“The Never Ending Murder,” an investigative true crime docu-series about the disappearance of 18-year-old British woman Nicola Payne (pictured above right), has been picked up by Signature Entertainment.
Signature have acquired the global rights to the series, which was made by Fulwell 73, StudioPOW and Picnik Entertainment, and will be selling international rights at upcoming major markets.
The series will be released in the U.K. and Ireland in 2023.
“The Never Ending Murder” re-examines Payne’s disappearance in 1991 in Coventry, U.K., which led to one of the West Midlands Police Force’s largest ever investigations. The series includes interviews with family and friends, including her father John Payne (pictured above left) and eldest brother (and family spokesperson) Nigel Payne, as well as those closely involved with the case, including retired detective Malcolm Ross and Martin Slevin, both of whom were lead investigators at one time.
Mark Radice directs while Venita Kidza produces. Sheldon Lazarus, Kevin Proctor and Nicola Pearcey executive produce.
Signature’s director of acquisitions and development, Elizabeth Williams, and Picnik CEO Nicola Pearcey negotiated the deal.
“We are proud to be partnering with Picnik, StudioPOW and the award-winning Fulwell 73 team on this important true crime documentary about Nicola Payne, whose case has been unsolved for decades,” said Williams. “This is an opportunity to shed light on what happened and hopefully bring closure to her loved ones. We expect the global audience response to be significant.”
Fulwell 73 director Leo Pearlman said: “The importance we all feel in telling this story and bringing it back to the forefront of debate in this country cannot be overestimated. We must all ask ourselves whether in the 30 plus years since Nicola’s murder anything has truly changed. This is a film of huge importance and one that we hope makes us all question our society. Above all else we are extremely grateful to Nicola’s family for their bravery in sharing their story with us.”
