{"id":284569,"date":"2025-11-26T15:34:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T15:34:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/284569\/"},"modified":"2025-11-26T15:34:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T15:34:08","slug":"bbc-studios-matt-forde-on-ghosts-dancing-with-the-stars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/284569\/","title":{"rendered":"BBC Studios’ Matt Forde On ‘Ghosts’ & ‘Dancing With The Stars’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tEXCLUSIVE: BBC Studios<\/a> is hiring a European IP scout as the team led by one of the architects behind the Lionsgate co-pro deal seeks to discover the next big scripted format.<\/p>\n

\n\tMatt Forde<\/a>, BBC Studios\u2019 president of Global Production, told us he wants the new exec to be installed early next year to immediately get started on \u201csourcing original IP in the European market, rather than the UK or U.S.\u201d These shows could then be remade in America in the vein of CBS\u2019 hit sleeper comedy Ghosts<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cBecause of our network of teams it doesn\u2019t matter whether that IP comes from one [European] country or another,\u201d said Forde. \u201cWe have this scripted exchange where we share ideas and work out how to co-produce across different markets.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tForde, whose team produces and sells Dancing with the Stars<\/a> and The Great British Bake Off, was one of the architects behind the BBC Studios-Lionsgate deal that saw Ghosts made for CBS, and versions of hit BBC comedies This Country and Miranda produced for Fox. Ghosts is into it sixth season on CBS and versions continue to land around the world, with Ghosts: Australia launching earlier this month.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Lionsgate deal ran down last year<\/a> but that has not dimmed Forde\u2019s ambition. He says his IP scout, who could be based in the UK or Europe, will seek out original European scripted shows that could be remade in the U.S. The team has \u201cat least two really interesting\u201d potentials incoming that will be examined early next year. \u201cI think we will have some news,\u201d teased Forde.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe idea for the IP scout came from conversations Forde had with his boss, BBC Studios Productions chief Zai Bennett<\/a>, over the summer. Forde has been one of the big winners of the Bennett era, having been promoted to run a newly-merged division combining scripted formats with unscripted, international productions and some production outfits owned by BBC Studios. Forde wants scripted formats to rise from representing 15% to 25% of his business and will work closely with new BBC Studios scripted MD Jamie Hall, who is about to join from Vice Studios, and Mark Linsey, who runs scripted out of L.A.<\/p>\n

\n\tForde flagged the example of Liam Williams\u2019 semi-autobiographical BBC comedy Ladhood as a quietly successful show that has just been remade for Germany\u2019s ZDF titled Chabos, relocating the setting from the 1990s to the 2006 soccer world cup. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cScripted has been really successful for us and we are a significant player in most markets,\u201d he added. \u201cI love the version of Ladhood we produced with a different twist. You take original IP from the UK and think about it in a different way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tForde is highly ambitious. He said his team has \u201cunquenchable ambition\u201d to build a \u201cmulti-genre studio in areas where we think we can really deliver value and growth around the BBC brand.\u201d In terms of revenue, he claimed the formats division is in \u201cdouble digit growth across the piece,\u201d which he described as \u201cway above the market.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cYou can\u2019t be overconfident in this market,\u201d he countered. \u201cIt is challenging. Ad revenues are declining and the writers\u2019 strike had a big impact on the scripted market, more than any of us thought likely. However, we have bucked the trend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tExpanding to Italy and Benelux<\/p>\n

\n\tWith this in mind, Forde revealed he has his eyes on geographic expansion, with Italy and the Benelux squarely in his sights.<\/p>\n

\n\tThis would likely come in the form of buying an Italian production company or two, while in Benelux the team will look to start making shows from the local hub. \u201cIt\u2019s difficult to learn [markets like Italy] really quickly so we are looking at some companies there,\u201d he said. \u201cThere is an appetite at Studios to continue to grow this network.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tExpanding to Italy and Benelux would increase BBC Studios\u2019 number of international production bases to 12. Recent expansion has included the acquisition of Brutal Media in Spain and Werner Media in Australia, the latter of which makes hit drama series The Newsreader. In Australia, where Forde says BBC Studios is the second biggest scripted producer, BBC Studios and Werner are now making ABC\u2019s Goolagong, a three-part event mini-series based on the true life story of the titular world champion tennis star. With the introduction of landmark streaming quotas and a healthy tax credit, Forde says he sees major opportunities in Australia and could even envisage BBC Studios \u201cbeing co-pro partners on UK projects in Australia.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile scripted is a big part of his plan, Forde pointed to the recent success of unscriped evergreens from the BBC Studios catalog like Dancing with the Stars (Strictly Come Dancing<\/a> in the UK), The 1% Club, The Great British Bake Off and The Weakest Link, all of which are currently on in the States, along with Outlast, the Netflix survival series BBC Studios makes with Jason Bateman\u2019s Aggregate Films that has aired for three seasons.<\/p>\n

\n\tOn Dancing with the Stars, Forde firmly rejected the notion that the Strictly upheaval, which has seen two professional dancers exit the show over misconduct allegations and two former stars arrested on suspicion of rape, has had an impact on BBC Studios\u2019 ability to sell the show around the world.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt really hasn\u2019t,\u201d he added. \u201cIt\u2019s been around for a while and we recently celebrated 20 years in the U.S. It\u2019s a known and respected quantity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tStrictly is in fact a cornerstone of BBC Studios\u2019 strategy to appeal to new demographics and monetize its content in other ways. This season of Dancing with the Stars has attracted younger viewers from the TikTok generation, breaking fan voting records and amassing 300,000 new TikTok followers, BBC Studios said. Forde added that the team is continuing to explore areas like podcasting and events.<\/p>\n

\n\tUpcoming BBC Studios breakouts, in Forde\u2019s mind, could include Nation\u2019s Dumbest, a version of which is currently in development at Fox<\/a>, along with Wisdom of the Crowd. Nation\u2019s Dumbest, which sees people or celebrities fight it out to be eliminated as quickly as possible to avoid being crowned the winner, has now sold to six territories, while Wisdom of the Crowd from the producer behind The 1% Club sees a bold contestant take on the crowd\u2019s collective knowledge. Highlighting the speed of BBC Studios\u2019 dealmaking, Forde noted that the Spanish version of Wisdom of the Crowd will launc earlier than the John Bishop-hosted BBC original in the UK. \u201cWe are midsized and want to move content around at speed,\u201d said Forde.<\/p>\n

\n\tForde noted \u201ccommissioning cycles have slowed down,\u201d especially in the U.S., but he spots potential in the new era of collaboration between streamers and the traditional networks, which is leading to the potential for \u201cbold windowing\u201d of content. \u201cThe market is hard and it\u2019s true that one decision can tip your day upside down, but there is real opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd the BBC, the public broadcaster which BBC Studios ultimately serves, will always be a big draw, according to Forde.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe BBC stands for slightly different things internationally,\u201d he added. \u201cThe heritage gives us permission to be in all genres. It allows us to be something different but fundamentally powered by these huge global brands and formats.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"EXCLUSIVE: BBC Studios is hiring a European IP scout as the team led by one of the architects…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":284570,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[13469,6491,10189,96,47982,115899,1598,56,54,55,115900],"class_list":["post-284569","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-bbc-studios","tag-celebrities","tag-dancing-with-the-stars","tag-entertainment","tag-ghosts","tag-matt-forde","tag-strictly-come-dancing","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom","tag-zai-bennett"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/284569","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=284569"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/284569\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/284570"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=284569"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=284569"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=284569"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}