Here at Sky, our entertainment team stays focused on one simple purpose: to enrich people’s lives through amazing TV.  As a business, we’ve created a market for premium content – where people are happy to pay for astonishing TV.  We owe it to anyone who pays for Sky to keep upping the bar and setting a new standard previously unseen.

How Sky defines new standards is usually by disrupting a settled market. This sounds petulant, but I don’t mean it like that.  It’s about taking something that is ‘fine’, and introducing standards, or content, or services which make ‘fine’ look drab, dull and limited.  We did it with sport. We did it with movies. We’ve done it with On Demand. We’ve done it with TV on the move – our amazing Sky Go service. And we’ve started to do it with Entertainment. 

Our comedy investment has been well documented. From a standing start to the largest investor in comedy in Britain and Ireland in under two years.  Not just a financial investment, significant though that was. It’s a creative investment – adding to Britain and Ireland’s brilliant tradition in comedy. It’s now the right time for us to do it in drama. 

Last month we announced our drama slate. Two years in development, it was a nerve wracking moment. You hope that the pieces you have gone for are ones that will resonate with viewers. You are aware that all eyes are on you and your team. You are aware of what else is out there, you see the drama offering in Britain and Ireland is good but you know in your gut that it can be miles better. 

Through our new slate of brand new Sky shows, including The Tunnel, Dracula and Strikeback, we’re combining the three elements of Sky drama’s core DNA. 

Firstly, we want to make drama with real scale – drama that has more in common with film than TV.  The second element is humour. Po-faced doesn’t really do it for our viewers, nor for me to be honest.  I just don’t get those producers or commissioners who fail to see the funny in life. And thirdly, we want drama with emotion, with the dial turned right up.  We want to connect with people, in a lasting way.  We want people to love – not just admire - what we do. 

We’ve been talking a lot about how we can supersize what we do. Of course Sky is fundamentally different to other broadcasters because of its relationship with its viewers. When you pay for something, your expectations are higher. As a company, we are in service of our customers.  We deliver what they want – and they tell us they want something different and special. 

So as part of that vision, we are now actively looking for a new drama commission of real scale and huge ambition.  A drama with humour and emotion, big budgets, huge sets and A-list talent. Others call them 'landmark dramas' or 'tentpole'. We simply call them 'game-changing dramas'.  This will be our Game of Thrones, our Band of Brothers.

We’re really excited about taking drama to the next level here at Sky – take a look at the show reel above to get a taste of our ambition.

Enjoy.