10am, 25 July 202

Summer of commissions for STV Studios labels

STV Studios and its family of production labels have secured multiple commissions and recommissions this summer, with five confirmed so far in June and July.  Despite the softness in the commissioning market, the group has orders from various broadcasters across Factual and Entertainment.

·    ITV has today confirmed that Tuesday's Child's critically acclaimed reality competition show, The Fortune Hotel, is to return for a second series of strategy, deception and intrigue following a successful first series. Filming will commence later this year for delivery in 2025.

·    STV Studios Factual will produce landmark documentary film, Disease X, for BBC Two and iPlayer, which will see Dr Chris van Tulleken on an international hunt for the source of the next global pandemic.

·    Brighton-based Hello Mary has been commissioned to produce 2 x 60' reality series, Vicky Pattison: Destination Wedding (w/t), for E4.

·    Owl Power has been commissioned to produce an eighth series of the award-winning and critically acclaimed Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing for BBC2 and iPlayer.

·    Interstellar will produce a new, one-hour comedy entertainment pilot, James Acaster: People Person (w/t), for Channel 4.

These commissions from across the nations and regions add further to the momentum in STV Studios following confirmation earlier this year of high value Scripted and Unscripted orders: the company's first drama for global streamer Netflix (The Witness); high volume returning series for the BBC (The Travelling Auctioneers and Antiques Road Trip) and Discovery (The Yorkshire Auction House); a third and fourth series of police drama, Blue Lights for BBC One and limited series, Amadeus, for Sky Original from Two Cities Television; and a major 100 episode deal with Sony's Game Show Network for a US version of Bridge of Lies.

David Mortimer, MD of STV Studios said: "STV Studios continues to deliver strong creative and commercial momentum in 2024, with our labels winning a significant number of high value, landmark commissions both here in the UK and internationally.  All this, despite the continuing challenges that exist in the commissioning market. Crucially, our development pipeline is very strong and we expect to announce additional exciting new projects in due course."

Contact:

Kirstin Stevenson, Head of Communications, STV Group plc | Kirstin.stevenson@stv.tv | 07803970106

About STV Group plc

STV Group plc is Scotland's home of news, entertainment and drama, providing audiences with top-quality programming on air, online and on demand. 

STV's broadcast channel reaches 3 million viewers each month, with a packed schedule across the day. STV's fast-growing streaming service, STV Player, offers viewers across the UK home-grown and international drama box sets and a vast array of factual entertainment series. Production company STV Studios - one of the UK's leading content businesses - has an impressive track-record of success across a wide range of broadcasters and streamers, with productions including BAFTA-winning Elizabeth Is Missing for BBC One and prison drama, Screw for Channel 4, quiz format Bridge of Lies for BBC One and much-loved returning series Celebrity Catchphrase (ITV and STV) and Antiques Road Trip (BBC One). 

STV Studios was named Production Group of the Year at the prestigious Edinburgh TV Awards in 2023. In July 2023, STV acquired Greenbird Media's expansive network of independent production companies, significantly increasing the number of creative labels in the STV Studios family.