The head of RTHK said yesterday the broadcaster was considering remaking the popular series Below the Lion Rock amid a tide of nostalgia triggered by the Financial Secretary's recital of the show's theme song lyrics in his Budget speech. But RTHK must look for sponsorship for the project as mounting government pressure to cut costs had left it with a tighter budget, said director of broadcasting Chu Pui-hing. 'We'd like to remake the programme given the public's warm response,' Mr Chu said yesterday. 'But we have to seek sponsorship later as the production costs would be very high. With all the trimming exercises going on, it's become harder to find the resources.' In a report released in November, the Audit Commission criticised RTHK's budgetary controls for educational television as inadequate, with each minute of programming costing $19,000 when only an estimated 18 per cent of students watched. Mr Chu said a drama series cost about $1 million. 'We will start looking for sponsorship later. If we are to have a rehash, its theme will stick to the original one because that's what appeals to the public,' he said. The programme, screened between 1973 and 1994, focused on working-class people struggling to overcome hardship. RTHK will show old episodes of Below the Lion Rock on ATV next month after finance chief Antony Leung Kam-chung used the song's lyrics to wrap up his Budget speech two weeks ago.
