One of the latest additions to the Keshet International‘s catalog begins to position itself as a format that has it all: it is innovative, attractive to all targets and its production is adaptable to any territory, even during these times of pandemic. Titled “Singletown,” this is an ITV2’s primetime stripped relationship-based reality series which has already aroused great interest around the world.
In fact, recently the company has completed its second format sale for “Singletown,” as Discovery Networks has commissioned Nordisk Film TV Norway to produce a local adaptation of Keshet Productions’ relationship show for its network in Norway.
The Banijay Group-owned production company originally optioned the format from Keshet International following its official launch to market at Mipcom 2019, at the same time as Nordisk Film TV Denmark optioned the format in Denmark for Discovery Networks.
“‘Singletown’ is a really fresh example of a reality TV show that has a real purpose behind it. There are lots of reality TV shows out there that focus on the quest of finding love. What ‘Singletown’ does is adding what happens after you find that love, after your fairy tale ends, what is the work that it takes to keep a relationship going,” explained Rose Hughes, VP of Sales at Keshet International, in conversation with Señal News.
Originally produced by Keshet Productions for ITV2, "Singletown" begins with a unique ending as five couples press pause on their relationships and spend one incredible summer living their best single lives in the city. The newly separated couples and their four new flatmates move into in two luxury Singletown apartments and embark an indulgent summer full of money-can’t-buy exclusive dates, out of this world parties and unforgettable experiences. At the end of each week, the couples meet to take apart in the Love Locket ceremony. Will they choose to reunite and leave the show as a couple or will one, or both of them, choose to stay single and remain in Singletown?
“Some of the reasons why ‘Singletown’ is a good format to be filmed right now, and certainly it is why we are seeing an increased interest in the show, is because there is no international travel, it can be filmed at home, it is a flexible format, and it can be turned around very quickly,” Hughes described. “Of course there are challenges, and we have to find safe ways to make sure our content is made, so we and our partners are going to do Covid-19 tests,” she added.
“Singletown” debuted strongly in the UK. The first episode achieved a solid consolidated viewership of 416,000 individuals. Across the whole 15x60’ series, which was stripped weeknights at 9 PM on ITV2 from September 2 of 2019, 43% of viewers were 16-34 year olds.
In Hughes’ opinion, in times when people are forced to stay at home because of the lockdowns, this kind of shows provides an “escape” for viewers. “We all want TV shows and entertainment that make us forgot about what is happening and the news. ‘Singletown’ is such an amazing mean to do that. We all love watching people connect on screen,” she concluded.
By Federico Marzullo