RTS Futures

RuPaul's Drag Race UK creators discuss bringing drag to screens at RTS Futures event

Sally Miles, Fenton Bailey, Ruby Kuraishe, Scott Bryan, Navi Lamba and Bruce McCoy (Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian)

Drag queens and TV are like peanut butter and jelly – the perfect combination,” added the show’s creator Fenton Bailey.

McCoy and Bailey – executive producers of RuPaul’s Drag Race, both here and in the US – were talking at a lively RTS Futures event in November that looked at how the show was brought to the UK.

Channel managers and exec producers call for more diverse talent in TV at RTS Futures event

Iain Coyle, Baileigh Walsh, Rick Edwards, Maxine Watson and Sohail Shah (Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian)

“We need more voices on telly – there’s not enough working-class people in telly and not enough diversity,” said UKTV head of comedy entertainment Iain Coyle.

“All the different voices that make up this country need to be working in television – not just the poshos who’ve been to Cambridge and Oxford,” said Sohail Shah, the MD of new indie King of Sunshine Productions.

He added: “Without new talent you don’t get any kind of progression in TV.”

RTS Futures Television Careers Fair 2020

The RTS Futures Career Fair is back! Bigger and better for 2020 don’t miss your chance to be a part of this HUGE event.

Join us on Wednesday 12th February to get all the latest tips, tricks and practical advice to help you land that all important first job in TV, learn about the different jobs and schemes out there and network with the most influential creatives in the business!

How to uncover the truth in investigative journalism

All the President's Men (Credit: Warner Bros)

Arguably, the world has rarely been more in need of investigative journalism. Corrupt politicians; election meddling, state repression, business shenanigans, cheating in sport.… the list is endless. An RTS Futures event in May was therefore timely, with leading journalists discussing how they seek to right wrongs and bring the powerful to justice. 

Truth seeking is not for the faint-hearted: it requires exhaustive research and dogged patience – and, for those journalists investigating the world’s most oppressive regimes, bravery. In truth, it’s probably a young person’s game. 

Samson Kayo: Chewing Gum inspired me to tell my own story

Joshua (Samson Kayo) and Ricky (Theo Barklem-Biggs) in Sliced (Credit: UKTV)

Over the past few years, UKTV channel Dave has notched up an impressive series of hits with home-grown comedies such as Taskmaster and Dave Gorman: Modern Life is Goodish.

Now it has high hopes for Sliced, a sitcom based on Samson Kayo’s crazy experiences as a South London pizza delivery driver, launched this month.

RTS Futures uncover the secrets of investigative journalism

Ed Howker, Ben Zand, Livvy Haydock, Sirin Kale and David Henshaw (Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian)

“When you’re young, you’re going to do your best work – you’re fearless and you take risks that you wouldn’t take when you’re older,” said David Henshaw, a former BBC reporter and producer who has run his own indie, Hardcash Productions, for almost three decades.

"It’s always going to be risky and you only get the really good stuff by taking risks"

Henshaw was speaking at an RTS Futures event on investigative journalism in London. The multi-award-wining film-maker received an RTS Fellowship in 2009.

Dave's new comedy Sliced shows the real South East London

Samson Kayo, Sally Broome, Theo Barklem-Biggs, Phil Bowker, Sam Homewood, David Mumeni, Weruche Opia and Richard Watsham (Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian)

Dave’s new sitcom stars Kayo – he co-wrote it with Phil Bowker, who also produces – and White Gold’s Theo Barklem-Biggs as two hapless drivers, Joshua and Ricky, who deliver pizza to their larger-than-life customers on the estates of Peckham.

Kayo, Bowker and Barklem-Biggs were speaking at an RTS Futures event in early May, which screened the first episode of Sliced and then hosted a discussion with some of the show’s talent, from both in front of and behind the camera.

"We kept it very authentic to south east London"

Industry experts share the secrets to get comedy on TV

Tom Davis, James de Frond, Lara Singer and Andrew Brereton (Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian)

A packed RTS Futures event, “Pitching script to screen”, offered aspiring writers and producers tips on how they should hone and sell their ideas to commissioners.

Leading the panel of seasoned comedy and entertainment practitioners was Tom Davis, the star of the RTS and Bafta award-winning BBC Three sitcom Murder in Successville.