ITV buys Youngest’s Small Fortune

David Flynn and Lucas Church

UK commercial broadcaster ITV has greenlit a primetime gameshow from the UK indie launched by former Endemol Shine execs Lucas Church and David Flynn.

Youngest Media is working on Small Fortune for the commercial terrestrial, with Dermot O’Leary (The X Factor) set to host.

Described as the “world’s smallest physical gameshow,” the 6×60’ format sees teams of friends and family members compete in tiny games to win big money.

Each game is set in a perfectly miniaturised world, from a tiny Stonehenge to a pint-sized Rovers Return (the pub from long-running ITV soap Coronation Street). If players can hold their nerve and avoid the slightest mistake, they could bank up to £50,000 (US$65,700) in each game.

ITV head of entertainment Siobhan Greene greenlit the show with commissioning editor Joe Mace and assistant commissioner Sam Crack.

David Flynn, who co-founded Youngest with Church in 2016, said “We pitched this show to Joe Mace last year with a two-inch proposal and a magnifying glass, and we’ve had so much fun working with the team at ITV to bring it to life. With this series commission, we’re hoping our tiny gameshow is the next big thing.”

Youngest is also behind dating show Game of Clones, which first aired on the UK’s Channel 4 and has been sold into five territories; daytime quiz Hardball for UK pubcaster BBC1; and Date or Dump, a dating show for internet media firm Unilad, among others.