Friday 8 September 2017
Award-winning television broadcaster UKTV has commissioned an advertiser-funded travelling cookery show, Donal's Asian Baking Adventure (10 x 30'), for Britain's leading pay TV food channel, Good Food.
UKTV and production company Denham Productions have partnered with Cen Media and the Korean Communications Agency (KCA) to fund the ten-part series. The series will be distributed by Argonon International.
Produced by Denham Productions with co-production partners, Cen Media in South Korea, Donal's Asian Baking Adventure follows Irish food writer, photographer and television presenter Donal Skehan as he heads east to explore the flavours and secrets of Asian baking, with stops in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Malaysia.
From the very latest pandan croissants and cheese tart craze to traditional dim sum, wedding trends and popular street snacks, Skehan gathers inspiration from a range of local experts to pull together his top 20 easy recipes for fantastic Asian bakes.
Donal's Asian Baking Adventure will be broadcast on Good Food in 2018. The series has been ordered by UKTV's senior commercial partnerships manager, Kate Norum, and Good Food's general manager, Luke Hales. The executive producer for UKTV is Natalie Rose.
Kate Norum, said:
We're delighted to be working with Denham again on what promises to be a truly revelatory look at baking and its growing popularity across Asia. After their recent success with John Torode's Korean Food Tour we have no doubt that this new adventure with Donal will be a ratings winner for the Good Food channel.
Natalie Rose, said:
We're thrilled about making this series, not least because it allows us to extend the nation's proven love for baking, into exciting and rich territory. Plus, with his uniquely fresh perspective, culinary passion and infectious charm, we don't think there's anyone better to explore Asia's exploding baking trend than Donal.
Grace Kitto from Denham Productions said:
It's a surprise to find how fashionable Western-influenced baked goods have become, from matcha (green tea) cakes to black sesame scones. Donal is inspired by the range of cakes, breads and savoury snacks on offer in Asia, where taste and presentation are equally important - this is food for the Instagram generation. And Donal is the perfect presenter to bring zest and enthusiasm to these exciting new dishes.
This series follows a long line of successful shows UKTV has commissioned with a variety of funding partners for its Dave, W, Yesterday and Good Food channels. These include Red Bull Soap Box (Red Bull), Crackanory (Audible.co.uk), The Indestructibles (CasioG-SHOCK), The Secrets in My Family (Ancestry) and Find My Past (findmypast.co.uk).
Good Food continually improves its already strong ABC1 profile, averaging at 58% and up 18% year-on-year.
Notes to Editors
For more information, please contact Kelly Phelps or Ali Laurie
About Good Food HD
Sky / HD 133/255, Virgin 278/280, BT & TalkTalk 313
Good Food features all the biggest names in food including Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, James Martin, Rick Stein and The Hairy Bikers and has something to inspire and entertain everyone. Alongside these, the channel seeks to introduce viewers to new formats and chefs from around the world like Luke Nguyen's Street Food, Peter Kuruvita's Mexican Fiesta and You Gotta Eat Here. Delivering a raft of exciting originations such as Choccywoccydoodah, The Roux Scholarship, John Torode's Malaysian Adventure and Madhur Jaffreys Curry Nation.
Good Food appeals to both the expert cook and those who enjoy food-led entertainment shows like Masterchef and The Great British Bake Off. Good Food is the UK's leading pay TV food channel with access to the best culinary talent and a passion for all things in the kitchen.
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.