According to Broadcastnow.co.uk (subscription required), independent drama production company, Kudos, is up for a sale with a tasty price tag of £40 million knicker. This has probably been a long-time coming and it’s surprising the hugely successful outfit with a stylish track record hasn’t been snapped up by an uber-indie before now.
Of all the companies out there producing drama, Kudos, more than any other, always hits my viewing spot with its CV of shows, ranging from Spooks and Life on Mars, to Hustle and The Amazing Mrs Pritchard. They are stylish, exciting, well directed, well acted and artfully scripted. My hope is for the sale is that co-managing directors Jane Featherstone and Stephen Garrett aren’t just looking to make a quick buck, but are seeking to ally themselves with a company that can provide greater resources to tackle even more challenging productions.
As for potential buyers, industry talk is pointing to Dutch company Eyeworks, which has interests in many world markets. The organisation’s chief interests are in the reality genre, but in September a press release was issued announcing Eyeworks’ taking a 50 percent stake in US production company 3Ball Productions. While 3Ball is still mainly involved in the reality game, if Kudos is bought by Eyeworks, then this could open up an exciting new outlet for Kudos to move into. Indeed, some episodes of the upcoming fourth series of Hustle have been shot in the US.
TV Today will watch developments here with interest…
Spooks is fast becoming The Stage's new 'Doctor Who' - mentioned in nearly every article....
It's quite hard to do a piece about Kudos and not mention the company's most popular venture... :-)