heart Guy, The Good Karma Hospital, The Brokenwood Mysteries, 800 Words and Murdoch Mysteries on the service.