Russia’s Biz bags BBCWW’s Mastermind

Mastermind in the UK

Russian producer Biz Media has acquired the format rights to long-running quizshow Mastermind from UK-based BBC Worldwide.

The deal will see the tough TV quiz format air on channel Rossiya-Kulturaas as Гений (Genius) across 16 episodes.

Mastermind is one of TV’s longest-running quizshows and has been on air for more than 40 years in the UK.

The Russian version will be fronted by Rossiya-Kultura personality Alexey Begak.

The Mastermind format has previously been sold to countries including Ireland (TV3), India (Colors) and Israel (IBA). The Junior version of the format has already entered Russia with TV Channel Russia, while the most recent sale was to New Zealand’s TVNZ last year.