In the UK, The Bridge was part of the Nordic Noir branding; trailers, employed the marketing strategy of grouping together programmes under this new brand, including The Bridge, Borgen, The Killing and Wallander, describing 'a world of flawed heroes and dark criminal minds'.
This enabled audiences to anticipate what to expect and used inheritance from previous examples of the genre to maximize audiences. Whilst containing an enigmatic narratives and complex, challenging characters, The Bridge also
contains typical codes and conventions of a crime drama.
Once the programme was established, the marketing materials used the recognizable characters, setting and iconic opening soundtrack to engage with audiences.
Quality drama recognized through branding of BBC 4, genre as ‘Nordic noir’ and cop drama, the team- gives sense of community, drama and conflict- narratives are driven by opposition, ensemble cast of Scandinavian TV starts (celebrity endorsement and native actors), Enigma codes intrigue audience, recognizable characters of Nordic noir-Saga as the unusual troubled anti-hero with a dark side, Sweden/Denmark setting- the bridge as a main focus in image- iconic to people of Scandinavia, dual language- bilingualism. Very high production values- makes it less commercial and mainstream.
Driving force of the programme is the character of Saga and the space between two cultures. Unique and unfamiliar character for individuals that don't watch Nordic Noir. In relation to Prime Suspect, the main female protagonist in both series drives the marketing and programme through their character, related to their individual contexts. E.g. Prime Suspect- women were marginalised, so her portrayal in a male dominated field was seen as unique and unfamiliar- E.g. The Bridge- Neurodiversity seen in her character and uniqueness.