Client news · 16 March, 2018

Icon Films commissioned by Channel 4 to produce ‘Animal Airport’

TCB Media Rights brokers deal and invests in popular factual series

Leading independent UK TV production company Icon Films has been commissioned by Channel 4 to produce a third series of observational documentary ‘Animal Airport’ for More 4.

Previously produced for Discovery Networks International by Icon Films, the new series of ‘Animal Airport’ (13 x 60’/26 x 30) again follows the often daunting, always unusual and sometimes surreal challenges faced on a daily basis by the staff at Heathrow’s Animal Reception Centre (ARC). The ARC handles nearly 300,000 animals every year of all varieties, including dogs, cats, birds, reptiles, arachnids and insects, as well as hundreds of more exotic or large animals, including horses, cheetahs and leopards.

Staff can find themselves wrestling alpacas, trying to control angry crocodiles with brooms and chasing stowaway lizards up and down aircraft cabins, while always putting the interests and care of the creatures first.

TCB Media Rights has acquired distribution rights of the series for the World outside the UK.

TCB Media Rights distributed the previous two series of ‘Animal Airport’ which sold to 95 countries around the world including Discovery US, Channel Seven in Australia and SBS Netherlands.

The series was commissioned for Channel 4 by Head of Daytime, David Sayer. Executive producers for ‘Animal Airport’ are Stephen McQuillan for Icon Films and Paul Heaney for TCB Media Rights.

We are absolutely delighted to be making Animal Airport for Channel 4 and bringing the extraordinary stories from Heathrow’s Animal Reception Centre back into people’s living rooms!” said Stephen McQuillan, Head of Factual for Icon Films.

“Animal Airport is simply a unique combination of the jeopardy that an airport and its hard-working staff can give to the viewer along with the universal attraction of animals, large and small, domesticated and wild. Hopefully the buyers will see these brand-new series as robust and versatile for their schedules” said Paul Heaney for TCB Media Rights.

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