Former Doctor Who showrunner Chris Chibnall is known for his work writing on a number of series, not just the BBC's flagship sci-fi show.
As discussed in an exclusive interview for our video interview series The Radio Times Writers' Room, in which we get to know what makes screenwriters tick, Chibnall has also worked on shows including Born and Bred, Life on Mars, Torchwood, Law & Order: UK and Broadchurch, as well as an upcoming Agatha Christie adaptation for Netflix, Seven Dials.
One show which he isn't associated with is Merlin, the BBC One fantasy hit which starred Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Katie McGrath and Angel Coulby – but he almost was.
Chibnall started developing a version of a series around Merlin before the one that made it to screens was conceived. His version of the series never came to pass, yet down the line he did get to write his own take on the Arthurian legends, in the form of a US-based series called Camelot.
Camelot starred Joseph Fiennes, Jamie Campbell Bower and Eva Green, and ran for one season in 2011.
While chatting for The Radio Times Writers' Room, Chibnall was asked whether his version of Merlin would have been in any way similar to what we saw with Camelot, but he said they were "completely disconnected".
"No, no, not at all," he said of the idea that the two were similar. "I think it was with what was then BBC Worldwide, now BBC Studios, with the producers of Born and Bred, and BBC Worldwide to come to them going, 'We would like an international series, and we'd like it to be around this sort of thing'.
"And so they asked me to develop some stuff around that while we were still doing Born and Bred. But, yeah, there was another Merlin project, which obviously [executive producer] Julie Gardner and all those guys did. So no, it's just actually a complete coincidence."
Chibnall's new series, Agatha Christie's Seven Dials, stars Mia McKenna-Bruce, Helena Bonham Carter and Martin Freeman, and follows an unlikely sleuth in the form of Lady Eileen "Bundle" Brent, who must unravel a dangerous web of secrets when a playful prank at a country manor leads to murder.
Chris Chibnall's interview for The Radio Times Writers' Room will be available to watch in full on Thursday 15th January.
All five seasons of Merlin are available to watch now on BBC iPlayer. Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials will launch on Netflix on 15th January 2026. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
Add Agatha Christie's Seven Dials to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more.
Check out more of our Fantasy coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Hence then, the article about chris chibnall on how he almost wrote merlin before doing his own arthurian series camelot was published today ( ) and is available on Radio Times ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Chris Chibnall on how he almost wrote Merlin, before doing his own Arthurian series Camelot )
Also on site :
- We Finally Paid Off Our Last Piece of Debt. I Didn’t Expect It to Backfire Like This.
- More than 700 to be laid off as U.S. Postal Service terminates contract for Aurora mail hub
- Who Is Scarab on ‘The Masked Singer’? You Can’t Beet-le These Guesses!