BBC AMERICA TO CO-PRODUCE NEW DRAMAVILLE SERIES

Ripper Street has begun filming on location in Dublin

New York - Monday, March 19, 2012 - BBC AMERICA is co-producing an extraordinary new crime series, Ripper Street, to premiere as part of BBC AMERICA's Dramaville this fall. Filming has started on location in Dublin from March 12. The eight part series, created by Richard Warlow, set in and around Whitechapel in London's East End in 1889, during the aftermath of the Jack The Ripper murders.

Ripper Street will star Matthew Macfadyen (MI-5, Pride and Prejudice), Jerome Flynn (Game of Thrones), Adam Rothenberg (Alcatraz), Myanna Buring (The Twilight Saga, White Heat) and David Dawson (Luther, Secret Diary of a Call Girl). The action centers on the notorious H Division, which is charged with keeping order in the chaotic streets of East London.

Ripper Street is produced for the BBC by Tiger Aspect Productions, Lookout Point and BBC AMERICA. The project is Executive Produced by Greg Brenman and Will Gould at Tiger Aspect and by Simon Vaughan at Lookout Point. The series was commissioned by BBC Head of Drama, Ben Stephenson and Danny Cohen. Polly Hill is Executive Producer for BBC1.

Ripper Street is being made with the participation of Bord Scannén na hÉireann/Irish Film Board. BBC Worldwide is distributing the series globally.

BBC AMERICA's SVP of Programming, Richard De Croce said: "We're thrilled that Ripper Street is coming to our channel as part of Dramaville, the home of outstanding British drama. To this day, audiences continue to be fascinated by Jack The Ripper and the events in Whitechapel in the late 19th Century. This script and cast are going to take us for a great ride. We're excited to be involved in such an ambitious production with Tiger Aspect and Lookout Point."

Tiger Aspect's Head of Drama Greg Brenman added, "We are so excited to have started production and be seeing these glorious scripts by Richard Warlow come to life. There is so much zest and urgency in Ripper Street that I honestly believe we're helping re-define the accepted notion of British period drama."

Simon Vaughan, who came up with the concept for the show and who, with BBC Worldwide, has brokered the deal with BBC AMERICA said, "The hunt for Jack The Ripper was the first ever global media man hunt - and somehow still stirs a macabre fascination in the public more than 120 years later. This is an iconic subject and we are delighted to be producing this as a UK/US co-production allowing us to deliver major production values and make a very ambitious series."

James Hickey, Chief Executive, Bord Scannén na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board said: "We are delighted that Ripper Street is filming on location in Ireland. We very much welcome the opportunity this major drama series will give to Irish talent both in front of and behind the camera."

The filming of Ripper Street will continue until late July.

BBC AMERICA delivers US audiences high-quality, innovative and intelligent programming. Established in 1998, it has been the launch pad for talent embraced by American mainstream pop culture, including Ricky Gervais, Gordon Ramsay, Graham Norton, and successful programming formats including ground-breaking non-scripted television like Top Gear and top-rated science-fiction like Doctor Who. Owned by BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, BBC AMERICA has attracted both critical acclaim and major awards including an Emmy(R), five Golden Globes(R) and ten Peabody Awards. The channel attracts one of cable's most affluent and educated audiences and is available on digital cable and satellite TV in more than 76 million homes. It broadcasts in both standard and high-definition, with content available On Demand across all major digital platforms. Online, www.bbcamerica.com is the place to go to dig deeper into pop culture with a British twist.

Tiger Aspect Productions, an Endemol company, is internationally recognised as one of the UK's most successful and prolific independent television producers. The company portfolio includes children/animation, comedy, drama, entertainment and factual/features genres. Originally founded in 1989 by the distinguished duo of Peter Bennett-Jones and Rowan Atkins Tiger Aspect creates a wide range of critically acclaimed and award-winning programming for all the UK's major terrestrial and non-terrestrial broadcasters. In addition the company's creative output now enjoys an increasingly high profile in the globally through its commissions for major international networks. Tiger's production slate includes primetime mainstream successes for BBC1 and ITV such as Robin Hood (3 series), Murphy's Law (4 series), Mr Bean, The Vicar of Dibley, Benidorm, The Catherine Tate Show, Harry Enfield, Gimme, Gimme, Gimme, The Thin Blue Line and Charlie and Lola. Tiger's programming is built on our relationship with the best on offer in UK talent. The company's belief in nurturing and supporting creativity on every level means that Tiger consistently attracts the UK's ultimate in on-screen, writing and production talent. This has resulted in further brand extension with Tiger enjoying global recognition through film, (Tiger Aspect Pictures - Billy Elliot) and theatre (Our House - Madness Musical).

Lookout Point is an independent media rights company specialising in international high-end event drama. Established by producer and financier Simon Vaughan, Lookout Point harnesses the global marketplace to develop, produce, finance and distribute high quality television. The company has a strategic relationship with BBC Worldwide for distribution and works in partnership with production companies globally. In 2011, Lookout Point Executive Produced Combat Hospital -ABC/Shaw Media's medical procedural drama and the ambitious BBC/HBO mini-series Parade's End. And this month broadcasters around the globe will screen Julian Fellowes' Titanic, which Lookout Point co-produced with ITV STUDIOS. In the last 10 years, Simon Vaughan has structured series, movies and mini-series with combined production budgets in excess of $500 million, including Ben Hur for ABC, CBS's hit drama Flashpoint, BBC/TNT's The Company and Lifetime's Coco Chanel.