News

A+E Networks EMEA, has commissioned BAFTA award-winning producer Blink Films and GroupM Motion Entertainment to make a 2x60’ investigative two-part series, Hitler’s British Island, to premiere on Sky HISTORY later this year. Through painstaking research by journalists and expert historians, the show will shed new light on the true extent of the horrors that unfolded on the Channel Island of Alderney during World War 2. 

Hitler’s British Island answers the question that has haunted Britain for decades.  What was the true extent of the Nazi-inflicted horrors on the Channel Islands? 

Now, archaeological investigations, declassified war reports, and buried government files provide insight into one of the darkest chapters of Britain’s wartime history. 

Revelations include definitive proof of the scale of the brutality inflicted upon prisoners – many of them Jews – by the SS and evidence of a potential mass grave on the island. The films also bring to light the tragic story of Transport 641, which saw hundreds of Jews transported from the Nazi’s Drancy internment camp in France to the SS camps on Alderney and explores the cover-up of the true fate of Major Carl Hoffman – Commandant of Alderney when under German occupation.

The two-part special is produced and directed by Andy Webb (The Diana Interview: The Truth Behind the Scandal, Bashir and the BBC), and supported by Martin Bright, former Political Editor of the New Statesman and The Jewish Chronicle, and award-winning journalist Antony Barnett, who has spearheaded and presented more than 60 investigations for Channel 4’s flagship current affairs series, Dispatches. It is line produced by Renate Brown and Elaine Rhodes is assistant producer. It is executive produced by Dan Chambers and Tom Adams for Blink Films and Martin Oxley for GroupM Motion Entertainment.

The two-part series is commissioned and executive-produced by Dan Korn, VP of Programming at A+E Networks EMEA, with Diana Carter, Commissioning Editor and Head of Talent at A+E Networks EMEA.

Dan Korn said, “With the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the death camps fast approaching, there has never been a more critical moment to examine recently unearthed evidence of a cover-up of Nazi atrocities committed on British soil. Sky History is proud to be working with Blink Films and GroupM Motion Entertainment on this important historical investigation.”

Dan Chambers, Creative Director for Blink Films said: “What happened on Alderney during the Nazi occupation has been shrouded in mystery for decades. It’s only now, almost 80 years since the end of the War, that a bright light is being shone on it, and the full horrors exposed. Our show reveals how most of the Nazi perpetrators on Alderney got off scot-free and were able to return to their normal life in Germany as if nothing had happened. We’re very grateful to Sky HISTORY and GroupM Motion Entertainment for championing the project and allowing this important story to be told.”

Martin Oxley, Executive Producer for Motion said: “The horrific stories of the atrocities carried out by Nazi personnel, after 80 years, remain as uncomfortable as when they were hidden in the archives all those years ago. The fact that those heinous crimes were committed on British soil is startling, and documenting this is long overdue. We are thrilled to be working with Blink and Sky HISTORY on this important new two-part series.”

Hitler’s British Island will premiere on Sky HISTORY in the UK and on The HISTORY Channel across EMEA later this year.
 

ENDS

For more information, please contact:

Barbara.Pianca@aenetworks.co.uk 

Organic A+ENetworks@organic-publicity.co.uk

Editor’s Notes 

• www.SkyHISTORY.co.uk
• Sky HISTORY is available on Sky 123, Virgin 131, TalkTalk 327 and streaming service NOW. 
• Clips, viewing materials and images provided on request. 
• Interview access available depending on availability. 

About Sky HISTORY

Sky HISTORY is the flagship brand of the A+E Networks® EMEA portfolio which is made up of true crime channel Crime + Investigation®; Sky HISTORY2® and free to air channel BLAZE®. Sky HISTORY is available in the UK on Sky, Virgin and on streaming service NOW. www.SkyHistory.co.uk

 

About A+E Networks EMEA

At A+E Networks EMEA, we share stories that matter everywhere, anywhere. A leader in factual entertainment, our compelling, award-winning content connects with millions across the UK, Nordics, Benelux, Germany, Italy, Spain, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Our portfolio of premium brands – The HISTORY® Channel, Crime + Investigation®, HISTORY2®, BLAZE®, and COSMO TV® - inspire and excite viewers with hit franchises (Forged in Fire), must-see dramas (Vikings) and original commissions (The Hunt for Baltic Gold and Ross Kemp: Shipwreck Treasure Hunter). Our stories are global and local, linear and digital, and always compelling. With offices in London, Rome, Madrid, Warsaw, Munich, and Johannesburg, we are a truly international company that celebrates difference and diversity.

 

About Blink Films 

Blink Films is a BAFTA award winning production company based in London and Ireland. Set up in 2007 by Dan Chambers and Justine Kershaw, Blink has produced over 400 hours of factual, documentaries, features, factual entertainment, drama-doc and comedy programming. Our award-winning programmes are noted for their intelligence, warmth, and creativity – whether tackling the sensitive subject of death through a ground-breaking experiment, exploring what it is to be human through a landmark science series, or creating a new entertainment format around gadgets and technology. Blink Films is a Tin Roof Media company. www.blinkfilmsuk.com

 

About GroupM Motion Entertainment

GroupM Motion Entertainment funds, develops, produces and distributes premium television, digital content and award-winning programming around the globe in partnership with the world’s leading producers, talent, networks, and platforms. Through innovative commercial and creative partnerships Motion works alongside GroupM agencies to produce original brand-funded content and unique entertainment partnerships that create value and help clients play a positive and active role in culture. The company has co-produced over 2,100 series, equating to over 33,000 hours of television across all programming genres. Motion currently operates in 44 countries worldwide with headquarters in London and Los Angeles. GroupM Motion Entertainment is part of GroupM, a WPP company.