All3Media acquires Last Singer Standing format from Ireland’s ShinAwil

All3Media International has acquired the global sales rights to the Irish format Last Singer Standing, following the show’s domestic debut in October 2021.

Produced by independent prodco ShinAwil (which also runs the Irish edition of Dancing With the Stars) and originally aired on RTÉ One, the series combines a singing competition with a game show as eight contestants show off both their vocal chops and their tactical skills, as they must strategically determine which of their fellow competitors they have the best chance of outshining in performance.

After seven episodes, the last singers standing from each of the preceding weeks face off against each other in the series finale, where a combination of votes from the studio audience, the previously eliminated contestants, and the expert panel will determine which of them receives the grand prize of €25,000.

The original series was hosted by Nicky Byrne of the Irish pop group Westlife, while the judging panel was comprised of singer-songwriter Samantha Mumba, former *NSYNC member Joey Fatone and former Girls Aloud member Nadine Coyne.

“We’re always looking for innovative new format ideas for our global clients, and are confident in the strong audience appeal around the world for Last Singer Standing,” said Nick Smith, EVP of formats for All3Media. 

“We at ShinAwiL are delighted to partner with All3Media International in rolling out our newest shiny-floor talent show,” added ShinAwil CEO Larry Bass. “The combination of ShinAwiL’s creative team and All3Media International’s global sales team is the perfect way to launch this new talent game-show format to the world.”

Finnish format City vs Country commissioned for Hungarian edition

Hungary’s TV2 has commissioned a local version of the quiz-show format City vs Country from Finnish prodco Rabbit Films, which debuted the series in its home territory in 2017.

The format pits teams of urbanites against teams of rural types as they face three rounds of challenges to determine which side knows more about how the other half lives.

The TV2 commission will be the second international edition of the format, following a version for TV3 Lithuania that premiered in 2018. The series has also been optioned for Austria, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia and Romania.

“Finland’s most popular game show, City vs Country, will reach Hungarian screens later this year, and with several active options there’s lots more to come from this format in the future,” said Rabbit Films’ head of international Jonathan Tuovinen in a news release announcing the sale.

Lune Media to bring Shaun Micallef’s Brain Eistedfodd to Network Ten Australia

Australian comedian, TV presenter and author Shaun Micallef will host a new one-hour quiz-show format that will test the intellectual mettle of Australian high schools’ top minds.

Created by Lune Media and Giant Baby for Network Ten, Shaun Micallef’s Brain Eistedfodd brings together standout students from 18 schools from around the country to test their knowledge on a range of academic subjects, including history, English, math, biology, economics and foreign languages.

“I’m thrilled to be working with Shaun again on this exciting new series,” commented Lune Media managing director Leonie Lowe, who previously collaborated with the comedian on the long-running satirical news series Shaun Micallef’s Mad as Hell and the game show Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation. “Viewers will see Shaun’s natural ability to engage and encourage the young contestants with his unique mix of quick-fire humour and razor-sharp wit.”

Micallef and Lowe serve as executive producers of the new series, along with Lune Media director of programs David Galloway.

Gusto’s plant-based cooking show VegHeadz to make Canadian premiere in April

Food network Gusto TV has slated the Canadian premiere for its latest production, VegHeadz (13 x 30 min.), on Bell Media’s CTV Life Channel on April 18. Subsequent international premieres will roll out later this year on Gusto’s global distribution platforms.

Hosted by two-time MasterChef Canada winner Pino de Cerbo, the series explores how vegetables can become the star of any dish by taking inspiration from themes such as seasons or colors to create four delicious, meat-free plates on every episode.

“Working with Pino was a blast. Not only is he a skilled chef in the kitchen, but [he] really comes across on camera,” said Keren Jackman, senior producer at Gusto Worldwide Media. “Pino brought a fun energy, bright personality and an immense amount of talent to VegHeadz, and we cannot wait for him to come back.”