Popular Factual and Formats

Overall, we’re looking for...

Strong bold, and innovative popular factual formats that have strong Scottish portrayal at their heart, with the potential to work as returnable network co commissions. Designing The Hebrides, and Martin Compston’s Scottish Fling are recent examples of where this collaboration has worked well for us.

We are also interested in hearing ideas that would play well solely on the BBC Scotland Channel. Again, these ideas must have a strong Scottish DNA at their heart and authentically portray a modern vibrant Scotland.

The holy grail for me are formats and ideas that will play particularly well for our underserved audiences. In particular I’m looking to lean into our C2DE and family audiences.

As always ideas should be feisty, bold and original popular factual entertainment formats or lifestyle features that reflect a vibrant, modern, diverse and contemporary Scotland.

• Ideas that embrace the geographic and social spread of the nation using a variety of voices (think Designing The Hebrides and Jules and Greg’s Wild Swim).

• Ambitious & achievable treatments with innovative format devices (think Loggerheads)

• Entry into worlds that audiences don’t normally see or have access to (think The Agency: Unfiltered).

Finding and developing new talent is also a priority for us. Where is the next tranche of Scottish celebrities coming from? Authenticity, accessibility and warmth are qualities I’m particularly on the lookout for.

Who is the new fresh talent that will really resonate with our Scottish generation Zs. Tonally I am looking for them to be noisy, fun, aspirational and feisty whilst at the same time reflecting a young, sassy, confident and contemporary modern Scotland.

CURRENT OPPORTUNITIES  

New Commissioning opportunity

BBC Scotland and BBC Religion and Ethics are interested in hearing ideas which explore the below trend:

Young people are now less likely to identify as being part of an established religion than many of their older cohorts, whilst at the same time being a lot more likely to identify as being spiritual, and have a belief in some sort of afterlife.

Using the rich backdrop of local mythology, superstitions, haunted places and spaces, unusual spiritual practices or extraordinary experiences - how can we explore this area in a visually engaging, and dynamic way?

We understand that there are a number of series rooted in the supernatural and the unexplained, so, successful ideas need to offer something new in this space. Is there talent leading the way in this area on social media or online who could work for TV? What are the stories, voices, places and spaces across Scotland and the rest of the UK that will appeal to an audience across the Nations?

All proposals should look at this request through the prism of our younger audiences. How do we grab their attention and keep them engaged on this journey? How can we bring these stories to life and how can we engage social media and other platforms to amplify the content?

Pitches should be submitted to PiCoS for the attention of Steve Allen.

Deadline 31st July 2025

BBC SCOTLAND TV CHANNEL EVENTS

BBC Scotland channel will have its own distinct coverage, reaching festivals and other events across Scotland. In addition the channel would want to create landmark event programming in its own right, which can have a significant impact in the cultural life of Scotland. Innovative treatments for existing events, along with new proposals are encouraged. In addition what can the BBC Scotland channel do in partnership with our Radio and Digital services and with BBC Alba?

Various durations, depending on event

Up to £100k per hour

Genre: Popular Factual

Channel: BBC Scotland

Commissioner: Steve Allen

BBC ONE SCOTLAND

From traditional celebrations like Hogmanay and Burns Night through to the wealth of music and arts festivals like Edinburgh and Belladrum, Scotland’s calendar is filled with these landmark celebrations and events. Across all our services we are looking to reflect what is happening across modern Scotland, and to provide “the best seat in the house” for our audiences.

We are especially keen to look at Music proposals that we could commission in partnership with BBC Alba.

Across all platforms we’d be keen to look at new treatments for significant events in the calendar, e.g. St Andrew’s Night.

Steve Allen

Steve previously worked for the BBC and Indies as a Self-Shooting PD and Edit Producer on Specialist Factual, Factual Entertainment and Current Affairs formats.

His credits include: Highland Emergency, Drugs Inc, Location Location Location, Antiques Road Trip, Air Ambulance ER, Inside the World’s Toughest Prisons, The One Show.