91Èȱ¬

We commission history programmes that cover everything from the ancient world to the story of the last few decades. That said, programmes with certain distinct attributes do well for us and it’s worth bearing in mind the time-periods, styles and approaches detailed below before pitching us ideas.

It’s also worth thinking about what co-production finance your idea might attract. This isn’t simply about adding value, but developing big ideas that will resonate with both national and international audiences. Note that ideas don’t have to be pitched to us with money already attached.

There are also opportunities to co-commission programmes together with 91Èȱ¬ teams in the Nations. For these pitches to be successful they must resonate locally but also have the broad appeal to attract a UK-wide audience as well.

Our commissioning needs

1. Contemporary history

Rare or unseen archive and insider testimony are key components for all our contemporary history.

The Space Shuttle That Fell to Earth used previously unseen archive coupled with emotive interviews with families and NASA employees to deliver a powerful retelling of a tragic event, with important lessons for the future of manned space flight.

Testimony-driven series must get ‘inside the room’ to gain a privileged perspective, as exemplified by our three-part series The Elon Musk Show which profiled Musk’s rise to prominence over the course of the last two decades through interviews and testimony from those closest to him, giving a fresh perspective on a character that has made his own headlines. Our forthcoming series (working title) promises similarly high levels of access to key protagonists in the Ukrainian President’s origin story.

Meanwhile, over 10 million viewers have seen Elizabeth: The Unseen Queen, showing the appeal of uncovering previously unseen archive, in this case shedding new light on an extremely well-known story using home movie footage to provide a fresh perspective inside the Royal Family.

As these examples demonstrate, these types of programmes tend to explore individual personalities, or forensically unpack discrete events. Rather than telling the history of a whole subject area, they provide a narrow entry-point through which to shed light on a period in our recent history.

What other precincts or important moments in the last five decades could we revisit with this approach in mind? This could be grass-roots history, testimony from the front-lines, or perspectives from the top tables of power.

Our contemporary history can be commissioned as 60-minute single films, feature length documentaries or series of anything from one to five episodes, depending on the subject matter.

2. Boxset factual

We want factual series that the audience can consume multiple episodes of back to back on iPlayer. As well as iconic subject matter this is about a depth of story-telling detail. Tight character driven narratives, in-depth psychological examinations and new points of view drive successful ideas in this space – and each episode must leave audiences wanting to come back for more. Think about how the story arc unfolds so that they entice viewers to consume multiple episodes in one sitting on iPlayer.

To tempt new audiences and bring the closed worlds of the recent past to life we have combined first-person testimony and drama-documentary in several forthcoming boxset series, including Secrets and Spies: A Nuclear Game and .

Our boxsets cover contemporary history but can also go deeper in time. Rise of the Nazis - which grew to four series of three episodes each - is a perfect example of this type of idea. In pre-20th century history Julius Caesar: The Making of a Dictator tackles the ancient world in a boxset way. By focusing on narrow timeframes and using individual experts to forensically unpack the actions of a key character, these series explore iconic historical events in a thoroughly modern way. What other programme-making approaches could we employ in this type of boxset history?

3. Big singles

Ambitious single films can have a huge impact on both iPlayer and the channels, but they have to work hard to gain the traction we need. Ideas for singles must be best-in-class or guarantee to grab media headlines so they can create word of mouth buzz to draw in audiences. Subjects have to feel big and hit the schedules with as much noise as possible and stand out on the iPlayer homepage. They can’t be lost in the crowd.

We’ve had success with access-driven singles like the award-winning 9/11: Inside the President’s War Room, the rare archive of Elizabeth: The Unseen Queen, or the new discoveries in How the Holocaust Began. These ideas have the scale of impact we are looking for.

4. Landmark

We are actively looking for the next evolution in landmark programming. The four-part series Union with David Olusoga was a huge critical and ratings success. It examined the history of the whole UK over the last 500 years in a way that felt both timely and fresh, bringing ambition and scale to our national story. We want more ideas that promise this sort of definitive approach to a subject.

Landmark series are often presenter-led, but we also want to explore new ideas that challenge this form or modernise the genre. How can we innovate in the way we cover landmark style series, while tackling history that the whole nation can embrace?

5. New talent

We are also looking to commission single films that break-out the next generation of expert presenting talent. These will need two vital ingredients: standout talent working professionally in the field and a standout idea that will bring in a big audience. To be successful, we need both. These commissions might reveal new journalism, or tackle urgent subjects that only the 91Èȱ¬ would cover, or they could mark key anniversaries.

6. Returnable history

Premium returnable history formats remain a cornerstone of our success, with Who Do You Think You Are?, Digging For Britain and A House Through Time.

We’re always interested in the next returnable history hit which can turn into a brand. Ideas must appeal to a broad audience, have a real clarity of proposition to attract viewers on linear and be instantly graspable for iPlayer, with a strong story engine or format so it can keep returning at volume.

Unscripted on iPlayer

Read about how we commission unscripted content in an iPlayer first-world, along with advice and further resources to maximise the impact of your programme on the platform.