A Steve McQueen drama series, a bold Russell T Davies adaptation and a new science series with Dara O’Briain are among BBC One’s latest commissions.

The channel’s controller Charlotte Moore unveiled the line-up at the 2015 Edinburgh International Television Festival.

She said BBC One had experienced “a record breaking year informing, educating and entertaining over 42 million people every week”.

“Over the last 12 months, BBC One has taken risks and produced channel-defining shows of scale across genres, with share increasing to its highest levels since 2008,” she said.

Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen (Andy Kropa/Invision)

The Steve McQueen series, titled 6 x 60, is a six-part drama series described as “telling the stories of people whose voices haven’t been heard”.

The Academy Award and Turner Prize winner said: “These stories are passionate, personal and unique. They are testimony to the truth of real lives and urgently need to be told. This is about a legacy which has not only made my life as an artist possible, but also has shaped the Britain that we live in today.”

Former Doctor Who exec Russell T Davies is behind a bold adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Davies said he’s been wanting to “make this for the BBC for my entire adult life”. He went on to say: “With a riot of prosthetics, CGI, magic and action, it needs the brilliant Doctor Who team in Cardiff to bring it to life.”

Russell T Davies
Russell T Davies (Zak Hussein/PA)

A new musical drama series titled Stop! In The Name Of Love will centre around the iconic sounds of Motown. The series will document the lives of six, thirty-something women and is a co-production between Red Planet Pictures and Stop! (London) Ltd, following a deal with EMI Music Publishing.

Intrepid travellers can indulge their passion with Italy’s Invisible Cities, which sees Alexander Armstrong and Dr Michael Schott explore hidden treasures from Naples, Venice and Florence.

Irish comedian Dara O Briain will make mealtimes fun as he fronts Tomorrow’s Food, a series that will explore the future of our eating habits. He will examine new technologies from 3D printing in the food industry to exploring the potential end of sell-by dates.

In the aftermath of the Cecil the Lion scandal, Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s new special on poaching is well-timed.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall (Ian West/PA)

He’ll be exploring the practice of poaching and the illegal wildlife trade.