(From top left to right: Ella Lily Hyland, Aidan Gillen, Philippa Dunne. From bottom left to right: Packy Lee, Stuart Carolan, Chris Addison)
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BBC Northern Ireland and RTÉ, have commissioned two six-part series of new drama Tall Tales & Murder, in association with Screen Ireland. The show is written by Stuart Carolan – the writer and creator of RTÉ’s smash-hit crime drama Love/Hate, one of the most critically acclaimed and successful Irish dramas ever produced – and is co-created with double EMMY and Directors Guild of America Award winner Chris Addison (Veep, Breeders, The Thick of It). Tall Tales & Murder is produced by Avalon (Breeders, Starstruck, Catastrophe), in association with Ireland-based Metropolitan Pictures (KIN).
This darkly comedic crime drama will star Ella Lily Hyland (Black Doves, Towards Zero, Silent Roar), Aidan Gillen (Love/Hate, Game of Thrones, KIN), Philippa Dunne (Amandaland, Derry Girls, The Woman in the Wall) and Packy Lee (Peaky Blinders). Co-commissioned by RTÉ and BBC Northern Ireland, in association with Screen Ireland, filming began this week in the Republic of Ireland, with the first series set to premiere in 2026. Tall Tales & Murder will be distributed internationally by Avalon.
The story is based on the much loved eight-book Dublin Trilogy by Caimh McDonnell.
Stuart Carolan, Writer and Executive Producer, said: “I’ve been a fan of the brilliant Chris Addison since The Thick of It – it’s been incredible fun working with him to bring this insane story to life.”
Chris Addison, Director and Executive Producer, said: “I’m frankly giddy with delight to get to team up with the twisted and highly original mind of Stuart Carolan to create this show. We’ve taken Caimh’s wonderful novel as a jumping off point and ended up with what I like to think of as a dark and delicious screwball drama.”
David Crean, Head of Drama, RTÉ said: “It’s so exciting to be in production with this amazing Irish drama from Stuart Carolan and Chris Addison after a great development process. The scripts are fantastic, as is the cast. RTÉ is excited to be collaborating with such brilliant broadcast partners to bring this great series to audiences on a national and international stage. Tall Tales & Murder is part of an unprecedented slate of original Irish drama in production from RTÉ, which will deliver over 142 hours of original drama this year.”
Eddie Doyle, Head of Content Commissioning, BBC Northern Ireland, said: “Tall Tales & Murder is storytelling at its darkest, funniest and most surreal. We’re looking forward to bringing audiences with us on this wild and thrilling ride from Stuart Carolan and Chris Addison, masters of their craft. There’s a fantastic cast already on board and we can’t wait to work with Avalon, in association with Metropolitan Pictures, and RTÉ to take it from script to screen.”
Rob Aslett, Executive Producer for Avalon, said: “We are delighted to be working with RTÉ, BBC and Screen Ireland and backing the very best contemporary Irish talent. Stuart’s brilliant scripts have created a wildly original crime drama that shines a light on a modern Ireland and we can’t wait to bring this show to life with a fantastic cast lead by Ella, Aiden, Philippa and Packy.”
Kate McColgan, Head of Television for Screen Ireland, added: “Screen Ireland is delighted to support the making of Tall Tales & Murder. Congratulations to all involved for assembling such a brilliant cast featuring some of our best-known actors alongside some exciting new stars. It is wonderful to partner again with our colleagues in RTÉ and BBC Northern Ireland.”
Tall Tales & Murder (12 x 60’) was commissioned by David Crean, Head of Drama and Dermot Horan, Director of Acquisitions & Co-Productions, at RTÉ; and Eddie Doyle, Head of Content Commissioning and Jason Butler, Commissioning Editor, for BBC Northern Ireland. Produced by Avalon, in association with Metropolitan Pictures, Tall Tales & Murder is executive produced by Chris Addison, Richard Allen-Turner, Rob Aslett, Stuart Carolan and Jon Thoday for Avalon, with David McLoughlin, and Catherine Tiernan for Metropolitan Pictures. Caroline Norris is Series Producer, Gemma O’Shaughnessy is Producer, and Chris Addison and Neasa Hardiman will direct.
Dan Lloyd at Avalon
dlloyd@avalonuk.com
+44 (0) 7779 026714
Victoria Wedderburn at Avalon
vwedderburn@avalonuk.com
+44 (0) 7557 160139
Jennifer O’Brien at RTÉ
Jennifer.OBrien@rte.ie
+353874019161
Maria Devenny at BBC Northern Ireland
maria.devenny@bbc.co.uk
+44 7825 136854
Notes to Editors:
About Avalon
Avalon is a multi-award-winning talent management, television production and live promotion group with offices in London, Los Angeles and New York.
Avalon, Artists Rights Group and The Agency together represent a diverse and distinctive roster of artists including actors, comedians, writers and directors, among them Academy Award, BAFTA, Emmy, Tony and Olivier Award-winners.
Avalon is the UK’s largest true independent television production company, with over 40 shows in production in the last year including: hit entertainment format Taskmaster (Channel 4 in the UK, Network 10 in Australia, TV4 in Sweden, TVNorge/Discovery+ in Norway); Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO); Starstruck (HBO Max/BBC); Not Going Out (BBC), the UK’s longest running sitcom on air; Breeders (FX/Sky); and Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly (Channel 5). Avalon has produced over 4,000 episodes of hit programming for audiences in the UK, US and around the world, winning over 30 Emmy Awards and BAFTAs from 100+ nominations.
Other landmark Avalon shows include Catastrophe (Amazon/Channel 4), Flatbush Misdemeanors (Showtime), The Russell Howard Hour (Sky), TV Burp (ITV), and the cult classic workplace sitcom Workaholics (Comedy Central). Avalon has also produced over 60 comedy specials for various platforms including Amazon, HBO, Netflix and Sky, as well as numerous podcasts and radio shows, including the UK’s second most popular podcast, Shagged. Married. Annoyed. with Chris & Rosie Ramsey. Avalon’s dedicated distribution arm licenses its catalogue of programmes and formats to over 200 territories worldwide.
Avalon also produces and promotes live comedy around the world and has promoted more winners and nominees of the prestigious Edinburgh Comedy Award than any other company. Avalon produced Newman and Baddiel: Live at Wembley, the UK’s first arena comedy show, Jerry Springer: The Opera, winner of four Olivier Awards, and is currently producing Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical in the West End and on Broadway, a winner of two Olivier Awards including Best New Musical in 2024 and nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical.
For Avalon news visit: www.avalonuk.com/press or follow @avalonent
About Screen Ireland
As the national agency for the Irish film, television drama, animation, and documentary industry, Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland is the creative partner to the sector, investing in talent, creativity and enterprise.
