Big Brother set for March return

Big Brother will debut in March on ITV2 and ITVX, Broadcast can reveal.

The stripped six-week run is being lined up to follow the return of the winter edition of channel standard-bearer Love Island.

It is understood that producer Initial is well underway with staffing up, mindful of the talent shortage affecting the sector.

ITV has previously signalled its view that its ‘all-walks-of-life’ Big Brother could perform a similar stripped viewing experience to Love Island and unveiled the reboot immediately after the final episode of the dating juggernaut in August.

Its ambition is to cement the close relationship between the shows to capitalise on the inheritance and maintain momentum into the spring.

“Scheduling Big Brother after Love Island would help ITV2 to a strong start to the year,” said one rival broadcasting exec.

Love Island’s only winter edition to date ran from late January 2020 to the end of February 2020, reaching a consolidated audience of 3.2m (12%). This year, ITV2 averaged just 200,000 (1%) over the six weeks from 1 March.

The anticipated spike in viewing will also contribute to the early adoption of ITVX, which is due to launch in November. The first ep of this summer’s Love Island has been streamed 7.5m times, with a total of 74m requests generated across the show’s full run.

An ITV spokeswoman declined to comment on the scheduling plans. “TX dates will be published in due course,” she said.

London location lined up

The Big Brother house is expected to be constructed in a London location, Broadcast understands, with Initial eschewing the option of using one of the production hubs which host its 30 international versions.

One individual with knowledge of the production said that the cost of transporting and accommodating crew abroad would prove prohibitive, while raising concerns about the welfare of participants.

It is also understood that ITV is keen to invite live eviction night audiences.

Big Brother, which last aired in the UK on Channel 5 in 2018, regularly featured evicted participants being subjected to abuse from fans.

“There is a duty of care issue to consider,” the source said. “Does it still feel appropriate for exiting housemates to be greeted by baying crowds?”

ITV has put duty of care at the heart of its reality programming in recent years, with measures including the appointment of Cheryl Woodcock as production advisor for duty of care after a decade at Lifted.

Meanwhile Love Island participants are offered inclusion training as part of a wide-ranging training program.