FEATURE: What I'd Like To See From BBC3's Return

 FEATURE: What I'd Like To See From BBC3's Return

Ever since BBC3 became a strictly online only affair, many have been clamouring for its return as a broadcast channel. Finally, that moment has arrived, as this Tuesday the BBC finally announced that BBC3 would be returning to terrestrial television once again. The channel is set to occupy the CBBC channel's slot from January 2022, with CBBC closing its childrens' programming two hours' earlier at 7pm GMT. This got me thinking: what would I like to see from BBC3's return? 

Well, here are just a few ideas of what I'd like to see from the channel's return next year.

A Doctor Who Confidential Return

The decision to axe Doctor Who Confidential was a baffling one, when the news broke in 2011. The reasoning behind this move, the BBC claimed, was to cut costs - and yet Doctor Who Confidential was hardly an expensive show to produce. The production cast and crew are already on site for a start, there are no fancy special effects or prosthetics to pay for, and the presenter is wholly a narrated presence, so no need to pay for a host to be chaperoned to the filming location. All that is required is for a skeleton crew to turn up to the set, record the behind the scenes work that is currently occurring and film a bunch of vox pops to be edited together by the post-production editor ready for transmission. So why not bring it back?

It would be a relatively cheap and simple way to produce new content for BBC3, without having to spend as much as a dime. Doctor Who Confidential would leave a very small dent in the BBC's wallet, and they would have hours of content to repeat later. There's absolutely no reason why they couldn't expand it to other BBC dramas either. How about a His Dark Materials Confidential? Or maybe a behind the scenes look at Line Of Duty? Hell, even the BBC's latest hit Bloodlands could have a go, if they so wished.

A Torchwood Revival

One of BBC3's biggest successes during its original run as a terrestrial channel was, without a doubt, Torchwood. This Doctor Who spin-off starring everybody's favourite immortal Captain Jack Harkness gained a whole life of its own, even sparking its own separate dedicated fanbase away from the main show. Torchwood was a major cultural phenomenon, and has seen something of a resurgence as of late, with the series receiving a record number of iPlayer requests last year, and a successful public campaign to keep the show on the iPlayer after it was nearly removed earlier this year.

There has never been a more perfect time than now to bring Torchwood back. In the past year alone, we have seen Captain Jack return to Doctor Who, Gwen Cooper openly referenced in the main show's New Year Special 'Revolution of the Daleks', and Torchwood's fifteenth anniversary celebrated with Big Finish's upcoming audio adventure 'Absent Friends', guest starring David Tennant as the Doctor. There's clearly still a great deal of interest in this sci-fi series, and so the BBC would be wise to bring this show back whilst the public demand is there.

U.S. Imports

With the likes of Bates Motel and The Terror hitting UK screens this year, the BBC have been making big waves with their U.S. imports lately. So why not expand that to BBC3's output?

One thing I would love to see is BBC3 transmit a superhero drama series from across the pond, so is it too unfeasible to suggest they could pick up the rights to Superman & Lois? The superhero drama series has yet to pick up a UK broadcaster, despite other Arrowverse shows currently being broadcast across E4 and Sky, so the board is still wide open for the BBC to swoop in and claim the rights to this highly anticipated take on the Superman mythos.

Failing that, maybe the BBC could seek the rights to Selfie, the 2014 romantic comedy starring Karen Gillan as the self-obsessed junior executive of KinderKare Pharmaceuticals? The show only lasted a single series and failed to land a single UK broadcaster during its year of release, so the rights would cost virtually nothing for the BBC to acquire, and provide an easy way for the channel to fulfil a slot upon its return.  

Original Comedy Commissions 

During its original run as a terrestrial channel, one of the main areas BBC3 was known for was its highly successful comedy shows. The likes of Gavin And Stacey and Murder In Successville became major success stories that went on to run for multiple series, and in Gavin And Stacey's case, even a move to BBC1. It would be a shame, therefore, for BBC3's return as a broadcast channel to not see this same devotion to comedy content.

BBC3 Online has had much success in this area, with comedies such as Fleabag and The Young Offenders becoming major hits for the channel during its period off the air. Continuing this focus on creating original comedy could only help to further bolster BBC3's image as the home for trendy comedic output, and lead the way for shows that would otherwise seem out of place on BBC1 or BBC2 to get a terrestrial airing on a channel that is more geared towards their intended demographic.

A Diverse Range Of Documentaries

The BBC has always been known for its excellent documentary output, and lately they have produced some excellent factual content. Rhod Gilbert's Stand Up To Infertility was a recent stand-out for me, offering a humorous and at times moving look into an issue that many men find hard to discuss. BBC3, however, could offer a more diverse insight into different communities around the United Kingdom, and provide a voice to those who are currently unheard.

One thing I have always wanted to see on television is a greater exploration of hidden disabilities such as autism and depression. Whilst the BBC have made great strides into these areas, with previously announced documentaries on autism and mental health presented by Paddy McGuinness and Roman Kemp respectively yet to air, it would be great to see BBC3 take a deeper dive into these areas upon its return. 

Rather than celebrities talking about these subjects, how about asking members of these communities how they feel about their disability, for instance? As somebody with high-functionality autism, I would certainly be interested to hear fellow autistic members of society talk about how the disability affects them - and it would also be great to hear from those who live with anxiety or dementia. What challenges do they face? How do they overcome their obstacles? What is it like to live their day-to-day routines? These are questions that BBC3 could pose in their factual output, and present us with the kind of unique perspectives that you would never find within the listings of the BBC's other televised channels.

So that's my list on what I would like to see from BBC3's upcoming return as a terrestrial channel. What would you like to see from BBC3's televisual output? Let me know in the comments.

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