A main stage line-up that sets the scene for the future of UK TV, a new masterclass stage open to all, meetings with commissioners, distributors and brands, and strands covering the PSBs, scripted, non-scripted, podcast and digital
It has been a year of change for UK content. Sky has agreed to buy ITV’s broadcast and streaming business, YouTube delivered this year’s MacTaggart lecture, and the BBC is heading into Charter renewal. Budgets are tight, the market is choppy, and the route from idea to audience looks different again in every genre.
On 17 November, GrowthLab London returns to the Barbican for one day that brings the whole industry into one room: TV, podcast and digital, commissioners and indies, studios, distributors and brands.
“The industry no longer fits into neat boxes,” says GrowthLab and Indielab founder founder Victoria Powell. “GrowthLab London is the one day where scripted, non-scripted, podcast and digital come together, with the people who are making the decisions.”
This week’s Indie Hustle previews:
The main stage: why the line-up matters
Why GrowthLab London has introduced Indielab masterclasses, and why they’re open to everyone
Meeting the commissioners, distributors and brands: who you can do business with on the day
The main stage: the people setting the agenda
The GrowthLab London main stage brings together the most influential people in UK content: the leaders who decide what the nation watches and where the industry goes next.
The day opens with ITV’s Kevin Lygo and closes with the BBC’s Kate Phillips, two of the most powerful figures in British television, setting out their vision for the future of public service broadcasting.
In between, the line-up spans every part of the market, with scripted, non-scripted, podcast, digital and studio strands.
The heads of three of the UK’s biggest studios, Patrick Holland, Zai Bennett and Amelia Brown, share their views on the future of UK production.
The scripted strand brings together drama leaders from ITV, Sky, Disney+, Banijay Rights and Firebird Pictures to ask how UK drama keeps its global edge, while World Productions’ Simon Heath reveals how Line of Duty still grips the nation.
The non-scripted strand puts commissioners and producers from the BBC, Amazon MGM Studios, Expectation and UKTV on the spot about where the next big ideas in reality and documentary will come from, with the team behind Last One Laughing, and multi-award-winning documentary filmmaker Norma Percy also taking the stage.
The podcast and digital strands complete the picture. Podcast leaders from Acast, Global, Goalhanger and the BBC debate whether the golden age can last, and Gary Lineker and Tony Pastor share how they built The Rest is Football and Goalhanger, named Britain’s fastest-growing private company in this year’s Sunday Times 100. Meanwhile, YouTube UK, 4Studio and Little Dot Studios test whether the digital dividend is real, and what it means for producers looking to build new revenue streams.
Every genre is covered, from scripted and non-scripted to podcast and digital, with a focus on where growth is coming from, and this year’s creative and commercial successes in UK TV.
Takeaways: decision-makers from across the PSBs, studios, streamers, podcast and digital, all on one stage, with a sharp focus on growth
New for 2026: masterclasses, open to all
For more than a decade, Indielab has run masterclasses for indies and super indies. This year, for the first time, that expertise comes to GrowthLab London, with a full day of Indielab masterclasses, included in every ticket.
GrowthLab London has introduced them because the questions indies ask most are practical ones. Indies of every size, including many of the larger companies, want to know how branded entertainment works, how to make the most of digital revenue streams, and how AI can save time and money. The masterclasses answer those questions directly, with the people already doing it.
“Every company we speak to, from start-ups to super indies, is asking the same questions about brands, digital and AI,” says Powell. “The masterclasses give whole teams a cost-effective way to get up to speed in one day, from people who are already making it work.”
This year’s sessions include:
Brand funding your TV programme, with WPP Media, Boots, Vinted and DFS: what brands want, and how to get the right programme in front of them
Branded podcasting with Cold Glass: how Dish was built with Waitrose
Sweating your TV assets with Little Dot Studios: making your catalogue earn more on YouTube and social
Vertical content with Spirit Studios: financing and making microdramas
AI in TV: what’s possible now, a practical hour of demos with AI consultant Dan Taylor-Watt
Scaling and selling your business with Harbottle & Lewis: who is investing, how to find them and how to get the deal done
Takeaways: masterclasses are new for 2026 and open to every delegate, giving indies of all sizes practical know-how on brand funding, digital revenue, AI and growth
Meet the commissioners, distributors and brands
GrowthLab London is built for doing business. The Commissioner Zone brings an incredible range of broadcasters and streamers together under one roof, including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, 5, UKTV, Netflix, Apple and Disney+.
It’s the chance to find out first-hand what commissioners are looking for, reconnect with people you already know and build relationships with those you don’t.
Alongside them, the Distributor and Partner Market Hall brings together leading distributors including Banijay Rights, BBC Studios, Sphere Abacus, Rainmaker Content, Off the Fence, Seven.One Studios International, Silver Lining and DCD Rights, plus partners Harbottle & Lewis, Miller, Getty Images and Mediaflights.
The new Brand Funding Hub, run in partnership with WPP Media, connects you with the agencies that are getting shows made, and is the place to get your brand-funded show set up. Alongside it, the Digital + Podcast Lounge brings together Acast, Banijay UK, TikTok Creator Networks, Upstream Media, Showrunners, Lemonade Labs and Connect Management.
Meetings are booked through the GrowthLab London meeting platform, which goes live on Wednesday 14 October.
Takeaways: broadcasters, streamers, distributors and brand funders in one place, so you can get a project moving in a single day
Book your place
GrowthLab London takes place at the Barbican on 17 November. Every ticket includes the main stage, masterclasses, Commissioner Zone, Market Hall, Digital + Podcast Lounge and networking drinks. Final Early Bird tickets are on sale now, group packs are available for teams, and 50% bursary tickets are available through the Diversity & Inclusion and Nations & Regions schemes. Find out more here