ESPN in the UK

•  More than 15 titles this winter on ESPN channels
•  Latest documentaries in acclaimed 30 For 30 series premiere from 7^th November
•  Other titles include Manuel Herrero’s Play and Jorge Mendes: The Super Agent
•  Underlines brand’s global commitment to the best in sport documentary storytelling

ESPN continues to underline and enhance its reputation as the home for great sports documentaries with the announcement that the latest in the sports media company’s acclaimed 30 For 30 documentary series will premiere across ESPN channels (ESPN America and ESPN Classic) this winter in the UK, Ireland and across Europe. These films follow on from the original 30 For 30 series, which debuted across Europe in February 2010. Additionally, ESPN has acquired a slate of additional documentary films that will debut on ESPN channels during the winter as well.

ESPN Films, creators of the Emmy-nominated and Peabody Award-winning 30 For 30 film series, announced recently the new slate of films in its 30 For 30 series. The new slate premieres in the EMEA region on ESPN America (HD), beginning with Broke on Wednesday 7^th November at 7pm.  The next three films – There’s No Place Like Home, Benji and Ghosts of Ole Miss will debut on consecutive Wednesday nights in November.  A fifth 30 For 30 documentary, You Don’t Know Bo, will debut in December (date and time TBC).

To accompany these documentaries, ESPN also commissioned a 30-part digital short film series. 30 for 30 Shorts is a collaboration with Bill Simmons’ Grantland.com and will be similar to the feature-length films – in that each piece will represent a specific point of view of the filmmaker and reflect how they blend the narrative with their own visual style. The first two 30 For 30 Shorts are available on ESPN.com and Grantland.com. Arnold’s Blueprint focuses on Arnold Schwarzenegger’s teenage years in the Austrian Army and how the farm boy’s mandatory military service played a critical role in his journey to international fame. Here Now  follows former Cincinnati Reds great (and all-time Major League baseball hit leader) Pete Rose as he continues to be surrounded by baseball. But instead of a dugout, he’s seated on a folding chair in a memorabilia store in Vegas.

In addition to the ESPN-produced films, ESPN has also acquired a series of documentaries to be televised across Europe on ESPN Classic over the coming months as part of the ESPN Classic Cinema season. These include Play, a film from “March Of The Penguins” director Manuel Herrero – which looks at the sociological aspect of sport and why humans take part; Jorge Mendes: The Super Agent, following one of the world’s leading sports agents; Le Manifeste de Pierre de Coubertin, looking at how the Frenchman helped to create the Olympic Games; and Rules of the Game, which chronicles the highly unusual Royal Shrovetide Football Match played annually in Ashbourne.

Other films, which are currently being adapted for broadcast in the UK over the coming months across ESPN channels include:  La Fabrique, Ces Chers Ennemis, Plan D’Etat, La Course de Levriers – Une Histoire de Paris-Tours, Le Grand Match, and Un Petit Tour En Famille.

Around the world, ESPN has made an industry-leading commitment to sports documentary storytelling – establishing its own ESPN Films unit in 2008, creating the multiple award-winning 30 for 30 sports documentary series, acquiring and showcasing third-party films, working with filmmakers from all levels of the industry, and even supporting a sports documentary grant with Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program.

Please check local schedules or visit www.espnamerica.com and www.espnclassic.com for schedules for programming details and up to date schedules.