BBC Studios Germany, WDR and ARD Mediathek have today announced that popular comedy series "Ghosts" is set to be adapted for a German audience. Filming is now underway on the 6 x 30’ series directed by Erik Haffner and produced by BBC Studios Germany. The UK version is produced by Monumental Television with the show and format distributed by BBC Studios.
Featuring a stellar cast, "Ghosts" centres around young couple Emma (Cristina do Rego) and Felix (Benito Bause), who inherit an old mansion and decide to turn it into a hotel. After a near-death accident Emma suddenly starts to see ghosts. These bizarre and chaotic roommates, including characters such as the Neanderthal Urs (Jan van Weyde), the Roman legionnaire Claudius (Max Giermann), the Countess Adelheid (Antje Widdra), the feminist maid Griet (Meltem Kaptan), the insurance salesman Joachim (Sebastian Schwarz), the teacher Svenni (Sina Tkotsch) and the love-hungry poet Friedrich Dorn (Alexander Khuon) come from different eras and cause quite a stir in the couple's lives.
Screenwriters for the German version are Yves Hensel and Aylin Kockler, punch-up by Claudius Pläging with Tom Holzhauser and Anne Lindemann responsible for cinematography. Filming on the German adaptation takes place in Cologne and will continue throughout the summer.
André Renaud, SVP Global Format Sales for BBC Studios expressed his interest for the German audience to have their own version: “The comedic happenings of 'Ghosts' continue to entertain audiences in the UK and US and I’m delighted that German viewers will now also have their own version on WDR," commented.
On his part, WDR Fiction Director Alexander Bickel highlighted the series' warm sense of humor: "We are pleased to add a completely unique program colour to the ARD Mediathek with the German adaptation of the successful British series. 'Ghosts' captivates with a special, warm-hearted humour and hopefully will also inspire audiences in Germany next year," noted.
Finally, BBC Studios Producer Eva Holtmann celebrated the fact that it is the first in-house produced series: "The start of filming of 'Ghosts' marks the beginning of a new, exciting chapter for BBC Studios Germany. For our first in-house produced series, we were able to win a fantastic ensemble that will fill the characters created by our team of writers Aylin Kockler and Yves Hensel with a lot of humour and emotions", stated.
"Ghosts" is already enjoying international success since first airing on the BBC in the UK. The fifth and final series of the original UK version was the most-watched comedy in 2023, with the finale watched by over 6m people in seven days. The US version is in production with its fourth season for CBS. Ghosts was created by Mathew Baynton, Simon Farnaby, Martha Howe-Douglas, Jim Howick, Laurence Rickard and Ben Willbond.