STAN AND BBC ANNOUNCE NEW ORIGINAL
DRAMA SERIES TEN POUND POMS
From Eleven, the team behind the award-winning Sex Education , and created by Danny Brocklehurst, Ten Pound Poms is a co-production between BBC and Stan.
19 May 2022 – Stan, Australia’s unrivalled home of original productions, and BBC today announced the brand new Stan Original Series Ten Pound Poms , a six-part drama created by BAFTA-winning Danny Brocklehurst ( Brassic, Ordinary Lies ).
A co-production between BBC and Stan, the series will be produced by Eleven ( Sex Education, Red Rose ) and will premiere on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK and as a Stan Original Series in Australia. Joining Danny Brocklehurst on the writing team is Australia’s Ryan Griffen ( Cleverman ), alongside Smita Bhide ( The Indian Detective ) and Ava Pickett ( Brassic ).
Ten Pound Poms (6x60’) follows a group of Brits as they leave dreary post-war Britain in 1956 to embark on a life-altering adventure on the other side of the world. For only a tenner, they have been promised a better house, better job prospects and a better quality of life by the sea in sun-soaked Australia. But life down under isn’t exactly the idyllic dream the new arrivals have been promised. Struggling with their new identity as immigrants, we follow their triumphs and pitfalls as they adapt to a new life in a new country far from Britain and familiarity.
At the heart of the drama is the Roberts family; they try to look for ways to make the best of their situation but the poor living conditions at the migrant hostel and local attitudes towards immigrants test them in ways they couldn’t have imagined. And they aren’t the only people at the hostel avoiding the truth. Kate, a young nurse, arrives without her fiancé́ and will do whatever it takes to try and rewrite her devastating past. Bill has lost his family business back home and is so desperate to prove he’s living the Australian dream that he’ll stop at nothing in order to get a lifestyle he can’t sustain. Meanwhile, teenager Stevie comes from a troubled background and hopes to use this new adventure to escape his oppressive father.
Ten Pound Poms is a compelling, character-driven family drama full of dreams and adventure and discovering what it truly takes to call somewhere your ‘home’.
Cailah Scobie, Chief Content Officer, Stan said: “Following the immense success of The Tourist , Stan is delighted to again partner with the BBC on the brand new Stan Original Series Ten Pound Poms — this time working with the award-winning team at Eleven and the accomplished Danny Brocklehurst. International co-productions play a major part in our expanding Stan Originals slate and we can’t wait for filming to begin on this bold and unflinching drama.”
Danny Brocklehurst said: “ Ten Pounds Poms is a big bold character piece about what it means to start again, to be an outsider in a new land. It asks questions about success and failure, identity, parenthood and belonging. The assisted migration programme is a little-known part of British and Australian history but offers endless stories about the people who travelled to the other side of the world in search of a better life. I couldn’t be more delighted to be making the show with the BBC, Eleven and Stan.”
Joel Wilson, Executive Producer, Eleven said: “It is a huge privilege to be working with Danny. We are both deeply passionate about the stories of the hundreds of thousands who took part in the assisted migration scheme and I’m very grateful to have the opportunity to share them with audiences on the BBC and Stan.”
Tommy Bulfin, Commissioning Editor, BBC Drama, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to bring this timely story to the screen. It perfectly captures the courage and determination of our brilliant British migrants as they uproot their entire lives and try to adjust to a new life in an often hostile environment. Told with Danny’s characteristic wit and heart , Ten Pound Poms is sure to delight BBC audiences when it hits the screen next year.”
Ten Pound Poms is a co-production between Stan and BBC and will premiere as a Stan Original Series in Australia and on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK. Tommy Bulfin for the BBC, Cailah Scobie and Amanda Duthie for Stan, Joel Wilson and Jamie Campbell for Eleven, and Olivia Trench co-executive produce the series. Sony Pictures Television (“SPT”) will distribute the series worldwide. Curio Pictures is providing production services in Australia.
Filming will take place in Australia and further information about casting will be announced in due course.
