Global Showbiz Briefs: ‘Suspicions Of Mr Whicher II’, ‘Pulp’ On XBox, ITV Rebrands

Olivia Colman, Paddy Considine Reteam For ‘Whicher II’
Hyde Park On Hudson co-star Olivia Colman will join Paddy Considine in ITV’s The Suspicions Of Mr Whicher II. The Hat Trick Productions drama is based on the real-life 19th century Metropolitan Police detective. The two-hour film is a follow-up to the 2011 drama that was based on the book by Kate Summerscale. Colman plays a woman who hires Considine’s Whicher to investigate the murder of her niece. Colman recently won a British Independent Film Award for best supporting actress in Hyde Park On Hudson. She also won the BIFA last year as best actress for Tyrannosaur which was directed by Considine. Shooting is currently underway on the story written by Neil McKay (Appropriate Adult) and directed by Christopher Menaul. Mark Redhead is exec producer, Rob Bullock is producer.

Xbox To Premiere Brit Indie ‘Pulp’
In a first of its kind deal, Microsoft will premiere British indie comedy Pulp on Xbox beginning March 4. The film, directed by Adam Hamdy and Shaun Magher, previously appeared at the Las Vegas Film Festival and the London Comedy Film Festival. It’s set in the world of comic book publishing, mixed with international crime and geek heroes. Producers are Phil Bland, Phil Chalk and Hamdy. The Xbox launch will be UK-exclusive with a view to repeating the release in the U.S. and other international markets later this year.

Mr Selfridge Off Slightly From Premiere; ITV Rebrands
The second episode of Jeremy Piven-starrer Mr Selfridge dropped slightly from the premiere last week on the UK’s ITV, according to overnight ratings. The department store period drama drew an average of 6.9M viewers for a 25.5% share. The 90-minute debut had a 28.6% share with an average 7.27M viewers last Sunday. However, the show outperformed BBC One’s Ripper Street which pulled 5.1M viewers and a 18% share in the same time slot. Today marked the beginning of ITV’s rebrand which stretches across its five UK TV channels and its six international ITV Studios production offices as well as ITV Studios Global Entertainment. The rebrand is linked to ITV’s five-year Transformation Plan which includes wiping down debt and creating “world class content” to be exploited at home and abroad across multiple platforms.