Posted in: BBC, Movies, TV | Tagged: ghosts

Ghosts UK: Original BBC Series Returning as New Theatrical Film

Ghosts: The Possession of Button House is a theatrical feature film spin-off of the hit BBC sitcom Ghosts, currently in production.

Did you really think the original – and best – OG version of Ghosts, the hit BBC sitcom that got remade into the less funny, more cloying and irritating American CBS version [Ed. Note: Boo!] and the just-launched, more mean-spirited Australian version were over? Well, you might be happy to know that Ghosts, the British version, is coming back as a theatrical feature film. BBC Film, Lionsgate, and BBC Studios have given Monumental Television, part of ITV Studios, the greenlight to bring the beloved and award-winning BBC comedy Ghosts to the big screen in Ghosts: The Possession of Button House. The TV series was a huge hit on BBC television, so why not try for that sweet, sweet theatrical box office as well?

Ghosts stars, writers, and creators Mathew Baynton, Simon Farnaby, Martha Howe-Douglas, Jim Howick, Laurence Rickard, and Ben Willbond have written the feature-length family adventure film in which Lolly Adefope, Charlotte Ritchie, and Kiell Smith-Bynoe will also star. For award-winning Producers Alison Owen and Debra Hayward, Ghosts: The Possession of Button House represents the perfect marriage of their long-standing expertise in producing films and television.

Simon Hynd (Ghosts, Motherland, Can You Keep a Secret?) directs the film. Alison Carpenter and Andy Brunskill serve as Producers. The creators/writers (also creators and stars of Yonderland and Bill, and the original stars of Horrible Histories) serve as Executive Producers. Jill Forbes is Executive Producer for Monumental. The Executive Producer for BBC Film is Eva Yates. Lionsgate will distribute in the UK with Marie-Claire Benson and Emma Berkofsky as Executive Producers. BBC Studios will distribute worldwide, with Richard Acton as Executive Producer.

The creators/writers said, "We thought we had said goodbye to Button House at the end of the final series. We never planned to come back. But when we had the idea for this story, we all got so excited that we couldn't resist returning to our haunted home for one more adventure. We can't wait to be together and to welcome some brilliant new faces, to tell this soul-stirring tale of life and death." Owen and Hayward shared, "We are thrilled to be bringing this hit comedy to the big screen for an even bigger audience to enjoy."

Carpenter added, "We couldn't be more excited to be working with this exceptionally talented team once again, and with Simon at the helm. Die-hard fans and newcomers are in for a real treat". Eva Yates, Director of BBC Film, noted, "At BBC, we are overjoyed to be bringing our beloved 'Ghosts' back once again, this time for a hilarious and cinematic adventure, for the enjoyment of audiences on big and small screens alike." Marie-Claire Benson, EVP, Head of the Motion Picture Group at Lionsgate UK says: "We're proud to champion outstanding British filmmaking and excited to work with the remarkable Ghosts team to bring Button House to UK Cinemas." Richard Acton, EP for for BBC Studios says: "We are delighted to be partnering again with Monumental and the Ghosts team and can't wait for international audiences both new and old to see this brilliant latest chapter in the Ghosts story."

Ghosts: The Possession of Button House will film at West Horsley Place in Surrey and on location in the surrounding area. The comedy will continue the class satire that the US version tries very hard to ignore. Meanwhile, the original series is streaming in the UK on BBC iPlayer. Ghosts ran for five series on BBC One, with the final episode watched by 7.2 million viewers. It was the most-watched comedy series of 2023 in the UK. The hit US version of the series is currently in its fifth season, produced by Lionsgate Television in partnership with CBS Studios and BBC Studios LA, with a sixth season already commissioned. Internationally, the format has now been licensed in six territories, most recently in Czechia, with local versions also produced in France, Germany, Australia, and Greece.

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