TV3 has placed an order for a new reality series from Alaska TV which is said to be similar to American series ‘Duck Dynasty’. The show will consists of 10 episodes of 60 minutes each, and follows a family of oyster farmers in Carlingford, a coastal town in Co. Louth. The move will be part of the channel’s drive to commission more co-productions.
Jeff Ford, the Director of Programmes at TV3, has said that the Irish reality series will work both domestically and internationally. He states: “It’s character-led, which is something that we’ve never done before.
“In the past we’ve ordered traditional ob-docs but no one [in Ireland] has done a show that follows a family, is slightly scripted and has a comedy approach, like the Americans do with shows such as ‘Pawn Stars’.”
Alaska TV discovered the family the show is based on following a long search across the UK and Ireland. Ian Lamarra, Creative Director and one of the founders of Alaska TV, said “It’s got everything: family, fights, business, community, humour and loveable characters, all set against a beautiful Irish backdrop. It’s great to be putting a marker down in this territory in UK and Ireland.”
TV3 will also be producing a new soap in 2015 with Irish company Element Pictures and UK-based Company Pictures (read the full story here) and recently commenced airing game show ‘The Lie’, produced with Scottish company STV. Meanwhile, TV3’s quiz show ‘Crossfire’ was produced with Danish indie Gong Entertainment. Thus ‘Oysters’ is another example of the broadcaster’s desire to commission more British producers and to become involved in more co-productions.
The arrival of UTV Ireland will also mean great changes to the broadcaster, as it means TV3 will lose the rights to air ITV soaps such as ‘Coronation Street’ and ‘Emmerdale’ to the new competitors.
However, Ford remains optimistic, stating “Now we’re looking for Saturday night entertainment and one of our priorities is talent. When I arrived, I noticed that we had great talent during the day and in late night, but not so much in peak. I want to bring in some new faces to galvanise the channel. I know there’s an Irish Ant and Dec out there.”
All TV3 commissions, including ‘Oysters’, will be distributed internationally by DRG, which has a wide-ranging deal with the Irish broadcaster.