Northern Irish production company Below The Radar has been bought back from Ten Alps Media Group, by executive producers Michael Fanning and Máire Bhreathnach.
The Belfast-based independent production company, which has had global success recently as a co-producer on IFTA-winning documentary ‘Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God’, was acquired by Ten Alps in 2009.
Producers Fanning and Bhreathnach have now bought the company back in a management buyout, reports Broadcast.
Ten Alps, the media group founded by Bob Geldof, has decided to focus its efforts on the UK market, where it has projects such as Channel 5’s ‘Benidorm ER’ and BBC Two’s ‘Queen Victoria’s Children’.
Below the Radar was set up in 2006 by TV producers and journalists Trevor Birney and Ruth O’Reilly.
Fanning, a former producer at UTV, was appointed producer at Below The Radar in 2006. His credits include the documentaries ‘The Day the Troubles Began’ and ‘The Nolan Interview: Bill Clinton’.
Bhreathnach joined Below The Radar in 2009, and currently heads up the Irish language department. She has presented on a number of Irish language shows, including ‘Scéal an Airgid’ and ‘Luí na Talún’.
Ten Alps chairman Peter Bertram commented on the sale: “Following a review of the Northern Ireland unit and the funding landscape for productions in the region, Ten Alps has taken the decision to exit this market.”
Below The Radar’s ‘Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God’ is released in Irish cinemas today (Friday February 22), as well as UPC on demand.
