C4 orders gay drama duo

Channel 4 in the UK has commissioned two new dramas about 21st Century gay life from Doctor Who and Queer As Folk scribe Russell T Davies.

Cucumber (8×60′) and Banana (8×30′) will see Davies make a return to C4 15 years after penning its hit drama Queer As Folk, which followed three gay men living in Manchester.

Both of the new series, from Red Production Company, will be set in Manchester with filming to begin next spring.

Cucumber follows a 46-year-old gay man whose life is changed following a catastrophic date, while Banana will feature younger characters and will air on youth-skewing E4.

Davies will also write Tofu, a factual web series consisting of eight episodes that is described as an anarchic online guide to sex inspired by the dramas each week.

Cucumber was originally developed by BBC Worldwide Productions and BBC Worldwide will distribute the drama internationally.

In related news, C4 has commissioned Walking the Nile, a four-part factual series that follows expedition leader and writer Levison Wood on his attempt to become the first person to walk the entire length of the River Nile.

The 4,250-mile trip begins next month and will take Wood on a journey through Africa’s rainforests, deserts and swamps. Set to air in autumn 2014, the project is a coproduction between October Films and Group M Entertainment.

Finally, C4 has also ordered a fourth season of Four Rooms, which will see FremantleMedia UK’s prodco Boundless produce 30×60′ new episodes.

The series allows members of the public to sell their artefacts to four of the UK’s top dealers in art, antiques and collectibles.