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C4 orders North Korea thriller

Channel 4 in the UK is searching for an international partner to come onboard a new Homeland-style political thriller from its fledgling international drama division.

Opposite Number (10×60′) is the second original commission to emerge out of C4 after the broadcaster launched the division in April, spearheaded by former Red Arrow Entertainment exec Simon Maxwell.

The drama begins after a British nuclear scientist is taken prisoner while on a covert mission in North Korea, triggering an international crisis that itself must be kept secret.

Suspecting the scientist is being used to advance North Korea’s nuclear weaponry, the British Prime Minister and the US President are forced to work together to prevent a disaster.

The series has been written by British playwright and screenwriter Matt Charman and will be produced by Parade’s End producer Mammoth Screen.

Distributor ITV Studios Global Entertainment is now seeking an international partner to realise the scale and ambition of the project, C4 added.

Maxwell, speaking here at the Edinburgh International Television Festival, told delegates he wants C4 to become the home to ambitious, high-quality international drama that can rival US imports such as Homeland.

“We’re spending a lot more money on original drama. My budget stands in addition to the domestic drama slate. We want to broaden our offering,” Maxwell said.

The first commission from the new division is eight-part drama Humans, a remake of a Swedish sci-fi series and currently in production with Xbox Entertainment Studios. Reports in the US suggest Xbox’s production arm will be sold off, potentially to Warner Bros.

New coproduction collaborations with both international and UK partners will sit alongside Channel 4’s original homegrown drama commissions.

In related news, C4 has commissioned Coalition (1×90′, working title), a dramatisation of the events that led up to the Conservative and Liberal Democrat political parties taking charge of the UK in 2010.

Produced by Cuba Pictures, the drama focuses on the story of Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, who eventually found himself in the position of deputy Prime Minister of the UK.

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