Scripted

SVT and TV2 Norway have secured a raft of scripted, factual and natural history titles ahead of MIPCOM, including Hidden Planet, Doctor Foster S3 and Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms.

BBC Studios is heading to MIPCOM 2026 with early sales already secured across the Nordics, confirming major pre-sale agreements with Sweden’s SVT and Norway’s TV2 for a range of new and returning titles from its upcoming slate.

SVT has signed a significant unscripted package including landmark natural history productions Blue Planet III, Green Planet II and MIPCOM launch title Hidden Planet, alongside specialist factual title The Diary of Anne Frank (w/t), a new season of A Life in Ten Pictures and returning brands Antiques Roadshow and Where the Wild Men Are with Ben Fogle.

The Swedish public broadcaster has also expanded its scripted relationship with BBC Studios, pre-buying Sherwood S3, Unforgotten S7 and Silent Witness S30, alongside recent seasons of Call the Midwife and The Chelsea Detective. Earlier seasons of Sherwood, Unforgotten and The Chelsea Detective will also be available as FVOD boxsets.

In Norway, TV2 has secured a major scripted package led by Doctor Foster S3 and new Call the Midwife prequel Sisters in Arms. The agreement also includes Deadpoint and Agatha Christie’s Tommy & Tuppence, as well as earlier seasons of Call the Midwife, Death in Paradise, Doctor Foster, Happy Valley, The Split and The Split: Barcelona. The titles will be available on demand through TV2 Play.

“As we head to MIPCOM, we’re bringing a fresh lineup of titles that combine exceptional craft, cutting-edge technology and a rich mix of new stories from acclaimed creative talent,” said Zai Bennett, CEO & Chief Creative Officer, BBC Studios Global Content, adding that the deals with SVT and TV2 Norway reflect early confidence in the company’s upcoming slate.

Among the key scripted launches at MIPCOM is Shy & Lola, produced by Clerkenwell Films for BBC iPlayer and BBC One in association with ZDFneo. The 6 x 60’ dark comedy stars Hayley Squires and Bel Powley as two very different women who become unlikely allies after a murder draws them into the criminal underworld of a small coastal town in northern England. Written by Amanda Coe, with additional episodes by Emilie Robson and Alys Metcalf, the drama is based on French series Cheyenne et Lola.

BBC Studios Fiction will also launch Time S3 (3 x 60’), written by Jimmy McGovern and Samuel Bailey. Set inside a Young Offenders Institution, the new instalment explores the impact of youth incarceration on both teenagers and those responsible for them. The cast includes David Tennant, Siobhan Finneran, Daniel Ryan, Jo Joyner, Vinette Robinson, Louis McCartney, Ollie McNulty and Chukwubuikem Molokwu.

Another major return is Doctor Foster S3 (5 x 60’), created and written by Mike Bartlett and produced by Drama Republic. Ten years after the original events, Suranne Jones returns as Gemma Foster, whose attempt to start a new life is disrupted when unresolved elements from her past resurface in the run-up to her wedding.

The Call the Midwife universe, meanwhile, expands with Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms (3 x 60’), a prequel set in Poplar during World War Two. The series comes from showrunner Heidi Thomas and executive producers Pippa Harris and Ann Tricklebank and features younger versions of familiar characters, with Jenny Agutter narrating as the older Sister Julienne.

On the comedy side, BBC Studios will introduce Bill’s Included (6 x 30’), starring Rob Brydon as Bill Beam, a divorced homeowner who rents rooms to students in an attempt to stay financially afloat, only to find himself becoming an unconventional honorary housemate. The series is produced by Baby Cow for BBC iPlayer and BBC One.

Also on the slate is feature film Ghosts: The Possession of Button House, produced by Monumental Television for BBC Film and BBC Studios and based on the hit BBC sitcom Ghosts. The story sees the residents of Button House dealing with life without Alison and Mike before construction work on a planned hotel creates a new supernatural problem.

In factual, Hidden Planet (5 x 60’) will be one of BBC Studios’ headline MIPCOM launches. Produced by the BBC Studios Natural History Unit and co-produced with BBC America, the series uses pioneering robotic technology, bespoke lenses and advanced imaging techniques to explore the extraordinary world of insects on a cinematic scale.

Focusing on character-driven stories, the series reveals insects as parents, architects, communicators, hunters and collaborators, while also examining their fundamental role in sustaining ecosystems and the increasing threats facing insect populations worldwide.

BBC Studios’ MIPCOM activity will also include the keynote “From Idea to Global IP: Building Brands That Last”, featuring Zai Bennett alongside BBC Chief Content Officer Kate Phillips and BBC Studios CEO Brands & Licensing Shelley Macintyre, on Tuesday 13 October at the Grand Auditorium in Cannes.

BBC Studios will be located at P0.E1 in the Palais des Festivals’ Verrière section.