ITVS Ent rebrands, hires from Syco

The format production arm of ITV Studios (ITVS) is rebranding and has hired Lee McNicholas from Simon Cowell’s Syco Entertainment as its new creative director for the North.

Lee McNicholas

ITVS Entertainment will now be known as Lifted Entertainment, with McNicholas coming on board after a 10-year stint with Syco, most recently as creative director and exec producer.

Lifted, led by MD Angela Jain, is behind formats including I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, Love Island, Dancing on Ice, The Voice, Countdown, University Challenge and Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.

As creative director, North, McNicholas will create and lead production and development to drive commissions. He will be based at Lifted Entertainment’s northern base in MediaCityUK, Salford, from which it produces a range of returning shows including Judge Rinder for ITV, University Challenge for BBC2 and Countdown for Channel 4.

McNicholas will work alongside Jain and the creative talent housed within Lifted Entertainment, which includes director of entertainment Richard Cowles, creative directors Tom Gould and Fiona Clark, and head of development Kat Hebden.

McNicholas has overseen both Britain’s Got Talent and The X Factor and has played a role in the international roll-out of both formats. As exec producer, McNicholas held responsibility for all aspects of the production, from initial casting to overseeing the UK’s biggest touring TV production and managing the live shows.

Prior to joining Syco, where he also worked with the development teams in creating new formats for the UK and US markets, McNicholas worked across a variety of shows including C4’s How Clean is Your House? and the BBC’s The Apprentice.

Lifted has also been commissioned to produce Secret Gameshow, a new primetime pilot for ITV hosted by comedian and The Masked Singer host Joel Dommett. The show is a spin on the hidden-camera format in which celebrities compete for bragging rights as they take on audacious hidden-camera stunts to fool unsuspecting members of the public into helping them.

Jain said: “Lee brings a wealth of experience and expertise on huge global entertainment shows which, when added to the depth of the brilliant creative team we have here in Manchester, means he is in the perfect position to spearhead the next phase of growth in the North. I have no doubt he will be an inspiring, generous and kind leader who shares our values and vision for the future.”