UK film and TV industry bounces back from Covid with record £5.6bn spend
The UK film and TV industry has bounced back spectacularly from the pandemic with a record £5.6bn spent making blockbusters such as Mission: Impossible 7 and big-budget dramas including Bridgerton in the UK last year.
It was double the level of investment in 2020, when the spread of coronavirus shut down the production industry for months on end.
The production industry moved into overdrive last year as broadcasters, streaming platforms and Hollywood studios worked to replenish their depleted content libraries for the small and big screen, with spending up almost £1.3bn on the previous record set in pre-pandemic 2019.
“The demand for content has never been greater,” said Adrian Wootton, chief executive of the British Film Commission. “The UK is enjoying a once in a generation growth in production.”
The annual figures compiled by the British Film Institute highlight the battle for viewers being waged between streaming companies such as Netflix and Disney, and traditional broadcasters such as Sky, the BBC and ITV.
A record £4.1bn was spent making 211 high-end TV shows costing at least £1m an episode, such as new series of Bridgerton, The Crown and The Bay, almost three-quarters of the total spent on all film and TV production last year. The figure includes £737m spent on films made specifically for release on streaming platforms, such as Pinocchio, which the BFI classifies as TV spend. The overall amount spent on making premium shows last year is almost £2bn up on 2019.
More than 200 films were shot in the UK last year with £1.55bn spent on production, up 13% on 2020 but down on the £1.95bn in 2019. However, just nine Hollywood blockbusters, including The Batman, Aquaman 2 and The Marvels, accounted for £1bn of that spend.
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