BBC Children’s and Education is stocking up on programming for next year with three newly greenlit kids series earmarked for CBBC and BBC iPlayer.

First up is Gifted (10 x 30 minutes, pictured), based on a collection of same-name middle-grade novels by Marilyn Kaye. In production now at Glasgow’s Black Camel Pictures (The Brilliant World of Tom Gates) and Paris-based Media Valley (Zoom the White Dolphin), this is the French studio’s first foray into live-action production. Set in Edinburgh, Gifted‘s premise revolves around a group of Scottish teenagers with special powers who become the target of a powerful entity called the Bodkin. To save the day, they must learn how to control their abilities, which include telekinesis, invisibility and mind-reading. 

With screenwriter Emma Reeves (The Worst Witch) and director Matthias Hoene (Theodosia) on board, Gifted relocates the books’ US setting to Scotland in order to align with the Beeb’s stated strategy of showcasing “homegrown dramas and series which aim to give our young viewers an insight into the diverse lives of children, characters and settings from across the UK,” as per BBC Children’s director Patricia Hidalgo.

CBBC has co-commissioned Gifted with NDR/ARD (Germany), and funding support is coming from Screen Scotland and London’s LIPSYNC, which will handle post-production and VFX. Studio 100 International has been tapped to distribute the series, which should be ready to roll out beyond the UK by 2026.

Looking to build co-viewing appeal and capitalize on a growing prank content trend, CBBC has also put in an order for Gladiators: Epic Pranks (15 x 15 minutes), a spinoff to the BBC One game show Gladiators, in which average-Joe contenders face off against elite athletes (known as gladiators) in special games like Powerball and Duel. This offshoot will feature family-friendly behind-the-scenes gags such as a gladiator being asked to wear a bunny costume for a calendar shoot, or deal with the unusual demands of a fake influencer.

Hungry Bear Media and MGM Alternative UK, the studios behind the original series, are also producing Epic Pranks. Hungry Bear’s Dan Baldwin and Lou Brown are attached as EPs, as are Barry Poznick and Dom Bird on behalf of MGM Alternative UK.

Last but not the least, a tween docuseries called Stage Stars from Bristol’s Drummer Television (Gym Stars) has also scored a commission. This 15 x 24-minute series is set at a UK-based boarding school and follows several young students training in a program focused on dance and the performing arts. Fiona Piper is executive producing Stage Stars on behalf of the BBC, along with Drummer’s Tamsin Summers and Rachel Drummond-Hay.