BBCS sets Watch for iPlayer

The Watch

UK pubcaster the BBC has acquired fantasy drama series The Watch from its commercial subsidiary BBC Studios (BBCS) and will launch it on streaming platform BBC iPlayer on July 1.

The 8×45’ show, which will also get a linear run on BBC2 at a later date, is based on characters created by late British author Sir Terry Pratchett and was originally made for BBC America.

Described by its producers as a “punk rock thriller,” The Watch follows the City Watch, a group of misfits in a fictional city who are forced to find the guts to save the world, surprising even themselves in the process.

The show is executive produced by BBCS’s Hilary Salmon, Ben Donald and Richard Stokes, producer Narrativia’s Rob Wilkins, and Simon Allen and Craig Viveiros. Johann Knobel is series producer.

Pratchett, who died in 2015, launched Narrativia in 2012. The company has previously adapted books from his popular Discworld series.