ITV Studios: bringing the entertainment for 70 years

ITV Studios has firmly established itself as a leader in unscripted entertainment with global hits like Hell’s Kitchen, Come Dine With Me, The Chase and I’m a Celebrity… Get me Out Of Here!. Today, in an industry defined by rapid change and fierce competition, it continues to shape what’s next, fuelling a global appetite for bold, boundary-pushing storytelling, and delivering formats that resonate worldwide, adapt locally, and thrive across every platform

The amazing production labels and expanding partnerships with external producers are supported by the ITV Studios Creative Network team. Leading the charge is managing director Mike Beale. Under his direction, the Creative Network is embedded across every stage of the production process – from trendspotting, new technology and idea generation to developing new IP and supercharging global hits.

Beale and his team, working closely with the producers, are focused on fuelling innovation and scale across ITV Studios’ entertainment portfolio. One way they’re doing that is through a dual format strategy that balances high-impact, attention-grabbing formats with cost-effective, repeatable series.

At one end of the spectrum are big-ticket titles that are designed to ignite conversation and stand out in a crowded marketplace, like A Party To Die For from ITV Studios Netherlands and Talpa Studios, which has just been confirmed in France. Other standout ITV Studios productions include Scared Of The Dark, produced by MultiStory Media and recently launched on Amazon in Germany, and I Kissed A Boy/Girl, produced by TwoFour in the UK, with both the Netherlands and Norway joining the journey of these formats.

“We can’t just think in terms of broadcast, we have to create content that can live as clips, memes and sharable moments”
Mike Beale, managing director, Global Creative Network

Then at the other end, there’s rising demand for adaptable formats like quiz and factual series, shows that offer sustainable value for buyers and travel well across global markets.

Beale also emphasises the need to think beyond traditional platforms: “We can’t just think in terms of broadcast anymore, we have to create content that can live as clips, memes and sharable moments. The audience still wants to be entertained, but how they find that content is changing fast.”

That’s why word of mouth, now powered by social media, remains one of the most valuable tools in a format’s success. “Gone are the days of the watercooler conversation,” Beale adds. “Now it’s a clip in your feed, or a message from a friend. But that doesn’t mean anything goes. Quality still matters, and the ideas still have to work.”

Global potential

Responding to this evolving landscape, ITV Studios has been making strategic investments in content from third-party producers and IP holders. A strategy of identifying formats with local success and global potential has seen titles such as The Ultimate Christmas Star from Norwegian producer Magga Og Anders begin to travel internationally.

ITV Studios has also been building on the international interest in reboots. The Creative Network recently acquired classic gameshows Bullseye, produced by 12 Yard and Potato, part of ITV Studios, and You Bet, produced by Rollercoaster Productions, part of ITV Studios, tapping into nostalgia while giving formats a fresh, contemporary edge.

“We’re constantly looking to our catalogue for inspiration, as well as finding those much-loved third-party titles that can fi nd a whole new audience.” says Beale.

ITV Studios is finding new ways to keep long-running franchises fresh by expanding their worlds. Love Island Games and the upcoming Love Island: Beyond The Villa, both produced by ITV America for Peacock, are strong examples of this approach. These spin-offs help extend the global reach of one of ITV Studios’ most iconic brands while aiming to attract both loyal superfans and new audiences.

This focus on brand evolution and long-term success is strengthened by the Creative Network’s expanded role, which goes beyond development to include hands-on production support and brand protection. For The Voice in Wales (Y Llais), for example, the team adapted the show to fit the local market’s budget by drawing on global format expertise.

They scaled down the set design while preserving the show’s core DNA, most notably by using the iconic red chairs from The Voice UK. Their on- and off-site support guided the local team from early planning through to production, ensuring the format stayed true to its brand while delivering at scale.

While ITV Studios is home to more than 60 production labels across 13 countries, all creating standout content, there is a common thread running through many of the titles above and that is Lifted Entertainment, part of ITV Studios. On track to produce more than 450 hours of TV this year alone, they’re the masterminds behind some of the world’s most successful unscripted formats.

One of those hits is Love Island, an international TV phenomenon that celebrates its 10th anniversary in the UK this year. The show brought a fresh wave of creativity to dating reality programming, reframing the genre on the global stage with character-driven storytelling at its core.

“The format became a huge hit and cultural phenomenon and, 10 years later, it is still the UK’s best-loved dating show and now 27 countries around the globe have also fallen in love with it,” says Richard Cowles, Managing Director of Lifted Entertainment. The format has been remade in countries including Australia, Germany and Denmark.

In the US, Love Island has gone from strength to strength, with ITV America producing the hit version for Peacock, where it became the number one reality series across all streaming platforms. The new series launched on Peacock earlier this month. The brand also continues to expand beyond the screen, with the interactive story app, Love Island: The Game, amassing more than 30 million downloads.

Lifted is now building on its experience creating global formats with a fresh slate of new shows, including The Neighbourhood, a co-production with The Garden, another ITV Studios label. This supersized 12-part reality gameshow, hosted in the UK by Graham Norton, is a prime example of the kind of high-impact, attention-grabbing format Beale has described.

“In a TV landscape full of successful formats set in jungles, islands and luxurious villas, The Neighbourhood offers a fresh and different flavour: it’s a show all about the drama on our doorsteps,” say Cowles and John Hay, Chief Exec at The Garden.

Blending high-stakes competition, big challenges and relatable domestic drama, the show sees real-life households from all walks of life move in side by side, becoming both neighbours and rivals in a quest to take home a life-changing cash prize, in what’s being called the ultimate reality showdown.

Shifting landscape

The latest addition to Lifted’s relationship-led formats is Cheat: Unfinished Business, now streaming on Netflix. Co-produced with 12 Yard, the show explores the messy, emotional aftermath of infidelity by reuniting exes whose relationships ended because of cheating. And there are plenty of other new shows coming down the line including a brand-new entertainment reality gameshow called Celebrity Sabotage.

Aimed at Saturday nights, the format will air on ITV1 and ITVX in the UK later in 2025. The show sees a team of celebrities attempt to win members of the public money by sabotaging everything they do.

As ITV Studios marks its 70th anniversary, it remains as relevant and ambitious as ever. In an entertainment landscape that’s constantly shifting, it continues to deliver hit after hit, combining creativity, innovation and global reach to shape the future of what audiences love to watch. “Now is the time to innovate and bring the audience something new,” says Beale.

“We have more new titles launching this year than in the previous half-decade – and we’re working hard to help those shows travel and connect with audiences in multiple territories. That’s where the future is.”

Seventy years in, ITV Studios isn’t just keeping up with the pace of change, it’s setting it.