Industry

 STUDIOCANAL, Europe’s leader in production, distribution and international sales of TV series and feature films has made a significant investment in new U.K. production house Birdie Pictures announcing the company’s first project.

Award-winning Founder and CEO of indie Birdie Pictures, Phil Temple (Code 404, Two Weeks to Live, The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies, The Last Kingdom, Stan Lee’s Lucky Man,) was formerly Executive Producer at Kudos, where he was most recently working on This Town by Steven Knight for BBC One.
The first project is The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angeles,  by best-selling author, Janice Hallett (The Twyford Code, The Appeal) whose right's book was optioned by StudioCanal. The mystery thriller went straight into the Sunday Times Bestseller list in its first week of release and has been universally praised by critics.

Fearless and enigmatic true-crime author, Amanda Bailey, is writing a book about the Alperton Angels. Eighteen years ago, this small cult of men convinced two of its young members their newborn baby was the anti-Christ, and that they had a divine purpose to destroy it. Luckily, the teenagers escaped before this ritual sacrifice could take place and all three disappeared into the care system. The cult imploded in a gruesome mass suicide, after which its only surviving member – charismatic leader Gabriel – was imprisoned for life. This explosive story has fueled the imaginations of fiction writers for the best part of two decades.

Amanda is on the case now because the baby has just turned 18 and, as an adult, can finally be interviewed. A scoop like that could revive Bailey’s flagging career. However, her old nemesis - rival author Oliver Menzies – is also looking for the baby. Forced to collaborate, they discover that what everyone thinks they know about the Alperton Angels is wrong... the truth is much darker and stranger than anyone ever imagined.