eOne Developing VR Comedy Series ‘GARY1987’ From ‘Skins’ Creator Bryan Elsey & ‘People Just Do Nothing’ Team
Entertainment One (eOne) is teaming up with Skins creator Bryan Elsey and the team behind BBC Three's People Just Do Nothing - Steve Stamp, Allan Mustafa and Jack Clough - to develop new VR themed international comedy series GARY1987. The series is set in the world of virtual reality and tells the story of unemployed Gary, a VR novice, who enters the VR world initially to make money and ends up way over his head. Read More
More than a year after first announcing the project, Sky Atlantic has set the first cast members for The Young Pope follow-up The New Pope. Jude Law (Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald) and John Malkovich (The ABC Murders) have both signed up for starring rolse in the limited series. 
After producing a series of shorts for Sky's Sky Kids app, Tiger Aspect Productions has been commissioned to produce a thirty-minute Aliens Love Underpants AND... Christmas special for the satcaster's flagship channel Sky One. After airing on Sky One, the special will available on all Sky’s on demand platforms including the Sky Kids app and NOW TV. The Christmas special, titled Aliens Love Panta Claus, is based on the picture book of the same title written by Claire Freedman, illustrated by Ben Cort and published by Simon and Schuster. It sees the aliens giving away underpants because it’s Christmas. But when they realise they have a famous pair of underpants that could halt Christmas for everyone, they jump in to action to save the day and help Santa deliver all his presents by spaceship. 
UKTV is continuing their push into AFP with a new John Torode food travelogue. The commercial network has given the green-light to John Torode’s Middle East, a ten episode series which will see Torode exploring the culinary delights of the region. It will premiere on Good Food and later get a repeat run on W. 
Awesome Media & Entertainment – the indie set up by writer-producer Jeff Norton – has hired veteran producer Jane Steventon to serve as a development producer working across UK scripted content, focusing on both children’s and adult content. Steventon has experience in both arenas. She produced iconic kids TV series The Story of Tracy Beaker and the film Tracy Beaker's 'The Movie of Me', as well as dramas Hollyoaks Later and Casualty. She will work directly with Norton on growing the indie's slate of both adaptations and originals. 
Paramount Network has released a trailer for Suits season 7, which is set to receive its linear broadcast premiere on the nascent channel on Tuesday July 10th at 9pm. 
CITV has handed out renewals to Zodiak Kids produced series Spy School and Scrambled!. Game show Spy School returns for a second season, while Scrambled will be back for its sixth season later this year. "We're really pleased to be working with Zodiak again on a couple of key originated series for CITV", said ITV’s Head of Digital Channels and Acquisitions Paul Mortimer. "Both deliver the fun, entertainment and excitement that our young audience has come to expect from our best content."