Initial


Buccaneer nabs Big Bro exec from Endemol Shine

London-based Buccaneer Media has poached an Endemol Shine UK executive to become its head of unscripted. Denis O’Connor (pictured) joins the firm from Endemol Shine Group’s Initial, where he was creative director of Big Brother, Big Brother’s Bit of the Side and Celebrity Big Brother. He will work alongside Buccaneer founder Tony Wood, who is […]

Hulu buys Mr Bean toon

US on-demand and catch-up service Hulu has acquired Mr Bean: The Animated Series. Hulu has bought seasons one and two, totalling 104x11mins. The cartoon show, based on the live-action comedy series of the same name, is on CITV in the UK where it is performing strongly. Season two launched on CITV in February. The show […]

ITV orders Initial’s Almost Impossible Game Show

UK commercial broadcaster ITV has ordered The Almost Impossible Game Show, a new physical gameshow from Endemol Shine prodco Initial. Billed as a comedy gameshow, the series will have ten contestants taking on hilarious challenges. The participants have 50 chances to complete five challenges. The 6x60mins show will go out later this year on ITV2. […]

Robinson out as Endemol Shine reveals UK team

Tim Robinson is leaving the Endemol Shine Group as the mega-indie this morning revealed its UK management team. Early indications were that Robinson, previously Shine Group’s COO, was negotiating what one source described as a “top international role”, but this has not come to pass. He will exit in the spring. The news came concurrently […]

NBCUniversal hires for factual development team

NBCUniversal International Television Production has finalised the shape of the factual development unit that former Fever Media co-founder David Mortimer leads. Jack Burgess, another ex-Fever exec whom TBI revealed had joined NBCU last year, will lead factual entertainment development alongside Ben Riley, who is a former BBC Format Entertainment, MTV and Endemol exec; while heading […]

Endemol poaches BBC commissioner

Producer and distributor Endemol has hired Mirella Breda to head up creative operations at its production company Initial. Breda joins from UK pubcaster the BBC where she was most recently executive editor, BBC Entertainment Commissioning, working on entertainment and fact ent formats for BBC One and BBC Two including Masterchef, Dragon’s Den and Initial-produced Total […]

Comedy Central creates Almost Impossible Gameshow

Endemol-owned Initial is creating a pilot for a wacky gameshow for Viacom’s UK pay TV channel Comedy Central. The Almost Impossible Gameshow is a non-scripted entertainment format in which contestants undertake a series of simple but “fiendishly difficult” games to win a cash prize. Executive producers are Viacom International Media Networks UK’s senior VP Steve […]

Initial MD promotion sparks reshuffle at Endemol UK

The managing director of Initial has been promoted to commercial director of the Big Brother producer’s parent, Endemol UK, a move that sparks a new reshuffle. Laurence Jones has been Initial’s MD since 2002 but now takes up the new UK-wide post. He will be replaced by Initial’s creative director Nick Samwell-Smith (pictured left, with […]