Two Rivers Media receives second order from BBC Storyville

Leading Nations independent broadcaster Two Rivers Media has received its second commission from BBC Storyville to tell the incredible true story of Dave Tomkinsa seemingly ordinary petty criminal from England who rose to become one of the world’s most notorious mercenaries and international arms dealers.

With full access to Dave Tomkins, Dogs of War (1 x 90 min) explores how this former safe stoner with an addiction to adventure ended up on the battlefields of Angola as a mercenary fighting communist-backed guerrillas.

Injured by a landmine, Dave returned home and entered the dark world of espionage, setting up mercenary operations, assassinations and huge arms deals. His exploits became legendary as he amassed great wealth and lived a lavish jet-set lifestyle, until a very dangerous mission in America led to his dramatic downfall.

On the instructions of Lucie KonCommissioning Editor at Storyville, the film is supported by Screen Scotland and will be distributed internationally by Sphere Abacus.

Alan Clements, Managing Director and Executive Producer, Two Rivers Mediasay: “Dave Tomkins’ epic rise and fall is astonishing. Bringing stories like this to life is a huge part of our job, and we want to thank Dave, his collaborators, and the men who eventually captured him for allowing Two Rivers to bring Dave’s story to the screen for the first time. This is the kind of visceral storytelling we love.”

David Whitney, Directorcomments: “No matter how dangerous the opportunity, Dave took it; a mission to assassinate the president of Togo, covert work for US intelligence, attacks on Colombian drug cartels and much more. Who would have thought that this working class safe-blower from London would be at the heart of this deadly trade for over 30 years? I am thrilled to tell this story.”

Mark Thomas from Screen Scotland adds: “Screen Scotland is delighted to support Two Rivers with their second Storyville commission Dogs of War and congratulates David Whitney on his follow-up to Killing Escobar. Two Rivers continues to deliver quality documentaries for network broadcast, firmly rooted in Scotland.”

Jonathan Ford, General Manager, Sphere Abacussay: “Dogs of War offers a snapshot of the world of modern mercenaries and illegal arms trade through one man’s story. It’s very rare to get a glimpse into such a secret and dangerous world, so we jumped at the chance to get involved in this fantastic project.”

This commission follows the recent announcement of a commission for a documentary by Two Rivers The Last Musician of Auschwitz for BBC Arts. The perseveranceThe RTS award-winning documentary about the story of Viagra was broadcast on BBC Two’s Storyville in December. Two Rivers’ portfolio of accessible documentaries also includes Cassius X: Becoming Ali for Smithsonian, Marine A for Channel 4 and The Ice Cream Wars for BBC Scotland and BBC One.

Dogs of War is executive produced by Alan Clements for Two Rivers Media and produced and directed by David Whitneywinner of the BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Director (Factual) for his previous BBC film Kill Escobar.