BBC, ZDF and France Television Greenlight ‘Lady Grace Mysteries’ Live-Action Series
The BBC and German and French public broadcasters ZDF and France Television are joining forces for The Lady Grace Mysteries, a new live-action tween series based on the best-selling book franchise.
The Lady Grace Mysteries tells the story of Lady Grace Cavendish, an orphan raised to be a lady-in-waiting at the royal court of Queen Elizabeth I, who becomes the world’s first female teenage detective. Working as a private spy for the Queen, Lady Grace solves mysteries while navigating the treacherous waters of court politics. First published in 2004, 12 Lady Grace Mystery books have been published to date, in multiple international editions, and sold more than 300,000 copies worldwide.
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Cottonwood Media, a division of French media conglomerate Federation Studios, will co-produce the series together with Coolabi Productions, and ZDF Studios. Production on The Lady Grace Mysteries is set to kick off at an unnamed British castle during spring 2025
Daytime Emmy nominee Anna McCleery (Free Rein) is the lead writer on the series. McCleery created the kids series A Kind of Spark for CBBC and BYU in the U.S., an adaptation of the Elle McNicoll novel, which won this year’s Royal Television Society and Broadcast awards for best children’s program. A second season of A Kind of Spark launched in April.
Cottonwood Media head of fiction Manon Ardisson and managing director Alexander Jacob will oversee the production.
ZDF Studios will handle worldwide sales together with the French group Federation Kids & Family, kicking off presales at the MIPCOM international television market in Cannes later this month.
ZDF and Federation have had international sales success with such Cottonwood tween series as Spellbound and Find Me in Paris.
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