by Martin Cassini
This is the story of how “the biggest contract in independent TV production history” launched a media empire, and why it was later characterised as “the biggest rip-off in independent production history”.
The first quote is from Basil Comely, who covered the origins of the career-defining contract for the TV journal, Broadcast.
The second is from lawyer, Bernard Simons. He was consulted, too late, to salvage something for those who originated and developed the project to the point of commission, subsequently ejected and erased from the record.
The tragicomic tale reflects my experience of events as they happened, supported by documents and press cuttings from the time. I’ve tried to sift fact from interpretation. If I refer to motives, I’m not claiming to know what others thought, just trying to make sense of what happened.
It’s a massive hard-luck story for me personally. Maybe it shouldn’t be shared, but on balance it should probably be out there so the court of public opinion, if anyone bothers to read it, can decide.
So the story exposes my failings, but it has value as a cautionary tale, and it seems worth shedding light on the obscured origins of a media empire.
In detailing my fall from spectacular success to spectacular failure, the tale will be a source of schadenfreude for some.
Most of the text is drafted but not quite ready for publication.