Duchess joins C4’s factual greenlights

Commercially funded UK public broadcaster Channel 4 has commissioned an unscripted series following the Duchess of Northumberland as she builds a £15m (US$21m) theme park.

Dom Bird

The Duchess (working title) will see the Duchess embark on the project to build a village of make-believe, named Lilidorei, in grounds close to The Alnwick Garden in Northumberland, complete with fairy grottos and goblin lairs.

The 6×60’ docuseries will be produced by MGM Television with executive producers Dom Bird and Vicky Hamburger.

Bird, senior VP of international unscripted television at MGM Television, said: “With rare access to Her Grace alongside the incredibly ambitious project she is about to undertake, it promises to be a hugely eventful enterprise as the Duchess of Northumberland juggles formal and personal commitments with her biggest ever challenge.”

In other commissioning news for the UK channel, an adventure series with SAS Who Dares Wins star Jason Fox has been greenlit in association with car firm Land Rover. The as-yet-untitled series will see Fox joined by three celebrities as they embark on a series of uniquely devised challenges.

Jonah Weston, commissioning editor at C4, said: “After a year stuck at home, audiences will love seeing Foxy and our famous faces taking on some terrifying challenges in Wales’ wild and wonderful countryside.”