EXCLUSIVE: The Traitors is all about backstabbing and accusations, however accusations of deception have now prolonged to the behind-the-scenes manufacturing of the hit present.
The BBC has been accused of portray a “actually stunning image” relating to the variety of folks engaged on the present who’re based mostly in Scotland, which is the place it’s filmed and the place it qualifies as a “Scottish fee” beneath Ofcom laws.
The Traitors UK is made by Studio Lambert Scotland and is filmed at a fortress in distant Inverness. Nonetheless, veteran Scottish TV director Peter Strachan, who’s on the board of commerce physique Director’s UK, has claimed the present could possibly be failing on the Ofcom laws. These laws require producers to satisfy two of three standards to qualify as out-of-London: having a “substantive base” within the area, investing 70% of “manufacturing spend” exterior the English capital and having at the very least 50% of the off-screen expertise based mostly exterior London.
Strachan claims he has run the rule over The Traitors manufacturing workforce and located that “over 80%” are based mostly exterior Scotland. He additionally claims that if a Glasgow-based BBC government producer was eliminated, no “above the road” roles can be stuffed out of Scotland.
In a LinkedIn publish that’s being shared all through the UK manufacturing neighborhood and has amassed greater than 650 likes, Strachan stated the info paints a “actually stunning image.” He accused the BBC of “de facto cultural bias” and stated it’s “refusing to behave pretty.”
“Even when The Traitors does meet these two standards, it’s clearly not being executed within the spirit of the Ofcom Regional Manufacturing laws,” added Strachan. Knowledgeable sources within the Scottish sector inform us that these questions have been raised throughout the Scottish manufacturing neighborhood over the previous couple of years, since The Traitors launched with a bang in January 2023.
Insiders advised us that the third season of The Traitors does meet the Ofcom standards for an out-of-London manufacturing and that alternatives for native freelancers have elevated because the seasons have rolled on. Studio Lambert has round 10 workers in its Scotland workplace in Glasgow and is engaged on growing different exhibits and coaching alternatives.
Display screen Scotland Director David Smith advised Deadline his workforce is “actively partaking” with the BBC and Studio Lambert concerning The Traitors and, whereas enchancment is required, the present is on a “journey.” “This can be a present that’s representing a component of Scotland, its geography, actually positively, in order a consequence we’re supportive of it,” he added.
However Strachan described his findings because the “tip of the iceberg” for TV manufacturing in Scotland. “We have now discovered many different supposedly Scottish productions are failing to create jobs for broadcast freelancers in Scotland,” he added. “It’s proof that the BBC will not be commissioning pretty and that its spend isn’t translating into a good stage of job alternative throughout the UK.”
Strachan’s publish is well timed. A Display screen Scotland report from late final 12 months discovered that solely 5 of the highest 15 Scottish producers had been headquartered in Scotland. Defending the findings from this report as lately as yesterday, new BBC Scotland Director Hayley Valentine stated BBC Scotland’s definition of what makes a ‘Scottish’ firm is wider than what Display screen Scotland says and stated Display screen Scotland’s knowledge was considered by way of a “prism.”
However issuing a press release yesterday, Smith rejected Valentine’s notion of the “prism.” “That prism was Ofcom’s Made Out of London Register, and the episodes the BBC had opted to say had been Scottish qualifying in that Register,” he stated, whereas questioning the dearth of proof over the BBC’s declare that it spent £300M ($370M) final 12 months on content material in Scotland.
The UK’s networks have long been plagued with criticism from the indie sector over their London skew. Nations & Areas guidelines are set by Ofcom and are in place to create a fairer system and extra work for ‘true’ native indies. They had been final up to date round six years in the past.
The Traitors launched its third season final week and has been posting its finest rankings but, with greater than 5M tuning in once more final night time. A star model may also launch later this 12 months. The present has bought around the globe and a profitable U.S. model airs on Peacock.
The BBC and Studio Lambert declined remark.
