NENT Studios UK announced that SIC in Portugal has acquired the rights to produce a localised version of its long-running, successful relationship format “Don’t Tell the Bride". The new Portuguese series is heading swiftly into pre-production to capitalise on the easing of lockdown restrictions in the territory. Following earlier format deals in countries such as China, Australia, France, South Africa and the US, this new deal will mark NENT Studios UK’s nineteenth local production for the title.
SIC has also just acquired series 14 (15x60’) of the original UK programme, produced by Renegade for E4, as well as 27 episodes from the Irish version, produced by Coco Television for RTÉ. Previously, SIC licensed series 6-13 of the UK version.
In each episode of “Don’t Tell the Bride” a couple is given a set sum of money to pay for their wedding day. However, every single element of the big day – from the venue and wedding dress down to flowers and favours - has to be completed in three weeks, and only by the groom. The bride and groom have no contact during the three weeks and only see each other again when she walks down the aisle. The format is never short on drama and entertainment: some grooms get it all surprisingly right – but most get it spectacularly wrong and bridal tears and tantrums are common.
“This latest deal for ‘Don’t Tell the Bride’ further endorses its status as an evergreen and universal format that readily transcends borders and cultures to entertain audiences. It has been a pleasure to work with SIC in getting this deal up and running so quickly and to also ensure it has ready-made episodes to broadcast while the Portuguese version is in production,” said Lucy Roberts, Senior Sales Manager at NENT Studios UK.
Meanwhile, Theo Wolf, Acquisitions Manager at SIC, added: “We are thrilled to move into production on our own version of ‘Don’t Tell the Bride’ and cannot wait to share a series featuring local people and customs, plus unique Portuguese backdrops, with our viewers. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, we will be producing with new protocols and the wedding events themselves will naturally be managed a little differently. However, we will rise to the new production challenges and ensure our post Covid-19 Portuguese series has all the emotion, engagement and entertainment that our viewers have come to expect from watching the UK version over the years”.
In related news, series 14 of “Don’t Tell the Bride” has also recently been sold to TV2 in Norway.