Buyout Details and New Investment
Patrick Spence, the producer known for Mr Bates vs The Post Office, has taken control of AC Chapter One by completing a management buyout from Anonymous Content and the UK agencies Casarotto Ramsay and United Agents. The company will now be renamed Chapter One. As part of the deal, Chris Rice, the former co-CEO of Fifth Season, has made an investment. Rice, a British executive who played a key role in the success of Severance and The Night Manager, will become Chapter One's non-executive chairman. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.[S1]
Rice left Fifth Season in January and has founded a UK company called Narrative Adventures, which now holds a stake of between 25% and 50% in Chapter One. The management buyout means that Anonymous Content, Casarotto Ramsay, and United Agents have all transitioned to minority shareholders and strategic partners. Previously, Anonymous Content owned half of Chapter One, while Casarotto Ramsay and United Agents each held a 25% stake.[S1]
Background and Current Productions
Launched in 2018, Chapter One was set up by Anonymous Content alongside Casarotto Ramsay and United Agents, with Sophie Gardiner taking the managing director role. Spence arrived from ITV Studios in 2023, the same year Gardiner shifted to a first-look arrangement. Among its credits are the BBC's Best Interests and Boy Swallows Universe for Netflix. Jo Evans, director of production, works alongside Spence in running the company.[S1]
For Chapter One, the shift in ownership lands during a crowded period, with three productions underway. One is a limited series version of Ben Macintyre's bestseller The Siege, from Will Smith, destined for Channel 4, Universal Global Television and Arte. Another is Pete Bowker's Dragon Slayers, a limited series for the BBC and Universal Global Television featuring Emmy winner Matthew Rhys. The third is Two Birds, Helen FitzGerald's crime thriller, for ITV and Stan.[S1]
