River Monsters indie Icon Films to close its doors after over three decades

Harry and Laura Marshall

Bristol-based independent factual production company Icon Films is shutting down after 33 years.

Co-founded by chairman Harry Marshall and CEO Laura Marshall, the company has produced over 500 hours of original content for broadcasters including the BBC, Channel 4, Channel 5, ITV, National Geographic, Discovery, Blue Ant Media, NHK, Vice, Arte and PBS over the years.

The company will close its doors at the end of May on delivery of existing productions, with all eligible staff due to receive redundancy payments, according to the firm.

Its staff of over 100 includes Andie Clare, director of production, and Lucy Middelboe, commercial director.

Harry Marshall will continue to write and pursue a range of interests, while Laura Marshall will continue in her role as chair of Bristol-based conservation charity Wildscreen, alongside other responsibilities, while looking for new projects, the company added.

Icon Films’ best-known project is River Monsters, one of the highest rating series in the history of Animal Planet US, while its recent productions have included Wild Dogs: Pack vs Pride, Wild Dogs: Running with the Pack and Malawi Wildlife Rescue for Love Nature.

The company, which moved into new offices in Bristol in late 2022, has also created other unscripted franchises such as Savage Kingdom and Primal Survivor for Nat Geo.

The company’s programmes have been distributed by the likes of ITV Studios Global Entertainment, BBC Worldwide (now BBC Studios), Zodiak Rights (now Banijay Rights) and Fremantle.

Icon Films joins another UK prodco in shutting its doors in the first quarter of 2023, after Youngest Media, the unscripted firm set up by former Endemol Shine executives Lucas Church and David Flynn in 2016, closed down.

Deadline reported in mid-February that accountancy company Menzies had been appointed to close down Youngest as part of a ‘voluntary’ liquidation over the coming weeks, after the Small Fortune and Game of Clones producer ran into financial problems.