91Èȱ¬

Commissioning decisions are made on a rolling basis and through specific tenders and invitations to pitch. 

All submissions should be sent to us via .

What we do

91Èȱ¬ Cymru Wales commissioning team are at the forefront of the development and decision making process for drama, comedy and factual content on television and iPlayer. We commission the very best storytellers to do their very best work, portraying Wales as it is in all its forms with the intention of creating content to educate, inspire and entertain the whole of the UK. 

Current Opportunities

Our Lives

Our Lives returns for a 9th series

We are looking for ideas for single half hour films that will play at either 7 or 7.30 on 91Èȱ¬ 1. 3 of our films will form part of the network Our Lives series which includes 3 films from Northern Ireland, 3 from Scotland, 3 from England alongside the 3 from Wales. You can see the current run of Our Lives films on iPlayer. In addition we will commission films which may transmit only in Wales but will be seen on iplayer across the UK and may also receive a network transmission. So we are looking to commission at least 6 x 30. Usually films are made by different production companies.

Our ambition is for films that will really find their audience. The current series has been achieving audiences of between 1 and 1.6 million people on 91Èȱ¬1 network.

The series will reflect contemporary Wales in all its diversity and appeal to a mainstream audience. Often Our Lives films are about ordinary people doing extraordinary things, that could mean some kind of physical challenge but is more likely to be making something happen in a community. That community could be an actual place (such as Two Sisters’, One Goal) or people united by a passion (such as The Dinohunters). The films might be inspiring, heart warming, moving or entertaining. They might take us into a world we didn’t know about (Rockstar Shearers, Homing Instinct) or take us to an amazing place or landscape (Britain’s Busiest Mountain, One Man and His Island). We will also be looking to reflect geographic diversity in Wales.

Think about your title, the tone of your film and whose story you are telling. How can the film feel that it comes from the people or community themselves. How will you approach it as a director to make the film beautiful and engaging?

We have set a closing date for submissions of midnight on 18th November.

Delivery will ideally be by end of June 2025 although there may be some flexibility in this for an individual episode, depending on the idea.

Ideas should be submitted on , or if you are not registered on PiCoS then by email to commissioningwales@bbc.co.uk.

Who we are

Nick Andrews

Nick leads 91Èȱ¬ Wales commissioning across television, iPlayer and interactive platforms. He is part of the Commissioning Group which brings radio, television and online together for the first time to share cross-platform ideas and seek out bigger, bolder content.

His recent television commissions include hit crime dramas The Pact & Keeping Faith and factual series Wonders of the Celtic Deep. He has also been responsible for launching 91Èȱ¬ Wales comedy strategy green-lighting situational comedies The Tuckers and In My Skin.

Christina Macaulay

Christina has been a commissioning editor since 2012 working mainly on factual output. As well as working on ideas for 91Èȱ¬ Wales, many series have been shown on network: 91Èȱ¬1 (Our Lives; The Crash Detectives); 91Èȱ¬2 (Iolo’s Brecon Beacons, Rhod Gilbert on Infertility; A Special School, Kate Humble: Off the Beaten Track); 91Èȱ¬3 (Young Welsh and…..) and 91Èȱ¬4 (The Story of Welsh Art).

Recent commissions include factual films around anniversaries (Britannia’s Burning; Foot and Mouth 20 years since the pandemic; and a film about Peter Moore – Wales most notorious serial killer). Others include true crime series Dark Land; Iolo’s Anglesey; Rookie Cops. Critical: Coronavirus in Intensive Care was one of the standout films from last year.

Christina is also a board member of Ffilm Cymru.

Julian Carey

Julian is a Commissioning Editor and responsible for a wide range of content including series like A Killing In Tiger Bay, Slammed, Wonders of the Celtic Deep, Valley Cops and Back In Time for The Factory as well as single documentaries like Gareth Thomas: HIV and Me, Heroes of Helmandand The Merthyr Mermaid.

He has a long career in production as an award winning radio and television producer. He returned to the 91Èȱ¬ Wales in 2016 after working in development and production in the indie sector and making series for a number of broadcasters as well as the 91Èȱ¬.

Sian Harris

Sian Harris biog - Sian oversees an array of factual series and singles for 91Èȱ¬ One Wales and iPlayer and is co-execing several upcoming network co-commissions including 91Èȱ¬ Three/91Èȱ¬ Wales series Hot Cakes. She’s always seeking the best, fresh new ideas with big audience appeal and covers content from documentaries to popular factual and fact ent. Recent commissions include the triple BAFTA Cymru nominated Black and Welsh, Lily: A Transgender Story and successful rig show The Wedding Dress Shop. She’s passionate about younger-skewing content as well as championing new talent and runs the 91Èȱ¬ Cymru Wales New Documentary Directors’ Initiative. 

Paul Forde

Paul is responsible for the development and production of all comedy on 91Èȱ¬ Wales. Throughout a long career in TV and radio he has been a vocal supporter and champion of Welsh comedy.

He was Commissioning Editor for returning brands The Tuckers on 91Èȱ¬ One Wales and In My Skin on 91Èȱ¬3. He recently oversaw the development of the new sketch format ‘Age of Outrage’ along with several other pilot projects.

Paul is happy to receive unsolicited scripts and pitches and is particularly interested in working with Welsh Indies who would like to specialise in comedy.

Sorelle Neil

Sorelle joins the commissioning team after twenty years working on a wide variety of shows- her latest credit was producing 91Èȱ¬ Wales’s landmark documentary A Killing in Tiger Bay for 91Èȱ¬ Wales & 91Èȱ¬2.

A qualified journalist, she began her career in television news before moving onto the One Show and currently oversees a wide variety of 91Èȱ¬ Wales’ key returning strands including Weatherman Walking & X-Ray.

Karen Lyons

Karen leads talent development for 91Èȱ¬ Wales across all our television, audio and social platforms. She is passionate about finding the next generation of onscreen faces and continuing to develop our existing talent so they can flourish.

She is a qualified journalist and joins the commissioning team after more than 10 years working in production and development on a wide variety of programmes including the One Show, Crimewatch Roadshow and Amy Dowden: Body Shaming & Me.

Denise Mather

Denise has been in the industry for over 20 years and has a passion for making great content and getting the best out of talent and teams. She has worked on a range of high profile network programming across numerous genres including live and events, factual entertainment, competition formats, consumer, crime, documentary, travel and fixed rig series. She now works with the commissioning team in Wales across all factual content and with Jack Bootle’s Specialist Factual Team for network across History, Science, Religion & Ethics and Natural History. 

Nicola Cook

Nicola manages our Commissioning slate, and works closely with Nick and the team on areas such as commissioning process, annual spend and programme budgeting, sustainability and diversity. She also works closely with independent companies and their ideas submissions.

Amy Behan

Amy has joined the commissioning team as a Personal Assistant. She has had a passion for television and radio since her career at Warwick University studying English Literature and Theatre, and is excited to be a part of Commissioning at 91Èȱ¬ Cymru Wales.

How to get in touch

For general queries contact commissioningwales@bbc.co.uk

or write to us at The Commissioning Team, 91Èȱ¬ Cymru Wales, 3 Central Square, Cardiff CF10 1FS

Submissions

All submissions should be sent to us via .

For independent producers without a PiCoS account please contact a Commissioning Editor first to discuss your idea.

Please note -  Individuals and members of the public cannot use PiCoS. Please visit the skills and training area to find out how you can work with us and grow your career in television.

Drama
Please note that we are unable to accept unsolicited drama scripts/book submissions unless they come from represented writers (via an agent) or from independent production companies. If you are an unrepresented writer submit via the 91Èȱ¬â€™s Writersroom or make contact with an independent production company.Many of these independent companies are members of PACT or TAC - industry bodies representing the independent sector. They will be able to provide contact information for your chosen companies if necessary.

Comedy
We are primarily looking for scripted comedies from Welsh writers that tell a Welsh story and are rooted in Wales with wide appeal to a UK audience both in and outside Wales. We DO accept unsolicited scripts from individual writers, agents or production companies. At the moment we are not looking for sketch or panel show formats.