Endemol buys 50% of UK celebrity gossip website Holy Moly

Endemol has bought a 50% stake in UK entertainment website Holy Moly. The producer and distributor said the deal will herald Holy Movie moving more heavily into TV as well as music and fashion across international territories.

The acidic gossip website was created in 2002 and has about one million monthly users.

Its founder, Jamie East, who had initially operated under a veil of secrecy before being identified in the in the UK press, said: “Eight years after starting Holy Moly on a hidden laptop underneath my work desk, no-one is more surprised and happy than me to find myself joining forces with Endemol, which I’ve always thought of as the most handsome and intelligent media company on the planet. Together we will be unstoppable and I’m really looking forward to the adventures that lie in wait.”

Endemol said it and Holy Moly will also work together in developing new multiplatform entertainment ideas and launching the site in new markets internationally.

 Tim Hincks, Endemol UK CEO, said: “Holy Moly is a brilliant success story in online entertainment. That makes it a great fit for Endemol and Jamie is an inspired creative talent who we are tremendously excited to be working with.”