A Sky Original Documentary Series 2 x 60
The fourth most successful Sky Documentary series ever
Seven-year-old Rachael Watts miraculously survived being abducted by a stranger, assaulted and left for dead. Three days after being found, she was asked to pick out her attacker from an identity parade. Her bravery triggered the discovery of a terrifying miscarriage of justice and paved the way for one of the most sensational re-trials in British history, for the notorious ‘Babes in the Wood’ murders.
Now 42, Rachael tells her story for the first time on camera. Described as ‘gripping’, and ‘powerful’ by the Daily Mail, this is a true crime tale that spans thirty years of British history. Told from a fresh and original perspective, this is an extraordinary story of survival that reveals the long term impact of childhood trauma.
Series Director: Tanya Stephan
Producers: Anastasia Arsan, Kate Hole
Editors: Reva Childs, Ellis Frodsham, Jane Hodge, Emma Lysaght
DoP: Luke Menges
Composer: Sarah Playford
Line Producer: Kirstin Dryburgh
Exec Producers: Richard Klein, Kate Beetham
(BBC ONE, 2023)
When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, BBC Current Affairs approached Tanya Stephan to develop a film about Ukrainians’ personal experience of war, that would do away with reporters, external commentary and foreign camera crews. She and producer Maria Drovnenkova created a unique, year-long collaboration with five Ukrainians on the frontline and in cities under attack, capturing raw and intimate footage - to take us to the heart of the experience of surviving and fighting the invasion.
The film was commissioned by BBC One’s flagship Panorama strand and broadcast to mark the first anniversary of the invasion.
Ukraine's War Diaries on BBC iPlayer
Watch Ukraine’s War Diaries on Vimeo
A devastating account of how normality can evaporate, obliterated by the grotesque realities of a war - Sunday Times, Pick of the Week
Raw, powerful, essential viewing - The Telegraph
Unusual and deceptively brilliant. You may assume that so well-reported has this war been, there would be little left to learn. You would be wrong - The Times (Saturday Review)
A smart idea, powerfully realised - The Radio Times
A very important, first-hand, sincere account of this war - Vitaly Shevchenko, BBC Ukrainecast
Shocking, powerful and heartbreaking - The Times
Directed by TANYA STEPHAN
Producer MARIA DROVNENKOVA
Editor PAWEL SLAWEK
Composer SIMON RUSSELL
Executive Producer LEO TELLING
Panorama Editor KAREN WIGHTMAN
Camera:
VLADYSLAV BARBASHOV
PAVLO DOROHOI
DENYS KHRYSTOV
IRYNA TSYBUKH
DMYTRO YELISICHENKO
(90’ ITV 2021)
At the Tuam mother and baby home in Ireland, 796 children, born to unwed mothers disappeared. Were they neglected, discarded or trafficked? Sixty years later, the remains of some have been found in a sewage tank. The Bon Secours nuns claim to have no knowledge of what happened to them. But when survivors come forward, illegal documents and a vast transatlantic network that trafficked children is exposed.
The Missing Children is a feature-length true crime documentary conceived, developed, produced, filmed and directed by Tanya Stephan. The project began when Stephan met Annette McKay, a British woman who discovered that she had a sister among the 796 missing from Tuam. Bowled over by her story, Stephan began a long journey to piece the Tuam story together, to find survivors, and people adopted to America from Tuam, and to unearth archive and evidence of falsified documents. The development of the project was financed by Nevision and the film was commissioned by ITV and co-produced with RTE in Ireland, the true crime streamer Topic in the USA, Sundance Now, and distributed by Abacus.
Watch The Missing Children on ITVX
This jaw-dropping revelatory documentary will not be easily forgotten - The Sunday Times
Outrage feels like the only appropriate response to Tanya Stephan’s commandingly thorough chronicling of the mother and baby homes scandal - The Irish Times
WINNER– BAFTA Specialist Factual 2022
WINNER – Grierson Award for Best History Documentary 2022
WINNER – Royal Television Society TV Journalism Award- Current Affairs International 2022
Nominated – Prix Italia Best Documentary 2022
Highly Commended – British Journalism Awards, Best Documentary 2022
Short-listed - Rose D’Or Best Documentary 2022
Long-listed – BAFTA Craft Award, Best Director (Factual)
Production Company: True Vision & Nevision
The Missing Children was also commissioned as a 3-part true crime box set series for Sundance Now, and the true crime streamer Topic in the USA where it streams on Amazon and Apple TV.
To create the series, Stephan took a deeper dive into the stories of some of the thousands of children trafficked from Ireland to the USA, unearthing extraordinary testimonies from adoptees who are now tracing their birth mothers, fathers and siblings.
The series featured at Crime Con 2022 in Las Vegas and was nominated for the Crime Con Awards for Best Documentary Series.
Watch the series in the US:
https://www.amazon.com/The-Missing-Children-Season-1/dp/B09TFC1KCJ
https://tv.apple.com/gb/show/the-missing-children/umc.cmc.5fm7g241fbv4slyicrpy8hgqj
Watch the series in the UK:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Missing-Children-Season-1/dp/B09MZRT31P
(ITV, 2020)
She may be a BAFTA and Oliver Award-winning star of stage and screen, but the much-loved actress has, for her entire adult life, privately and publicly fought a devastating battle with her mental health. Now, in one of the most intimate and honest documentaries you’ll watch this year, Sheridan pours her heart out during a soul stirring journey - The Sun
The honest portrayal of Sheridan’s journey both before and during lockdown was a must-watch - Metro
Viewers were left in tears on Tuesday as they praised the actress for 'breaking the taboo' on maternal mental health - Daily Mail
Heart-rending... so compelling to watch - Observer
A lovely and tender film - The Times
Authenticity and lack of pretension shone brightly throughout... an affecting documentary - i newspaper
The one-hour special by filmmaker Tanya Stephan gives illness, addiction and anxiety the space to breathe - The Independent
An admirably open documentary... Sheridan Smith gains a whole new level of respect - Radio Times
Shortlisted - Grierson 2021
Nominated - National Television Awards 2021
Production Company: True Vision
