¡Aye carumba! It's time for 'El Clinico'

Across the world, viewers tune in to the medical melodrama – and it’s not the only Irish TV show that has sold internationally

IF YOU HOLIDAYED in Spain this summer, and sought solace from sunburn by flicking on the television, you may have been surprised to hear Amy Huberman's dulcet tones being dubbed into Spanish. Or perhaps you were down Copenhagen way, where her Danish doppelganger was also hard at work. Ditto the rest of the cast of The Clinic, as the Irish medical drama is one of RTE's biggest TV exports.

“You would be surprised how many programmes we exported internationally,” says Edel Edwards, RTÉ’s programme sales manager. “In size and output terms RTÉ is no BBC or ITV, and never will be, but we currently have 22 shows on air or licensed in the UK.”

That figure may not sound very high, but a quick scan of the Irish TV schedules reveals very few programmes that come from territories as small as Ireland. The US, UK and Australia dominate the international television market and are Ireland’s main competitors when it comes to the lucrative TV sales market abroad.

In recent years other key territories have opened up, and The Clinichas been sold to channels in Spain ( El Clinicois a big hit), France, New Zealand, Iceland, Belgium and, this year, Serbia.

Drama as a migrant TV genre makes sense, which is why programmes such as Proof, Rawand Single-Handedhave also done well. The latter has managed to nab one of ITV's biggest slots – Sunday-night prime time – which is usually reserved for home productions.

So impressed was ITV with the quality and audience reaction that it entered into production with RTÉ for a fourth series, which has gone from two parts to six.

This kind of co-production takes budgetary pressure off RTÉ, as does a recent deal with Australia’s biggest broadcaster, ABC. “Apart from drama, factual and lifestyle programmes do very well,” says Edwards, who previously worked for Granada in the UK.

Not every programme will make the leap by virtue of genre, being too localised or time sensitive, like a soap. " Fair Citywas shown in the UK at one point a few years ago, but the soap market is now very crowded and competitive. One of the first questions we get asked about a programme is its production date, as channels want recent work," says Edwards.

While many of the shows are dubbed, some are sold as format only. One big success is The Restaurant, which runs on Italian television and is currently in its third series.

But the format bar was set very high by The Lyrics Board, a slightly complicated, much-scoffed-at music quiz created by ex-RTÉ producer Andy Ruane. It has aired in 26 countries, including Slovenia, Vietnam, Russia and Sweden. According to Edwards, one of the most popular programmes RTÉ has ever sold abroad was Strumpet City. Based on James Plunkett's novel about the 1913 Dublin lock-out, it proved a surprising and consistent hit outside Ireland.

Scandinavia and eastern Europe have also provided receptive audiences for Irish shows; deals have been done with Israel and Portugal, and RTÉ has ventured into South America, with Brazil's Chef TV picking up a dubbed version of Catherine Fulvio's Catherine's Italian Kitchen. "Cookery programmes are really popular abroad. We've sold the Rachel Allen and Trish Deseine shows too. What also happens is that the shows are sold to pan-territory broadcasters, like BBC, who have various channels, and so the shows can air on their main channel as well as on something like BBC Food."

It can be difficult for a foreign audience to warm to a dubbed import, but giving something time to settle into the schedule and make an impression is crucial. The Clinicruns to 64 episodes, and in this market volume sells, but does RTÉ make a lot of money, and how is that passed on to the programme makers? "It's certainly not silly money – we don't make huge amounts – and it can really rely on who you're selling to. We could sell a one-hour documentary to Thai TV for €500, but it would be a different figure if it was bought for a primetime slot on BBC," says Edwards. Fees are also split 50/50 with production companies.

Once a network has handed over money to RTÉ there is no comeback, but it’s in a station’s interest to promote and schedule shows properly. “The big US networks are ruthless,” says Edwards, “and they will pull something if it’s not working, but they have certain time slots and know exactly what they’re looking for to fill them, even if it means moving something around the schedule to make it work.” US networks don’t sentimentalise when it comes to the Irish diaspora either: it’s purely about quality programming.

Another surprise (and welcome) success in the US has been Prosperity, the gritty series directed by Lenny Abrahamson and written by Mark O'Halloran. It has been sold to Robert Redford's Sundance channel.

It's not all drama and lifestyle, though: Being John Banvillehas screened in Australia, and Sky Arts has relicensed a documentary on Bram Stoker. Observational documentary shows such as Skippers, Rescue 117and Customsalso fare well. "It's always about quality programmes," says Edwards, "but there is an unbelievable amount of competition out there."