Helston

Think the X-Files meets the BBC…

For anyone that’s ever sent their DNA into the abyss only to launch an obsessive search for your ancestry, my husband and writing partner on HELSTON is your kind of person. Our pilot came together after months of exhaustive research on his family tree leading back to the Harlan Bay area of Cornwall.

We planned a trip to gorgeous Cornwall, rich with folklore and stories of sirens, giants, and witches. It began as it so often does, with Josh and I peppering each other with questions, “What if...we set a British crime drama in Cornwall…and what if we explored its many myths and legends?” And HELSTON was born.

Description

In the wake of his wife’s unsolved disappearance, DCI Tom Helston must return from leave when a kidnapping, steeped in ritualistic activity, stuns a quiet Cornish village and reveals clues that could lead him to his wife.

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“The strong point of HELSTON is the polished, distinctive, and pedal-to-the-floor paced narrative. The plot is clear and singular, with life and death stakes pertaining to Tom’s mission that works to make the script continuously forward-leaning and suspenseful. The concept is elevated by atmosphere and a strong tone that generates an underlying sense of unease that permeates each scene.
There is an eeriness that is visceral, and this tonality in conjunction with the tight plot structure gives the script great potential with its marketable premise, engaging characters, high-stakes central crime, and sharp writing. Both in style and execution, HELSTON feels akin to something like MINDHUNTER, THE KILLING and would likely be salable to the same Networks.”

We Screenplay
2020
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“This dark detective series immediately opens the door to its subversive procedural concept by the very crime it depicts in its opening acts. The very presence of witchcraft/strange symbols quickly establishes for the audience that this is not the television show they expect.
In fact, as the episode devolves and the layers of the case are slowly exposed, it becomes abundantly clear how unpredictable this show’s central case truly is. This is best demonstrated by this pilot’s stellar cliffhanger ending…”

THE BLACK LIST
2021
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The Locations

Cornwall, England

Look Book

Additional Information

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