Tag Archives: Suzanne McAuley

Nigerian migrant drama set for Mipcom

Taken Down was ordered by Ireland’s RTÉ in association with Arte in France

A new drama about the murder of a Nigerian asylum seeker in Ireland will launch at international TV festival Mipcom later this month.

Newly rebranded production giant Fremantle has taken international distribution rights to Spiral Pictures’ new crime drama Taken Down, which is from the creative team behind Irish drama hit Love/Hate.

Set in Ireland, Taken Down was commissioned by public broadcaster RTÉ Television in association with cultural channel Arte in France. It is written by Spiral’s Stuart Carolan, who also acts as executive producer alongside bestselling novelist Jo Spain.

Suzanne McAuley (Clean Break, Maigret) is executive producer and David Caffrey (Peaky Blinders, Prime Suspects) is director for Spiral Pictures. The show received funding from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and Section 481. Fremantle holds global distribution rights.

The series follows a detective investigating the violent death of a young Nigerian immigrant to Ireland whose body is found close to a Direct Provision Centre, where refugees wait for political asylum. The investigation takes viewers into a twilight world where slum landlords and criminals prey on the vulnerable.

The cast includes Aissa Maiga (Anything for Alice, Bianco e Nero), Brian Gleeson (Resistance, Phantom Thread) and Lynn Rafferty (Love/Hate).

Jane Gogan, head of drama at RTÉ, said: “The story of Taken Down brings us into a world where opportunism meets the forces of Irish and globalised crime. This story is very much of the moment.”

Fremantle will be distributing the series to international broadcasters at Mipcom.

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