Sky1 weds with Bride after BBC divorce

Satellite channel Sky1 has acquired UK rights to wedding format Don’t Tell the Bride, after previous broadcaster the BBC decided to dump it ahead of BBC Three’s move to a digital-only brand.

Sky-owned general entertainment channel Sky 1 has ordered two seasons, comprising 24 episodes. Warner Bros. Television Production-UK owned Renegade will produce.

The format, which DRG sells internationally, sees grooms organising their entire wedding without consulting the bride.

“Charting wedding dramas for nigh on a decade, Don’t Tell the Bride is best in class family-friendly entertainment and a British TV institution to boot,” said Sky1 director Adam MacDonald (pictured). “Many of our customers are already huge fans of the show so we’re delighted to be giving the brand-new series a home on Sky 1.”

Don’t Tell the Bride ran on youth-skewed net BBC Three for eight seasons, before transferring to BBC One last year, with the new version widely derided after taking a broader, older-skewed approach.

This came as the BBC moved formats off BBC Three ahead of the latter’s now confirmed switch from a linear channel to a digital brand.

There are few reality shows left on BBC Three, with focus switching to dramas such as Thirteen, comedies including Murder in Successville and documentaries including Professor Green: Suicide and Me and Is Britain Racist?.

Once online, the channel plans to spend 80% of its budget on long-form drama and comedy shows, with the other 20% going on experimental ‘new form’ content.