DCD.L Regulatory News (DCD)

25 Feb 2008 07:01

DCD Media PLC25 February 2008 Embargoed: 0700hrs, Monday 25 February 2008 DCD Media Plc ("DCD" or the "Group") DCD Announces New Television Commissions DCD, the independent production and distribution group, announces a major newcommission from BBC2 to produce Alan Whicker's Journey Of A Lifetime, aprimetime 4x60 minute series to celebrate Alan Whicker's 50 years in television. The commission to DCD-owned September Films, worth over £1 million, follows astring of recent September Films commissions, including documentary specials,The Human Camera and The Boys Joined at the Head, both for Five and The RealElephant Man for Channel 4. These productions have contributed to September Films' sales of approximately£7.5 million in its first six months as a DCD group company (acquired 7 August2007). DCD Chief Executive, Chris Hunt, said, "Since joining the Group last year, September has gone from strength tostrength, guaranteeing that its first full year with DCD will be its mostsuccessful in its 16 year history. It proves again our belief that adding theright businesses to the DCD group of companies can yield financial successesbeyond the capability of a stand-alone production company. We have seen thiswith Box TV, Done and Dusted and now again with September Films." DCD's companies produce and distribute factual, entertainment, drama, music andarts programming for TV, DVD and new media markets, retaining the value of theproduction process from conception through to sale and worldwide, multi-platformdistribution entirely within the Group. For further information please contact, Chris Hunt, Chief ExecutiveDCD Media PlcTel. 020 7297 8000 Ben Simons or Elly WilliamsonM:CommunicationsTel. 020 7153 1540 or 020 7153 1539 Tom Price or Jeremy EllisEvolution SecuritiesTel. 020 7071 4300 Notes to Editors Alan Whicker's Journey Of A Lifetime is a September Films production for BBC2 -a 4x60 minute series to celebrate Alan Whicker's 50 years in television. Theseries, which is due to be broadcast in late 2008, is much more than simply anauthored retrospective. It is a unique opportunity to follow one man's workinglife through a series of 'home' videos - in this case hundreds of hours ofbeautifully crafted, primetime television for BBC and ITV - that chronicle apopulist history of the second half of the 20th century. The history of Whickeron TV is the history of TV itself and its reflection of the world around it. It will show a man and his world changing across time and will reflect on 50years of living history. Unlike many authored TV pieces, it will not beintrospective but instead will look outwards, using the world as a mirror toreflect Whicker's thoughts - which he has constantly reassessed in his life ofever-changing experiences. The Human Camera is a 1 x 60 minute Documentary Special from by September Films,currently in production for Five & Discovery Health - see http://www.septemberfilms.co.uk/ - about Stephen Wiltshire, one of Britain's mostprolific and talented young artists. He is also autistic. This film followsStephen as he faces his greatest challenge yet - to draw, from memory, thelargest ever panoramic view of London to be put on public display. The Boys Joined at the Head a 1 x 60 minute documentary from September Films wasbroadcast on Five last week, following conjoined twins Mohammed and Ahmed asthey undergo life or death separation surgery in Dallas. Following thesuccessful broadcast on Five earlier this month, The Boys Joined at the Head wasalso aired in the US on Discovery Health last weekend. The Real Elephant Man by September Films for Channel 4 is a 1 x 60 minuteproduction which follows the work of Professor Xu, a revolutionary Chinesephysician, who deals with abnormal tumours that other doctors have been tooafraid to challenge. Professor Xu's most famous case is Huang Chuncai, a 31-year-old man sufferingfrom one of the world's most extreme cases of neurofibroma - a tumour of thenervous system. Huang's tumour is hanging down from his face, blocking his lefteye, pushing his ear to shoulder level and knocking out his teeth. As aconsequence he finds it hard to walk, speak, hear and eat causing him to beslowly ostracised from society. Coming from a poor background, his family were not able to provide Huang withthe financial support he needed to seek specialist medical care. In 2006 Huang'sluck changed, when Professor Xu was alerted of his alarming case and took himunder his wing. About DCD Media plc DCD Media plc is one of the UK's 'super-indies', a large group of production anddistribution companies specialising in factual, entertainment, drama, music andarts programming for TV, DVD and new media markets. DCD Media comprises a numberof high profile content producers - Box TV, a drama specialist; arts andentertainment producer Iambic Productions; music and staged event specialistDone and Dusted; factual and lifestyle producer Prospect Pictures; reality,documentary and entertainment formats producer September Films; documentaryspecialist West Park Pictures - and international distributor NBDtv and DVDlabel Digital Classics DVD. For further details see www.dcdmedia.co.uk About September Films September Films is a leading UK independent television and film productioncompany with offices in London and Los Angeles. It was founded in 1992 byfeature film director David Green, who devised the groundbreaking HollywoodWomen series that launched the company, and joined the DCD Group in August 2007.Having produced over 1,000 hours of primetime television during the last 15years, September is an established specialist in factual entertainment,documentaries and features, reality programming and entertainment formats onboth sides of the Atlantic. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange