BBC AMERICA AND BBC ONE ANNOUNCE NEW DRAMA SERIES "THE LIVING AND THE DEAD"

Ghost hunter drama from Life on Mars creators is co-produced by BBC AMERICA and BBC Wales Drama Production

BBC AMERICA and BBC One announce new 6 X 60' drama series, The Living and the Dead, written by Ashley Pharoah and Matthew Graham, co-creators and writers of Life on Mars, Ashes To Ashes and Eternal Law. Ashley has also created dramas including Where The Heart Is, Wild At Heart and Moonfleet; Matthew's original dramas include The Last Train, POW and Walk Away and I Stumble. It is co-produced by BBC Wales Drama Production and BBC AMERICA in association with Monastic Productions for BBC One.

Somerset, England, 1888. A land and a community on the edge of monumental change, on the great hinge between ancient traditional ways and an industrial, scientific future. A land of ghosts and myths, poltergeists and demons - if there was ever a time for those ghosts to rise out of the ground, this would be that time. At the heart of this small community is Nathan Appleby, a reluctant gentleman farmer who is obsessed with proving the existence of the afterlife.

In the new original drama, this complex and compelling man will investigate hauntings, paranormal happenings, and ghostly visitations, encouraged by the Society for Psychical Research. But as these terrifying investigations become ever more frequent and ever more scary, Nathan starts to see and hear disturbing things that he simply cannot have imagined. Will Nathan's interest in the occult begin to threaten his family, his livelihood and even his sanity?

Writer-creators Ashley Pharoah and Matthew Graham says: "We are as excited about this show as anything since Life On Mars and Ashes to Ashes - we want it to be moving, tender, sensual... and very, very scary."

Richard De Croce, SVP Programming, BBC AMERICA adds, "We look forward to teaming up once again with Ashley Pharoah, Matthew Graham and our colleagues in the BBC on a drama that will haunt and thrill our Supernatural Saturday audience."

The executive producers are Ashley Pharoah and Matthew Graham for Monastic Productions, and Faith Penhale, Head of BBC Wales Drama Production, and Katie McAleese for BBC Wales Drama Production. It will be distributed internationally by BBC Worldwide.

It will shoot in the West Country of England next year and casting will be announced in due course.

Note to editors:

BBC AMERICA delivers U.S. 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 two Emmy(R) Awards, five Golden Globes(R) and eleven Peabody Awards. The channel attracts one of cable's most affluent and educated audiences and is available on cable and satellite TV in 80 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.