Mantracker
- Published: 02 August 2007 08:00
- Author: Jessica Rogers
- More by this Author
- Last Updated: 02 August 2007 09:26
A format where contestants race through the outback while pursued by a man on a horse has proved a winner in Canada.
A format where contestants race through the outback while pursued by a man on a horse has proved a winner in Canada .The format
Mantrackeris a game of human cat and mouse through the Canadian wilderness.
The format pitches a pair of contestants who fancy themselves as outdoor types against a veteran cowboy and expert tracker. The two contestants, who do not know each other and are from completely different walks of life, must team up and attempt to outwit and outrun 'mantracker' Terry Grant, who has been trained by the Royal Canadian Military Police to track and retrieve missing persons.
The show plays on Grant's reputation being 'on the line' and he 'will stop at nothing to catch his prey'. The runners have to stay out of his reach for an adrenaline-charged 36 hours, travelling through deep woods, rugged rock faces and rushing rivers, sometimes in extreme weather conditions.
The runners are given a head start, but the mantracker has a horse to help his pursuit.
Who's showing it?
The format was created and produced by Canadian indie Bonterra Productions for the Outdoor Life Network. A 10 x 60-minute third series is currently being filmed in HD and will be broadcast on the channel in June 2008.
Coming to the UK ?
Not yet, but it is being offered by UK-based distributor ID Distribution, which thinks it has great international potential.
Will it work here?
Outdoor shows such as
Bruce Parry's Tribe,
Bear Grylls' Man vs Wildand
Ray Mears' Wild Foodare popular at the moment and this fits into that trend.
The high-energy cat and mouse format could sit well within a male-skewing schedule or programming block.
