Commissioning

Acquisitions priorities

To complement original commissioned content the BBC aims to bring the best international movies and programmes to its audiences. Find out about factual and fiction acquisitions.

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Arts commissioning opportunities

BBC One: Limited opportunities for lightly formatted series with occasional talent-led singles

BBC Two: Focus on Saturday night singles and new approaches to landmark

BBC Four: New ways of doing three-part series beyond travelogue + single films with strong authorship

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BBC Three commissioning priorities

Find out more about commissioning needs across genres and forms

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BBC Children's: 0-6 and 6-16

We are looking for noisy content that stands out from the crowd,
Content delivered whenever and wherever the audience wants it,
Content that enables the audience to create, connect and share in new ways. 

Find out more about Children's commissioning

Comedy commissioning priorities

BBC comedy commissions approximately 120 hours of content a year. Watch Shane, Alex and Gregor outline the opportunities for new content across BBC One, Two and Three.

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Current affairs commissioning priorities

BBC One: Panorama episodes of 30 minutes and more, some 60 minutes to run as specials

BBC Two: We want bold simple concepts and content which gets closer to everyday concerns

BBC Three: We want more sharply opinionated content along with ideas that examine domestic issues

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Daytime opportunities on BBC One

In the mornings we are seeking distinctive and often journalistic factual formats which can actively engage people between Breakfast and BBC News.

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Digital factual commissioning priorities

Linked to programming: opportunity to extend the audience experience on to digital platforms

Seasons and campaigns: additional digital content alongside programming across TV, Radio and Online

Original content: factual on digital platforms not currently served by other parts of the BBC.

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Documentary commissioning priorities

BBC One: Access + popular or lightly formatted documentaries and big singles 

BBC Two: Access + Sunday night 9pm series and series with light constructs for mid-week

BBC Three: International films and innovative new ways of telling stories

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Drama commissioning priorities

BBC One: don’t be afraid to bring your boldest and most ambitious drama ideas to One

BBC Two: a brilliant place to push the boundaries in terms of what our audience expect from BBC drama

BBC Three: this is a great place for new talent, both on and off-screen, to find their voice

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Entertainment commissioning priorities

BBC One: One or more peak shows for Saturday nights + Saturday early evening series from the Nations

BBC Two: Sunday night 8pm and 9pm - series of 60 minutes

BBC Three: Three x longform series a year that will repeat on BBC One or Two

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History commissioning priorities

BBC One: Formatted series + innovative singles

BBC Two: Experiential history, reputational landmarks, returnable formats for 8pm and noisy singles and two-parters

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BBC Bitesize brings together the BBC formal education content into one highly trusted brand covering a wide-range of online content types including short-form video, interactive activities, study guides and infographics.

BBC Teach is a new and exciting YouTube channel to support students and teachers in the classroom by curating the best of BBC videos, clips and other resources.

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Music television commissioning priorities

BBC One: Documentaries on top artists, performance films and authored single events

BBC Two: Saturday night single films of 60 or 90 and new ways of doing classical 

BBC Four: Seeking a popular music series and single documentary films for Fridays nights

BBC iPlayer: ideas that tap into the emotional power of music and can inspire a variety of emotions 

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BBC Music on BBC iPlayer

We are excited by ideas that tap into the emotional power of music which forms an integral part of peoples’ lives and can inspire a variety of emotions - joy, anger, sadness, elation.

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Popular factual and factual entertainment commissioning

"When thinking of ideas for us think broad, populist and unashamedly entertaining."

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Religion and ethics commissioning priorities

In 2019, the BBC will place a special emphasis on religion and ethics programming with a whole year of programming across television, radio and digital which will explore Britain's beliefs and values.

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Science commissioning priorities

BBC One: Landmark, popular domestic formats, new forms of social experiments and well-known presenter-led singles

BBC Two: Adrenalised travel, landmarks, formats and factual theatre

BBC Four: Specialist access, hybrid ideas and factual theatre

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Specialist factual commissioning priorities

We cover science, religion, history, business and natural history. Our ambition is ensure that we're working in the full range of forms in each genre from blue chip to presenter lead, documentary to magazine show, format to live or as live event. 

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Storyville commissioning priorities

Ground breaking films with compelling narratives and strong characters, which though international in scope, have themes that touch us all.

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