TV Nova commissions Czech adaptation of BBC scripted comedy format Ghosts

Czech commercial broadcaster TV Nova has commissioned a local adaptation of Ghosts

LONDON TV SCREENINGS: Czech commercial broadcaster TV Nova has commissioned a local adaptation of British scripted comedy format Ghosts.

TV Nova will produce the local 12×35’ version, which follows a young couple whose dreams of renovating a dilapidated mansion and turning it into a hotel are upended by the restless spirits who refuse to leave.

Ghosts was created by Mathew Baynton, Simon Farnaby, Martha Howe Douglas, Jim Howick, Laurence Rickard and Ben Willbond, and was originally produced by Monumental Television and Them There for BBC One.

Distributed by BBC Studios, the format has already been adapted in the US, Australia, France, Germany and Greece. WDR and ARD Mediathek have also renewed the German adaptation of the series for a second season.

BBC Studios presented Ghosts to buyers at its Showcase event in London on Tuesday, alongside scripted series including comedy crime drama Death Valley, crime novel adaptation Lynley and relationship thriller Reunion.

Rose Hughes, senior VP for format sales at BBC Studios, said: “Ghosts is among the most consistently successful comedy properties on the global market. The magic of the format is that every territory gets to build its own afterlife, populated with ghosts who are deeply specific to its heritage, all set within the framework of a housemate comedy.

“This is a chance for world-building on a truly local level, where history can be celebrated and characters created that could only exist in each culture. We’re thrilled to welcome Czechia into the Ghosts family and excited to see the format generating even more success as new markets bring their own versions to life.”