Fern McCauley Leads Development at Poison Pen Studios

Fern McCauley has been appointed as the new head of development at Poison Pen Studios. She will now work with Ben Stephenson, overseeing the development of new British and American dramas for both London and U.S.-based teams.

Poison Pen Studios is preparing for the upcoming launches of two major dramas on ITV. 'Adultery,' a provocative love-story drama starring Dominic Cooper and Romola Garai, is written by Danny Brocklehurst. Additionally, the serial killer thriller 'The Dark,' featuring Laura Donnelly, is adapted from G.R. Halliday's novel 'From The Shadows' by Matt Hartley.

McCauley brings extensive experience to her new role. Previously, she was the head of IP acquisitions at Poison Pen, focusing on sourcing IP from various media. Before that, she served as the first head of media development at Hachette, managing film and TV rights deals across multiple publishing houses. Her earlier career included work as an associate literary agent.

Stephenson expressed excitement about McCauley's leadership, highlighting their existing development slate with major networks and streamers like FX, HBO, BBC, ITV, Netflix, Amazon, and Sky. He looks forward to finding more compelling series for both U.K. and U.S. markets.

McCauley shared her enthusiasm for the new chapter, noting the rapid fruition of their first book-to-TV adaptation, 'The Dark.' She is eager to guide Poison Pen into its next phase, leveraging their strong slate of screenwriters and IP for international television screens.

Launched in 2022, Poison Pen Studios is part of ITV Studios' global production network. ITV Studios itself was recognized as Edinburgh TV Festival's Production Group of the Year.