UK Drama School LAMDA Opens In New York

Top UK drama school LAMDA is opening in the U.S. The institution, which says it is the “world’s oldest drama school,” last week launched a New York facility with U.S. sister org American Friends of LAMDA (AFLAMDA). The facilities will serve as a hub for training, innovation, collaboration and education, LAMDA said. They were launched at an event Thursday night at the Players’ Club in Manhattan attended by LAMDA faculty, alumni and special guests. AFLAMDA has meanwhile appointed Succession star Brian Cox as its inaugural patron and brought in board members David Beach, Gabby Beans, Baron Kelly and Mary Willis White. Cox and the likes of Jim Broadbent, Maureen Lipman and David Oyelowo are former students. “The opening of our New York office is an exciting new chapter,” said Mark O’Thomas, Principal and CEO of LAMDA. “As we adapt to the evolving landscape of the creative arts, this expansion reflects our commitment to nurturing talent and creating opportunities on an international stage.”

Channel 4 Serving ‘First Dates’ Spin-Off In The Mediterranean

Channel 4 is taking its First Dates hit format to the beach. First Dates Beach Club will head to a glamorous Mediterranean location next summer, with singletons matched and taking part in dates in a beachside setting. Maître d Fred Sirieix will return with Merlin Griffiths to host, while WBD-backed Twenty Twenty will continue to produce. First Dates just aired its 10th anniversary series and is one of Channel 4’s most successful shows of the past decade. It has also been spun off for young viewers, with an E4 version titled Teen First Dates launching four years ago. Twenty Twenty Creative Director James O’Reilly said: “After ten years of matchmaking, First Dates Beach Club offers a fresh and exciting evolution of the much-loved series, with some new twists to the format designed especially for success on streaming.”

‘The Wedding Banquet’ To Open BFI Flare

The 39th edition of BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival (March 19-30) has set its Opening Night Gala with the international premiere of Andrew Ahn’s dramedy The Wedding Banquet. The director is expected to be in attendance. The comedy of errors, a reimagining of Ang Lee’s movie of the same name, is about a chosen family navigating the disasters and delights of family expectations, queerness, and cultural identity. Cast includes Bowen Yang, Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Han Gi-Chan, Joan Chen, and Youn Yuh-Jung.

Sky Becomes New UK Home For ‘Hacks’

Sky has become the new UK home of Emmy-winning comedy Hacks. Seasons 1, 2 and 3 will launch on the pay-TV and streaming provider on February 7, with Season 4 following later this year. Up to this point, Seasons 1 and 2 had been offered in the UK through Prime Video, though Season 3, which won Emmys and Golden Globes, had not been distributed locally. Hacks stars Jean Smart, playing a legendary Las Vegas entertainer who forms a dark mentorship with an entitled outcast 25-year-old (Hannah Einbinder). Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky are the creators and showrunners, with Downs and Aniello EPing via their Paulilu banner and Statsky via First Thought Productions. Michael Schur is also an exec producer through Fremulon and David Miner via 3 Arts Entertainment, with Morgan Sackett alongside. Universal Television, part of Universal Studios Group, is the studio. Hacks was a surprise Emmy winner last year, beating frontrunner The Bear, while Smart won Best Actress.