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☆ ‘Archie’ Review: Becoming Cary Grant
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-06 | by ( John Anderson | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Jason Isaacs Photo: ITV StudiosAmerican cinema died in 1966, a European friend used to say, because that’s when Cary Grant retired. The friend favored turtlenecks and mohair and was a style-extremist, but is Grant still held in such regard by anyone? As it happens, on the afternoon I watched the four-part “Archie”—Grant having been born Archibald Leach in 1904—Turner Classic Movies was devoting an entire day to Cary Grant movies. If there were a Mount Rushmore dedicated to matinee idols of the Golden Age of Hollywood, two of the four heads would belong to Cary Grant. You search Mr. Isaacs’s face for signs of Cary, and you find them, albeit in flashes; he has the walk, and a craggy version of Grant’s younger, springy, English-y inflection.

Persons: Jason Isaacs, Cary Grant, turtlenecks, Grant, Archie ” — Grant, Archibald Leach, — Turner, Mount Rushmore, Archie Thursday, Grant —, Chaplin, Mr, Isaacs, Lucius Malfoy, Harry Potter, Tavington, “ Archie ”, Isaacs’s, Cary Organizations: ITV Studios American, Mount Locations: European, America, “

LONDON, June 16 (Reuters) - Britain's ITV (ITV.L) is "actively exploring the possible acquisition" of production company All3Media, it said on Friday after Reuters reported the broadcaster's interest. One of Britain's leading independent production companies, All3Media is owned by Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.O) and Liberty Global (LBTYA.O). Sources told Reuters in a story released on Thursday that Warner Brothers could sell its All3Media holding while Liberty Global could retain a stake in a merged entity, which would comprise ITV Studios and All3Media. Speaking generally about its finances, ITV in March said that it had accessible funds of more than 1 billion pounds, comprising cash and undrawn debt facilities. In a potential deal, ITV would combine All3Media with the Studios business it has built to offset more volatile revenue from its advertising-dependent TV channels and new ITVX streaming service.

Persons: Kate Holton, William James, David Goodman Organizations: ITV, Reuters, Warner Bros Discovery, Liberty Global, Warner Brothers, ITV Studios, Thomson

Liberty Global could retain a stake in the merged entity, which would comprise ITV Studios and All3Media, the person said. Spokespeople for ITV, All3Media, Warner Bros. and Liberty Global declined to comment. Discovery and Liberty Global bought All3Media in 2014 for an enterprise value of about 550 million pounds. In a potential deal, ITV would combine All3Media with the Studios business it has built to offset more volatile revenue from its advertising-dependent TV channels and new ITVX streaming service. ITV Studios, which makes reality show "Love Island", grew revenue by 19% to 2.1 billion pounds and adjusted earnings by 22% to 259 million pounds in 2022.

Persons: Spokespeople, Amy, Jo Crowley, Paul Sandle, Elisa Martinuzzi, Hugh Lawson Organizations: ITV, Warner Bros Discovery Inc, Liberty Global, Warner Brothers, . Liberty Global, ITV Studios, All3Media, Reuters, Liberty, Warner Bros, JPMorgan, Discovery, Thomson

☆ UK streamer BritBox just inked a big Comcast deal and is poised to grab more US viewers with shows that go way beyond Agatha Christie
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

British streamer BritBox just scored a deal with Comcast as it eyes US expansion. BritBox is like other enthusiast streamers that have sustained growth while big SVODs' growth has slowed. BritBox International, the British-specialty streaming service backed by BBC Studios and ITV Studios, has big ambitions for growth. The Xfinity opportunity is "a real step change in terms of distribution and access," said Reemah Sakaan, CEO of BritBox International. But BritBox sees itself in a good position to complement the big streamers — as British content moves into the mainstream and interest in high-quality, international content grows.

Persons: it's, Comcast's, BritBox, Reemah Sakaan, Agatha Christie's Poirot, Matthew Macfadyen, John Stonehouse, Frannie Langton, Jed Mercurio's, Mercurio's, Cary Grant, Archie, Jason Isaacs, Harry Potter, Matthew Macfadyen's, Brian Cox, Logan Roy, Robert Schildhouse, King Charles, Sakaan, We've Organizations: Comcast, BritBox, BBC Studios, ITV Studios, AMC, BET, Netflix, Hulu, US, Amazon's, Disney, Labor, Warner Bros, Hollywood, Writers ' Guild of Great Locations: British, Canada, Australia, Scandinavia, " Stonehouse, BritBox, American, Stonehouse, North America, Writers ' Guild of Great Britain

☆ Formula 1 is making its first scripted TV show in a move to build on the success of 'Drive to Survive' and expand the sport's media prowess
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Ashley Rodriguez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The motorsport is expanding its media reach after the docuseries "Drive to Survive" brought it to new audiences. Felicity Jones is set to star in and co-produce the show, which comes from Bedrock Entertainment. Formula 1 is moving into scripted TV following its success with the docuseries "Drive to Survive" with a new family drama set in the racing world. As with "Drive to Survive," F1 plans to offer producers access to the sport to help make the show a success. Bedrock Entertainment and F1 said they will "leverage the combined access and power of F1 to create a seamless and authentic world, blending fiction with the real world."

Persons: Felicity Jones, Tony, Dan Sackheim, Felicity Jones —, Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Joseph Kosinski, Jerry Bruckheimer, Lewis Hamilton, Peyton Manning's, Will Arnett, Daniel Ricciardo Organizations: Bedrock Entertainment, ITV Studios, Entertainment, Pictures, B Entertainment, Netflix, Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions, ESPN, Paramount Locations: Hollywood, Austin

The business has been valued at as much as 3 billion pounds ($3.7 billion), according to analysts. "But we do see a pathway whereby, via consolidation, ITV may be able to simultaneously both demonstrate and create value from ITV Studios," they said. ITV built up its Studios production business in the last decade to reduce its reliance on the British advertising market and tap into rising global demand for content. Revenue in the nine months to end-September rose 16% to 1.39 billion pounds ($1.71 billion). That would imply a valuation of about 3 billion pounds, in line with analysts' calculations and nearly as much as ITV's total market value of 3.27 billion pounds.

☆ FTSE 100 climbs ahead of Hunt's fiscal plans
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Sruthi Shankar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index (.FTSE) gained 0.5%, while the domestically focussed FTSE 250 index (.FTMC) climbed 0.6%. The pound jumped 0.8% and government bonds rallied ahead of Hunt's announcement at 1000 GMT, which is expected to detail plans to raise taxes and spend lesser than previously planned. read more read moreRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"The markets have reacted positively to Hunt's expedited timeline, which alleviates some of the fiscal uncertainty," said Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor. Truss on Friday reversed some of the tax cut measures, and replaced Kwasi Kwarteng with Hunt. Meanwhile, the Bank of England (BoE) on Friday concluded its emergency bond purchases aimed at supporting the gilts market.

☆ ITV explores options for its production arm, including sale, Financial Times reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 16 (Reuters) - British commercial broadcaster ITV (ITV.L) is reviewing the future of its production arm ITV studios, including whether to sell a stake, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. Britain's biggest free-to-air commercial broadcaster has recently fielded expressions of interest in ITV Studios, the report said citing people familiar with the discussions. Potential buyers include private equity groups and other large independent producers such as Bertelsmann's Freemantle or FL Entertainment, the parent company of Banijay, the newspaper added. An ITV spokesperson declined to comment on the FT report. ($1 = 0.8953 pounds)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Jaiveer Singh Shekhawat in Bengaluru; Editing by Alexandra HudsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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