BBC Studios has taken full ownership of Voltage TV, the award-winning unscripted independent production company, whose credits include "Inside the Factory" for BBC Two, "DNA Journey" for ITV, and "The British Tribe Next Door" for Channel 4. In completing the deal, BBC Studios bought out the minority stake in Voltage that C4 Growth Fund had since 2015. The BBC's main commercial arm has a long-standing relationship with Voltage TV, founded in 2013 by Sanjay Singhal and Steve Nam. The indie has produced several high-impact and returning factual series for all the leading UK broadcasters and is in production with streamers, including Netflix and Amazon Prime.
The deal, which is the first of its kind to go straight to 100%, signifies a renewed investment in unscripted indies by BBC Studios which will complement BBC Studios Productions' award-winning factual and factual entertainment production brands such as The Natural History Unit, Events Production, Factual Entertainment Productions, The Documentary Unit, and The Science Unit. On announcing the deal, Ralph Lee, CEO of BBC Studios Productions, said: "We've admired Voltage for a long time, which is why when the opportunity arose, we moved quickly to acquire the business outright. The breadth and quality of their slate is a perfect complement to BBC Studios Productions' factual entertainment and factual brands. We're delighted to be backing them and look forward to working even more closely with Sanjay, Steve, and the team to grow the business."
Voltage TV founder, Sanjay Singhal, added: "I started at the BBC as a trainee exactly 30 years ago. Then, it was producing programs that were world-beating - and it still is. I'm delighted that Voltage has found a home in an organization that champions risk-taking and shares the huge creative ambition we have in the coming years."
Co-founder Steve Nam added: "When BBC Studios approached us, it just felt a natural fit, and I'm a firm believer in gut instinct. Our distribution relationship with BBC Studios dates back to the launch of Voltage, and we look forward to continuing to flourish through their impressive global reach."
Over the past few years, Voltage TV has delivered a wide range of documentary and factual series: "Ant and Dec's DNA Journey" (ITV1), "The British Tribe Next Door" (Channel 4), and "The Great Plague" (Five) were all the highest-rated factual launch of the year on each network. Its longest-running series is "Inside the Factory" for BBC Two, which is now in its eighth series. Recently, Voltage has won commissions with global broadcasters and streamers: It is currently in production with the premium documentary series "The Fake Sheikh" for Amazon Prime and with "Tempting Fortune," a major new six-part reality format it is making for the UK's Channel 4 and Roku in the US. Other recent titles include the eight-part series for BBC ONE, "Amanda And Alan: The Italian Job." In addition, Voltage TV is involved in its first scripted project with a feature film in development with Lighthouse Film and TV about Prince Andrew's infamous Newsnight interview, based on former Newsnight producer Sam McAlister's "Scoops: Behind the Scenes" of the BBC's most Shocking Interviews.