BBC America captures Saturdays

Net to launch 'Primeval' this summer

By JON WEISMAN

'Primeval'

For quite a while now, networks have abandoned Saturday nights like an old couch by the curb.

But Saturdays are one of several reasons for BBC America to celebrate its 10th anniversary this year. By counterprogramming with some of its best fare, the British offshoot has made Saturdays its most popular primetime night.

"The reason we program it so heavily is because American television has given up on Saturday, so we know there's a much greater audience to aggregate," says BBC Worldwide America president Garth Ancier.

BBCA's headline summer show, "Primeval," a dinosaurs-in-the-present yarn, will air on Saturdays beginning Aug. 2. It arrives on the heels of such series and miniseries as "Torchwood," "Robin Hood," "Hex" and "Jekyll" that have transformed BBCA into a destination net.

"It's a huge hit in Britain," Ancier says of "Primeval." "Knock on steel, it'll do as well as 'Torchwood,' 'Doctor Who' or 'Robin Hood.'

"We look for shows that we think we can build our audience on in the U.S. (When) you put a show on BBC America, it's watched by people who are intellectually curious."

BBCA has banked on that attraction ever since it debuted in 1998 as sort of a famous obscurity: Most had heard of the BBC, but few knew how it would translate on American shores.

"I think we were starting off in a better place than (other new networks) because the BBC brand was known," says Jo Petherbridge, executive VP of communications for BBC Worldwide America. "Most people thought of it as a news brand. But at least the letters BBC had some resonance in the marketplace."

One chit that BBCA could chat about from the get-go was a welcome reception from the critics, who were familiar with BBC programming that aired on PBS and championed BBCA's offerings, even when some were obscure to auds. They provided much of BBCA's message to the outside world during the initial years, when the network eschewed commercial marketing and focused on gaining distribution. From an initial foray into 250,000 homes, BBCA expanded its reach to more than 32 million homes within four years.

That set the stage for BBCA's major graduation into the public consciousness with "The Office," starting in 2003. The raves and ensuing word of mouth drew auds in for the Ricky Gervais/ Stephen Merchant gem while introducing viewers to other programs on the channel, from primetime dramas and comedies to news and trendy nonfiction shows such as "Top Gear," "Kitchen Nightmares" and "Changing Rooms."

The challenge for Ancier, who arrived at BBCA in February 2007 after becoming the first executive after Fred Silverman to run three network entertainment divisions (NBC, Fox and the WB), has been to suss out which shows will make that leap better than others.

"There are probably huge hits in the U.K. that are not quite aspirational enough for Americans," Ancier says. "Americans tend to be more optimistic. ... We have episodes of 'EastEnders,' but we know that show is a little bit depressing. We used to run 'EastEnders' on the network and it didn't do particularly well."

On the other hand, some BBCA series have been so successful with American auds, they've often been remade into American series themselves. "Changing Rooms" became "Trading Spaces" for TLC, while "Nightmares" made a fairly straightforward transition to Fox. BBCA's other summer premiere, romantic comedy "Gavin & Stacey," has already been purchased as a format by NBC, which is hoping to repeat its success with "The Office."

According to Nielsen, BBCA is the top-rated basic cable network in primetime among age 25-54 college graduates. As it heads into its next 10 years, BBCA can make an argument that it is the thinking viewer's network.