Distributor Woodcut International will be presenting doc series to buyers at MIPCOM
London/Hampshire – Thursday 20th August 2026 – Indie prodco Woodcut Media and distributor Woodcut International are delighted to unveil their latest factual doc series Ancients: The Greatest Finds, commissioned by BBC Select.
Currently in production and scheduled for delivery in December, this exciting new series will be presented to buyers at the upcoming MIPCOM market.
Ancients: The Greatest Finds (6 x 45’) explores how Archaeology has transformed our understanding of the ancient world; a 4,000-year period that began with one of the greatest turning points in human history: the shift from mobile hunter-gatherers to settled societies. As people learned to farm, developed writing, built cities and created powerful civilisations, the foundations of the modern world began. Hidden beneath the waves, in the earth and the sand lie the clues to how our ancestors worshipped, fought, explored, entertained themselves and shaped the world around them. Across six episodes, Ancients: The Greatest Finds explores six defining themes: Cities, Belief, Warfare, Innovation, Exploration and Entertainment. Each episode examines some of the most remarkable archaeological discoveries ever made, revealing what they tell us about how ancient people lived, and how their societies were shaped.
Woodcut Media’s Andre Holzinger is series producer with Kate Beal and Tom Adams serving as executive producers. The series was ordered by Michael DiMattesa for BBC Select and brokered by Sophie Judge for BBC Studios Distribution and Diane Tripp for Woodcut International (who are handling worldwide sales).
Michael DiMattesa, Head of Programming & Content Strategy, BBC Select said: “BBC Select audiences have a proven appetite for comprehensive, definitive histories. This series pairs that editorial approach with a highly returnable format, inviting audiences back each episode to explore key societal themes through some of archaeology’s greatest discoveries. We are excited to partner with Woodcut Media on this authoritative guide to the ancient world.”
André Holzinger, Series Producer, said: “Archaeology offers a fascinating window into the ancient world, revealing how different cultures and societies lived, believed and shaped their world across the ages. We are delighted to be working on such a fascinating series, exploring remarkable stories from across the globe, from the Maya ball game at Chichén Itzá in Mexico and Tutankhamun in Egypt to Pompeii in Italy and Dura Europos in Syria.”
About Woodcut Media:
Founded by award-winning producer Kate Beal in 2014, UK indie Woodcut Media is a female-led operation with a diverse team at its core, whose main ethos is to provide an honest and trusted voice – creating programming that tells incredible human stories with creativity, authenticity, and care. As well as being one of the leading true crime doc producers in the UK, Woodcut also specialises in a broad range of standout unscripted content – factual entertainment, specialist factual, and premium/talent led programming. Titles include World’s Most Evil Women (FilmRise), Confessions of a Female Serial Killer, The Murder of Meredith (Amazon’s Prime Video), long-running series World’s Most Evil Killers (10 seasons, 200 episodes), Fiennes: Return to the Wild and Fiennes: Return to the Nile with Joseph and Sir Ranulph Fiennes (Nat Geo), Cut from a Different Cloth, Mandela, My Dad and Me, featuring Idris Elba, and Titanic in Colour (Nat Geo), The Space Race in Colour (C4) to name a few. In December 2024 Woodcut launched (in partnership with KI and Seven Network) its first FAST channel (‘Crime Files’) in Australia. The same month Woodcut achieved B-Corp certification and also began its expansion into the digital space with the roll-out of YouTube channels under the banner The Uncut Network (True Crime Uncut, Underworld Uncut, History Uncut, Essentially Uncut). In 2026, Woodcut Media became part of the TV Foundation’s Class Confident network. www.woodcutmedia.com
About Woodcut International:
Established in September 2020, UK based Woodcut International is the distribution division of Woodcut Media, a leading producer of a broad range of factual programming that includes True Crime, specialist factual, premium factual and factual entertainment. Woodcut International focuses on the global sales of select Woodcut Media series and specials that include new productions and library titles such as World’s Most Evil Women (FilmRise), The Race for Ancient Egypt in Colour, Titanic in Colour, The Three Kings of 1936, World War II: Women on the Frontline, World’s Most Dangerous Prisoners, A Royal Guide To, and the Idris Elba led docs Cut from a Different Cloth, and Mandela, My Dad and Me) www.woodcutinternational.com
About BBC Select
BBC Select is an ad-free, streaming service offering documentaries across history, travel, culture, true crime and more to audiences in the U.S. and Canada on Amazon Prime Video Channels, Apple TV, The Roku Channel and BritBox Premier. BBC Select is owned and run by BBC Studios – creator, producer and distributor of unparalleled British content globally. For more information on upcoming titles, follow the conversation on our social channels – Instagram, Facebook
