Leeds-based fledging indie Hell Fire! has optioned a crime trilogy written by two former police officers who consulted on police dramas including Happy Valley.
The scripted indie, which was set up in 2019 by Andrew Dorée, Nate Camponi and Chief Productions owner Colin Offland, is developing a drama called Mann (w/t) based on the novels Payback, Condemned and Persecution, following Yorkshire-born female detective Charley Mann.
The novels are written by former West Yorkshire Police senior investigating officer Bob Bridgestock and his wife Carol, a former senior clerical officer, who write under the alias R.C. Bridgestock. The pair have previously provided storyline and police procedural consultancy for crime series including BBC1’s Happy Valley, ITV’s Scott & Bailey, and Britbox original The Beast Must Die.
They co-founded TV consultancy Walking The Line in 2020 with production consultant Sarah Jarvis.
Hell Fire!’s Dorée said the production is the result of its “close and longstanding connection” with the Bridgestocks.
“Charley Mann is a character with deep northern and working-class roots – she’s not afraid to disrupt and go against the grain, and neither are we,” he said.
Co-founder Camponi added: “What we want to avoid is a straight up ‘damaged female copper’ trope. She’s actually a lot more layered than that, maybe even a bit Christian Grey. She’s determined, dominant and promiscuous.
“She also shares many of the traits of Clarice Starling from Silence of the Lambs in terms of drive and fearlessness. She rides this line between super-cop and someone on the edge. And her thought process is often aligned to criminals she’s hunting.”
Bob Bridgestock said the protagonist is “a brew of all the policewomen who had to overcome rampant sexism”.
“To bring her to TV we knew we were looking for an exciting, off-beat, high end scripted northern-connected TV production team, who we could entrust with our name, brand, livelihood, handwork and passion that we’ve built over a lifetime. Our connection with Hell Fire! is built on trust and sharing the same values,” he said.
Hell Fire! is also developing a true-crime docu-drama series Murder Box (w/t) fronted by Bob Bridgestock, examining some of his most gripping and high-profile criminal cases, using never seen before evidence and archive police footage mixed with interviews and cinematic reconstruction.
From Broadcast Now article | Elli Kahn
The scripted indie, which was set up in 2019 by Andrew Dorée, Nate Camponi and Chief Productions owner Colin Offland, is developing a drama called Mann (w/t) based on the novels Payback, Condemned and Persecution, following Yorkshire-born female detective Charley Mann.
The novels are written by former West Yorkshire Police senior investigating officer Bob Bridgestock and his wife Carol, a former senior clerical officer, who write under the alias R.C. Bridgestock. The pair have previously provided storyline and police procedural consultancy for crime series including BBC1’s Happy Valley, ITV’s Scott & Bailey, and Britbox original The Beast Must Die.
They co-founded TV consultancy Walking The Line in 2020 with production consultant Sarah Jarvis.
Hell Fire!’s Dorée said the production is the result of its “close and longstanding connection” with the Bridgestocks.
“Charley Mann is a character with deep northern and working-class roots – she’s not afraid to disrupt and go against the grain, and neither are we,” he said.
Co-founder Camponi added: “What we want to avoid is a straight up ‘damaged female copper’ trope. She’s actually a lot more layered than that, maybe even a bit Christian Grey. She’s determined, dominant and promiscuous.
“She also shares many of the traits of Clarice Starling from Silence of the Lambs in terms of drive and fearlessness. She rides this line between super-cop and someone on the edge. And her thought process is often aligned to criminals she’s hunting.”
Bob Bridgestock said the protagonist is “a brew of all the policewomen who had to overcome rampant sexism”.
“To bring her to TV we knew we were looking for an exciting, off-beat, high end scripted northern-connected TV production team, who we could entrust with our name, brand, livelihood, handwork and passion that we’ve built over a lifetime. Our connection with Hell Fire! is built on trust and sharing the same values,” he said.
Hell Fire! is also developing a true-crime docu-drama series Murder Box (w/t) fronted by Bob Bridgestock, examining some of his most gripping and high-profile criminal cases, using never seen before evidence and archive police footage mixed with interviews and cinematic reconstruction.
From Broadcast Now article | Elli Kahn
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