A new report from Oliver & Ohlbaum Associates Ltd (O&O), commissioned by Screen Scotland, reveals that much of the BBC’s “Scottish” quota has been commissioned from London and produced by London headquartered production companies via Scottish branch offices.
O&O reviewed Ofcom data on projects commissioned by the UK’s public service broadcaster (PSB) network channels that qualified as “Scottish” across the period 2014 to 2022. The top 15 producers of programmes allocated to Scotland by the Public Sector Broadcasters in terms of number of episodes between 2014 and 2022 were identified. 97% of the episodes made by these producers had been commissioned by the BBC or Channel 4.
Key takeaways include:
- Only five of the Top 15 “Scottish” producers (by hours commissioned) were headquartered in Scotland over the period.
- The remaining ten were head-quartered in London, and their output qualified as Scottish under Ofcom’s current Guidance on regional production and regional programme definitions. In many cases they relied on the Ofcom criterion of having a ‘substantive base’ (branch office) in Scotland.
- The BBC and Channel 4 have adopted very different approaches to meeting their production obligations.
- Only two of the 11 suppliers mainly used by the BBC in the Top 15 “Scottish” producers, were companies formed and headquartered in Scotland, compared with three out of four that mainly supplied Channel 4.
- 80% of the total episodes made by the Top 15 for the BBC were commissioned from producers headquartered in London, compared to only 43% of the total episodes commissioned by Channel 4.
The research was commissioned by Screen Scotland ahead of the implementation of the Media Act 2024, the upcoming Public Service Media Review from Ofcom and BBC Charter Renewal in 2027.
The research looked at the impact of the Communications Act 2003, the main legislative change for the UK’s TV sector prior to the new Media Act 2024. The Communications Act marked a new era for independent production in the UK, introducing diversity of supply, competition and the introduction of Nations & Regions quotas, regulated by Ofcom.
Screen Scotland is concerned that, where a company has a substantive base in Scotland, but doesn’t meet the production spend or on/off screen talent tests, this consumes a considerable share of the BBC’s quota but brings limited economic impact within Scotland.
David Smith, director of Screen Scotland said: “This research shows that the BBC has, across the last decade, met much of its Scottish volume quota for network TV [meaning national services such as BBC One and BBC Two] via projects bought, sold and owned in London.
“We are concerned that this subverts the purpose of those production quotas, limiting the economic impact of the BBC’s “Scottish qualifying” commissioning in the Scottish economy, and reducing creative opportunities for Scottish TV sector companies or workers in comparison to projects that originate in Scotland. This raises questions around both the BBC’s commissioning priorities, and Ofcom’s current rules for production across the UK.”
“Looking forward, Screen Scotland would welcome engagement from the BBC at a UK network level on its commissioning culture and priorities. It cannot remain focused on meeting the letter of Ofcom’s quota without delivering the underlying intent of those quotas – to build sustainable production clusters across the UK, driving economic growth and creative opportunities in all four home nations. The concept of ‘British’ or ‘UK’ content the BBC is currently championing as a defence against Netflix should not just mean more content from one region, London.”
Smith was more positive in his appraisal of Channel 4’s efforts North of the border: “Channel 4 meanwhile has adopted a different, and more positive approach – largely looking to producers formed and headquartered in Scotland to make Scottish qualifying programmes. This will have contributed to Scotland’s economy and provided employment for Scotland-based crew.
“With BBC Charter renewal on the horizon in 2027 this is the moment to embed the BBC’s new direction in its commissioning approach to British content: supporting regional economic growth, bringing people together and backing British storytelling from all four home nations.”
Angus Robertson, Cabinet Secretary for Culture said: “This report highlights the importance of Scotland-based commissioning to support our screen sector to its fullest potential. Productions set against a Scottish quota should deliver economic impact and creative opportunities for Scotland, and the talented producers and teams that are based here.
“It also illustrates the strength of our television production sector, with an average annual increase of 5.5 percent in commissioning spend since 2010. The Scottish Government will continue to engage with Ofcom and the public service broadcasters to support that growth and ensure that Scottish industry, and audiences, are properly represented on our screens.”
In Screen Scotland’s most recent figures from 2021, PSB content was valued at £223.3million in Scotland. This includes productions across several genres with recent examples including; Only Child (Happy Tramp North), An T-Eilean (The Island) (Black Camel Pictures), The Traitors (Studio Lambert Scotland), Shetland (Silverprint Pictures), Money for Nothing (Friel Kean), Dinosaur (Two Brothers Pictures), Murder Trial (Firecrest Films) and The Masked Singer (Bandicoot Scotland).
