Wednesday 13 September 2017
UKTV is building out its Celebrity Haunted... format after the success of Celebrity Haunted Hotel on premium entertainment channel W with Celebrity Haunted Mansion (5x120') and sister show High Spirits (5x60').
Christine Lampard and Matt Richardson return for TV's most entertaining scare fest - only this time there will be no room service, complimentary dressing gowns or mini bars as the celebrities head into a deserted mansion.
The refreshed gameshow format will pit two celebrity teams against each other as they battle it out to become the victor of the Celebrity Haunted Mansion, assisted by their paranormal expert team captains.
Christine Lampard said:
I loved seeing how the celebrities reacted to the ghostly goings on in Celebrity Haunted Hotel and can't wait to see who is crowned Haunted Mansion champion this time round. There is no way I'm heading down a dark passage with Matt Richardson again though!
Produced by North One Television, the previous five-night fright fest event, Celebrity Haunted Hotel and sister show Do Not Disturb reached 1.6million adults across the series, up 144% against W's slot average.
Celebrities brave enough to spend time in a mysteriously unfinished gothic estate will be subjected to some extraordinary paranormal investigations and a 360? house of horrors experience, from spectacularly spooky start to fiendishly frightening finish. It's up to the team captains to decide who takes on each chilling live challenge before the viewers decide who goes and who stays each night as the celebrities unlock the secrets of the haunted mansion.
Matt Richardson returns as the host of Celebrity Haunted Mansion's sister show High Spirits which will air at 6pm every night.
Matt Richardson added:
The High Spirits catch up show was a great way to replay those frightening moments from the night before and I loved being able to wind up our celebrities ready for the night ahead.
Ordered by UKTV's director of commissioning Richard Watsham and W general manager Steve North, Celebrity Haunted Mansion is commissioned by UKTV's commissioning editor Helen Nightingale who will also executive produce. The UKTV Original series will be produced by North One Television with John Quinn executive producing.
UKTV's Helen Nightingale said:
Celebrity Haunted Hotel was a bold and ambitious show that generated huge buzz on social media. We have been through the format forensically and have worked up a concept that we think will be even more entertaining, with more jeopardy and excitement in the live show. As a show it is incredibly portable - moving from a hotel to a mansion means we can be very flexible and can site the series at locations that have a genuine and intriguing history of paranormal activity. Christine and Matt have excellent on screen chemistry and work together flawlessly, they are the perfect presenting duo to heighten the electric, spooky atmosphere for our viewers.
North One Television's John Quinn said:
We had some admirably game celebs and scary moments last year - this time around, the tension will be running even higher, with even more at stake in this competitive format, in a location which looks and feels like something straight out of a gothic horror movie.
Celebrity Haunted Mansion will air early 2018 and celebrity team members will be announced closer to transmission. The series joins the success of W's recent UKTV Original series hosted by A-list talent including John Bishop: In Conversation With..., The Davina Hour and Dr Christian Will See You Now.
UKTV also announced today that Rylan will come to the channel in the Autumn to host UKTV Original gameshow The Wave.
In 2016, UKTV committed over £150m to new programming which has resulted in a 40% increase in entertainment commissions and the biggest commissioned slate in UKTV's 25 year history with successful launches, award-winning returning series and around 50 shows currently in production.
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About W
Sky 109/245, Virgin 124/191, BT & TalkTalk 407 / On demand on Sky and Virgin
W is UKTV's premium entertainment channel, offering audiences a dazzling mix of UKTV original series; Dr Christian Will See You Now, John Bishop: In Conversation With..., The Davina Hour, The Secrets In My Family, Inside the Ambulance alongside handpicked gems from the BBC and Channel 4 including series from Louis Theroux, David Beckham, Stacey Dooley as well as the same day repeat of EastEnders.
About UKTV
UKTV is a commercial broadcaster reaching over 40m viewers every month.
The award-winning independent has eleven imaginative brands - UKTV Play, Dave, W, Gold, Alibi, Yesterday, Drama, Really, Home, Eden and Good Food. These include the two most popular non-PSB channels in the UK and account for nearly 10% of the British commercial TV market.
The network delivers inspired channels to audiences through Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media, BT, TalkTalk, YouView, Freesat, Amazon Fire and UKTV Play, and distributes its highly valued original programmes to 200 territories.
Now celebrating over 20 years at the forefront of digital television, UKTV - an independent commercial joint venture between BBC Worldwide and Scripps Networks Interactive, Inc. (SNI) - is proud to be the first British television broadcaster in The Sunday Times top 100 companies list.