Radar Studios has partnered with Sir Tony Robinson for a major original content venture, launching a new history brand designed to reach audiences across YouTube, television and other digital platforms.

Tony Robinson Rewrites History will launch with a dedicated YouTube channel later this year, featuring an initial 12 x 30-minute episodes, alongside a 6 x 60-minute television series that Radar Studios will introduce to international buyers at MIPCOM next month.

As part of the series, Tony Robinson will revisit some of the defining events of the past, from ancient history through to the modern era, uncovering the people, politics, rivalries, accidents and extraordinary moments of chance that shaped the world we live in today.

Each story will also identify a pivotal moment when history could easily have taken a very different course – and explore what might have happened next. The series will cover a range of time periods and revisit some of the most important events that shaped the world; from the Spanish Armada to the advent of Covid-19. Combining Tony’s trademark curiosity, wit and ability to make history accessible with expert insight and imaginative storytelling, the series will examine not only what happened, but what very nearly happened instead.

The project extends a relationship between Tony and the WTFN Group spanning more than 15 years and numerous television series, including Tony Robinson’s Time Walks and Tony Robinson’s Tour of Duty. Radar Studios also operates Time Travels, a dedicated history channel on YouTube with more than 40,000 subscribers and content that includes legacy programming featuring Tony. The new partnership will build on that established digital audience while creating a new pipeline of original content around the broadcaster.

The partnership is a major demonstration of Radar Studios’ new business model, following the merger of WTFN Group’s digital business Radar and international distributor Fred Media. Bringing content creation, channel management and international distribution together under one roof, Radar Studios is developing original IP that can be created, curated and exploited across multiple platforms.

Tony Robinson says, “I’ve known the team at WTFN for more than 15 years and we’ve made some terrific television together, so the opportunity to do something genuinely new with Radar Studios was irresistible.

“History is about the way things were, isn’t it? It’s written in stone and it couldn’t have happened any other way. Well, no! It’s actually full of tiny moments where everything hung in the balance. One different decision, one mistake, even a gust of wind and you have to rewrite history.

“And the great thing about this partnership is that we’re no longer thinking about history as something that has to fit into one particular television slot. We can tell stories in different ways, for different audiences and across different platforms. There is an enormous amount to explore and I’m hoping these first six hours are just the beginning.”

Radar Studios’ Chief Commercial Officer, Derek Dyson, says, “There could hardly be a better partner than Tony to lead off our originals strategy. He is one of the most recognisable and trusted faces in popular history, with an extraordinary ability to make the past entertaining, accessible and relevant to audiences around the world.

“Significantly, Tony Robinson Rewrites History demonstrates exactly why we created Radar Studios. Instead of making a series and then deciding where it might live, we are developing IP from the outset with multiple audiences, platforms and distribution opportunities in mind. We are creating original content for a dedicated, managed YouTube channel; developing additional digital opportunities around that content; and producing a standalone six-part television series for international buyers.

“One creative partnership and one piece of IP can therefore generate a whole ecosystem of content and commercial opportunities. By bringing content creation, channel management and international distribution together within Radar Studios, we can manage that entire journey ourselves.”