The Rack Pack Announced For BBC iPlayer

The BBC has unveiled details regarding its first ever comedy drama feature film for BBC iPlayer.

The Rack Pack, which will be released on BBC iPlayer in early December, is produced by Zeppotron, and stars Luke Treadaway (Fortitude, Clash of the Titans), Will Merrick (About Time, Skins), Kevin Bishop (The Kevin Bishop Show, A Few Best Men), Nichola Burley (Death Comes To Pemberley, Downton Abbey) and James Bailey (Downton Abbey).

Directed by Brian Welsh (Glasgow Girls, Black Mirror), the feature looks at the glory days of the 70s and 80s snooker scene, when huge characters became household names and Snooker Loopy troubled the pop charts. The comedy drama is written by Shaun Pye, Mark Chappell and Alan Connor.

The story explores the rivalry between Alex 'Hurricane' Higgins (Luke Treadaway), whose natural talent and showmanship transformed the image of the traditional game and captivated audiences across the country, and Steve 'The Nugget' Davis (Will Merrick) who, under the guidance of manager Barry Hearn (Kevin Bishop), dominated the sport throughout the 80s and ushered in a new era of professionalism. Nichola Burley plays Alex's wife, Lynn Higgins, and James Bailey takes on the role of Jimmy White.

In 1985, the climax of the world snooker final broadcast on the BBC in the early hours of a Monday morning was watched by 18.5 million people in the UK. To this day, it remains a record for a post-midnight audience for any channel in the country. This year is the 30th anniversary of that final.

The Rack Pack was ordered by Victoria Jaye, Head of TV Content for BBC iPlayer, and Shane Allen, Controller of Comedy Commissioning, and is executive produced by Peter Holmes (Would I Lie To You?, Frankie Boyle's Election Autopsy). The film is made exclusively for BBC iPlayer by Zeppotron, part of Endemol Shine Group. The BBC Commissioning Editor is Gregor Sharp and the producer is Barney Reisz.

Victoria Jaye, Head of TV Content, BBC iPlayer, said: "The Rack Pack is our very first comedy drama feature film made exclusively for BBC iPlayer and builds on the success of our original commissions, which have attracted over 29 million requests in the last six months. Snooker is a much-loved British sport, and The Rack Pack celebrates its glory days in the Seventies and Eighties in a thrilling and brilliantly written story which will be the centre piece of our film offer over the Christmas period."

Shane Allen, Controller of Comedy Commissioning, added: "BBC iPlayer offers a unique creative space for comedy of all shapes, sizes, tones and ambition – free of the traditional parameters of TV slots. Higgins was to snooker what George Best was to football – a Northern Irish folk hero whose mesmerising talent made for a fascinating world-class champion on the snooker table, but his explosive personality made for a troubled life off the table. Our cast are perfect to do this vibrant story and era justice."

Peter Holmes, Managing Director of Zeppotron, commented: "This commission marks an exciting new step for Zeppotron as we produce our first ever feature film. For me, this is the true definition of a 'passion project'. I am a huge fan of snooker and this golden era of the sport is in my blood. If you only watch one film featuring Big Bill Werbeniuk this year, make sure it's this one."

Image courtesy of BBC Media Centre.

www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre

(JP/LM)