High-end TV investment spend hits £478m in UK

Spend on high-end TV production in the UK hit a record £478 million (US$600 million) in 2016, official figures show.

Data from the British Film Institute’s Research and Statistic Unit reveal inward investment spend – show funded from outside the UK – grew 11% year-on-year, with ‘repeat business’ productions such as Game of Thrones, Outlander and The Royals singled out as key titles.

A total of 84 high-end TV shows (defined as those with a budget of £1 million or more per hour) began shooting last year. This totalled £726 million, which was down 18% on 2015.

Overall inward production spend covering film and TV was up to a record £1.3 billion, with 200 features totalling a spend of £1.6 billion going into principal photography.

“Twenty-sixteen was a banner year for the UK’s film and TV industries, which attracted record levels of inward investment and some of the world’s most ambitious productions,” said Adrian Wootton, CEO of the British Film Commission and Film London.

“Our industry offers the ‘complete package’ in terms of talent, skills, facilities, VFX expertise and competitive tax reliefs, so it’s no wonder international film and TV clients continue to make the UK their destination of choice.

“This said, we know we cannot be complacent: these are times of unprecedented change, and global competition for big titles has never been greater.”