Lime Pictures’ digital arm Conker Media has teamed up with controversial teen novelist Melvin Burgess for a cross-platform psychological thriller for BBC Switch.

Drama The Well features a group of teens renovating a house in Liverpool who uncover a well that is the resting place of a “dark and malevolent force”.

The 4 x 12-minute drama stars new Doctor Who assistant Karen Gillan and will air on BBC2 on consecutive Saturdays up to Halloween.

It will also be available online, where it will link to a “deeply immersive” multi-level game, in which users can explore the house and try to solve a puzzle at the heart of the story.

BBC Switch head Geoff Goodwin told Broadcast: “It’s in a pre-watershed slot so it’s more like The Blair Witch Project, where the tension is psychological, than adult horror, but we have really tried to up the scariness. This is a classic teen genre which we needed to exploit.”

Head of Conker Lee Hardman added: “The Well shows the creative potential of multi-layered drama in terms of storytelling.”

Goodwin pointed to the project as evidence that the BBC is investing in teen drama - despite criticism from leading industry figures that it is “neglecting” the genre. He said he wanted to grow the TV presence of forthcoming Switch soap The Cut beyond the 25-minute weekly omnibus currently planned, if funds are available.

“We’re respecting the way teens access content but we would love to get to two television episodes a week. Look at EastEnders and Hollyoaks- they all show the hallmarks of expansion. We’re doing the same thing.”

Burgess’s novels include drugs drama Junk, which was adapted for BBC2 in 1999.