Primetime dramas on BBC Northern Ireland
BBC Northern Ireland and Northern Ireland Screen bring viewers Primetime, two original dramas penned by new local writers.
The two 60-minute dramas, filmed on locations in Northern Ireland, by Mammoth Screen, are on BBC Two Northern Ireland on Sunday, 26th February and 4th March at 9pm.
The first, Primetime - At Water’s Edge, tells the story of Beth (Andrea Irvine) who has been trying for years to have a baby. As another birthday approaches she decides to give IVF treatment one final try but a fatal car accident spins her life into a new direction.
At Water’s Edge was written by first time TV writers Dean and Glynis Hagan and is on BBC Two Northern on Sunday, February 26 at 9pm.
Dean has been writing for years but this is the first time he has teamed up with his wife Glynis.
Living in Newtownabbey, Dean and Glynis felt dramas reflecting the true experience of family life in Northern Ireland were missing from our screens.
Dean said: “We feel that there is much about our culture that is universal in life experience, but what is unique to us is our biting wit and our ability to cry, laugh and survive adversity.
In Primetime - A Year of Greater Love on BBC Two Northern Ireland, Sunday, March 4 at 9pm, Emma discovers her daughter Alice has a degenerative kidney disease and needs a donor. She decides against her sister’s wishes to dredge up the family past and track down her adopted brother.
Patrick FitzSymons is the writer behind the script A Year Of Greater Love and lives near Dunseverick on the North Coast. He already has an extensive career as an actor for TV, radio and film including BBC Northern Ireland dramas Brendan Smyth:Betrayal Of Trust and Scapegoat.
He was inspired to start writing. to get back to what motivated him in the first place - good stories.
Patrick said: "In writing A Year of Greater Love I hoped to examine the impact of abnormal circumstances on normal family life, to create a situation in which those senses of duty and obligation felt between those related by blood are stretched to the limit. Where does our duty to family end and our duty to our fellow human beings begin?"
Ailsa Orr, Head of Programmes BBC Northern Ireland, said: “We are delighted to broadcast the two Primetime films as part of our original homegrown drama season on BBCNI. They are both great films, written, produced and filmed here in Northern Ireland, starring local actors. We hope our audiences enjoy them.”
Andrew Reid, Head of Production at Northern Ireland Screen, added: “The quantity and quality of applications that we received for Primetime when it launched in November 2010 proves that new writing talent is alive and flourishing in Northern Ireland.
“Primetime has offered Patrick, Dean and Glynis a unique opportunity to get their work produced by one of the UK’s top independent drama companies, Mammoth Screen and broadcast on BBC Northern Ireland. We are very excited to see the results on-screen now, I’m sure they will be a testimony to our belief in the creative talent within Northern Ireland.”
Michele Buck, Joint Managing Director, Mammoth Screen and Executive Producer of Primetime said: “Primetime has been instrumental in strengthening our on-going relationship with Northern Ireland. We thoroughly enjoyed working with the considerable creative expertise that already exists along with discovering some new and exciting emerging talent.”
The production of Primetime received funding from the Northern Ireland Screen Fund supported by Invest NI and part funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
Related stories
Primetime scripts announced
Primetime finalists announced