ARD, All3 team up for Dutch crime drama

Van der Valk follows the investigations of a detective in Amsterdam

German pubcaster ARD and UK-based distributor All3Media International have co-commissioned a procedural detective series set in Amsterdam and agreed pre-sales with a number of European broadcasters.

Van der Valk is being filmed on location in the Dutch city, with UK-based Company Pictures producing and Dutch company NL Film coproducing.

All3 also announced pre-sales to France Télévisions and UK commercial broadcaster ITV, with NPO Netherlands as the Dutch broadcast partner.

The 3×90’ series will star Marc Warren (Safe, Mad Dogs) and Maimie McCoy (The Three Musketeers) and is written by Chris Murray (Midsomer Murders, Lewis).

It is inspired by the Van der Valk series produced by Thames Television in the 1970s and aired for five seasons on ITV up to 1992. It will again centre on the investigations of Dutch detective Piet Van Der Valk in and around the city of Amsterdam.

The executive producer will be Michele Buck (Lewis, Parade’s End, Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple and Poirot) for Company Pictures and Louise Pedersen (Blood) for All3Media International, with Sabine Brian as coproducer for NL Films and Keith Thompson (Vikings, Foyle’s War) serving as series producer.

Company Pictures was founded in 1998 and has been behind shows including BBC quartet Wolf Hall, The Lakes, The Village and Inspector George Gently.