TV twins to return to Bolton and film horror series

Michael and Paul Clarkson are set to return to their hometown to film horror drama series Red Rose for the BBC.

The duo have penned a tense tale about a disparate group of teenagers, adrift in the long hot summer following GCSEs, who hear about a mysterious app.

After downloading the Red Rose application Rochelle Jackson plunges into darkness and a series of events which take the town by storm.

Following the BBC’s decision to commission the show, Michael Clarkson said: “We’re thrilled that our first show will be with the BBC. We’ve been working in LA for a while now, so the opportunity to return to the UK for our own show is incredible.

“Red Rose is a love letter to our hometown and childhood. We get to explore what challenges face the bright but opportunity starved teenagers of today.”

Red Rose will be filmed in Bolton with casting and release announcements due to be made soon.

The Clarkson twins are also currently in production for another of their series - The Haunting of Bly Manor. 

Based on the classic Henry James ghost story The Turn of the Screw, the show is a follow up to the hit Netflix series The Haunting of Hill House, and is due to be released in 2020.

The pair have also signed on to co-write Amazon Studios’ The Wheel of Time series, based on the epic fantasy books by Robert Jordan.

Piers Wenger, controller of BBC Drama, spoke excitedly about the opportunity of working with the Bolton-born twins.

He said: “In Red Rose, the rude, crude and utterly outspoken nature of Michael and Paul’s characters collides brilliantly with the chills and thrills of a very contemporary horror story.

“The result is a seductive mash up with a point of view and tone all of its own. We are delighted to be working with the Clarksons on their series which marks their return to British TV.”

The eight-part series was commissioned by Fiona Campbell for BBC Three and Me Wenger and will be co-produced by Eleven and global independent studio Entertainment One, eOne.