London - 4th February 2016 Multi-award winning broadcaster UKTV has commissioned 20 episodes of factual entertainment series, Deadliest Pests Down Under (20x30). This fast and funny job-doc series will air in Spring 2016, on leading entertainment channel Dave.
This new and exclusive series, follows a group of brave (and occasionally hapless) British pest controllers as they take on the challenge of spending a summer season in Australia. The series is made by Popkorn TV and is a co-production with Passion Distribution.
For pest controllers down under, every day is a brush with death and its getting even more dangerous as the continents critters are winning the battle. So desperate for help, they have called in the cavalry from the motherland. Nine brave Brits will be matched with their Australian counterparts as they leave the cold streets of the UK behind, swapping mild moles for psychotic possums, baby bed bugs for super-sized spiders and mundane moths for killer crocs.
Their guides are some of the toughest pest controllers that Australia has to offer. Theres a real life Crocodile Dundee, Barefoot Bushman Rob Bredle in Northern Queensland, who is never happier than when he is riding on the back of his one-tonne pets. Col the exterminator from New South Wales, who regularly juggles lethal funnel-web spiders with his bare hands, and Kylie who describes herself as a snake yoda.
Dreaming of sun, sea, and cold beers on the beach after a gentle days pest catching, the reality will be very, very, different. They come face to face with snakes, crocodiles and feral pigs that could kill them. After all an Aussie pest controller who hasnt been to the emergency room just isnt doing his job right.
UKTV commissioning executive, Victoria Summer said,
We are delighted to be working with Popkorn TV and Passion Distribution on this project. Popkorn TV are specialists in producing compelling documentaries and Deadliest Pests Down Under has all the comedic hallmarks of a series that is sure to entertain Dave viewers.
Managing director of Popkorn TV, Rory Wheeler, said,
I am thrilled at the confidence that UKTV have shown in commissioning this original series. Its a huge project but one that has the potential to reap fantastically funny rewards. Imagine Rodney Trotter meeting Crocodile Dundee, and it should give you an idea of the comedy potential this trailblazing new series has.
Steve North, Dave general manager, said,
Deadliest Pests Down Under is a great chance to see whether British pest control experts can deal with vermin on a totally different scale. They truly have no real idea what they will be letting themselves in for. With amazing characters from this fascinating world its set to be the channels latest job-doc that our audience will love.
Elin Thomas, Director of Global Sales at Passion Distribution, said,
Passion Distribution is very excited to get behind this project with Popkorn TV and UKTV. Deadliest Pests Down Under is a fabulous investment. The series delivers hilarious entertainment with shocking animal encounters and a great cast of characters. Deadliest Pests Down Under is a perfect fit for buyers schedules around the globe.
Deadliest Pests Down Under has been ordered by UKTVs director of commissioning, Richard Watsham, and Daves general manager, Steve North. Rory Wheeler and Viv McGrath are executive producers for Popkorn TV, overseen by UKTVs Victoria Summer. Passion Distribution co-produces Deadliest Pests Down Under with UKTV and Popkorn TV and has international distribution rights for the series.
Deadliest Pests Down Under will join the successful raft of UKTV Originals on Dave, including two brand new series of Taskmaster later this year alongside new Storage Hunters UK and Hoff the Record. UKTVs flagship free-to-air entertainment channel has retained its place as the number one non-PSB channel in the UK and grew by 1% year-on-year in 2015. The channels acquisitions also bolstered this growth with Emmy award-nominated The Last Man on Earths highest rating episode attracting 596k adults.
END
For all press enquiries and interview requests please contact; Kerry Parker, Head of Network Communications
Jess Molyneux, Assistant Publicist
About Dave Sky 111/246, Virgin 128/194, Freeview 12, BT & TalkTalk 12 On demand on Sky, Virgin and UKTV Play
Dave proudly presents a plethora of original commissions; award-winning Crackanory, Ross Noble Freewheeling, Dave Gormans Modern Life is Goodish, and Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled, all laden with the biggest names in British comedy. Not to mention a brand spanking new original series of Hoff the Record and Taskmaster.
Theres national treasures like QI, Red Dwarf X, Mock the Week and Have I Got News For You, plus the Red Bull trilogy of Cliff Diving, X-Fighters and the Soap Box races. And of course, we still have Top Gear.
Dave is the UKs most watched non-PSB channel broadcasting to over 27 million people per month, featuring hit US shows including the sharp-witted and sharp-suited Suits, the ludicrously addictive Lizard Lick Towing and the wonder that is Storage Hunters and now original commission Storage Hunters UK, the gift that keeps on giving.
www.joindave.co.uk / @join_dave
About UKTV UKTV is the multi-award winning media company that reaches 42 million viewers a month.
UKTVs eleven imaginative brands - UKTV Play, Dave, Watch, Gold, Alibi, Yesterday, Drama, Really, Home, Eden and Good Food - include the most popular non-PSB channel in the UK and account for 9% of the British commercial TV market. The companys most recent financial results showed record-breaking year-end revenue of £283m and EBITDA of £74.1m. It invested £123m in programming and related launches last year, and is becoming an increasingly significant investor in UK creativity.
UKTV has a truly innovative model, curating brand-defining commissions, hig
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
23/10/2025
A deadline is looming for a new carriage deal between Verizon's Fios TV and Nexstar, with both Verizon and the pay TV-backed American Television Alliance bl...
23/10/2025
NEW YORK During a high-profile session at NAB Show New York, new survey data was shared that revealed significant public concern over artificial intelligence (A...
23/10/2025
BELLEVUE, Wash. and NEW YORK Fox Weather has tapped T-Mobile has as its preferred communications provider and announced that all Fox Weather reporters are being...
23/10/2025
PBS and Amazon Web Services have announced the network is using generative AI to provide enhanced search results to viewers on the PBS App and PBS LearningMedia...
22/10/2025
Prime Video Inks Deal To Present NFL Black Friday Game Worldwide By SVG Staff
Wednesday, October 22, 2025 - 10:06 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story ...
22/10/2025
NBA Tip-Off: ESPN Goes 1080p HDR End-to-End, Flipping HDR Switch on REMI and REM...
22/10/2025
FloSports Empowers Division II, III Athletic Departments With Turnkey Production...
22/10/2025
Wall Street Video Summit Debuts, Bringing Together 200 Financial Enterprise Vide...
22/10/2025
Dueling Pianos: International Chopin Piano Competition Is as Competitive as a Ba...
22/10/2025
In 1995, a young Colombian artist released an album that would change Latin pop ...
22/10/2025
Over the past few months, a photovoltaic system has been installed on a three-he...
22/10/2025
The Orion spacecraft for NASA's Artemis II mission is stacked on the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kenn...
22/10/2025
L3Harris' Hybrid SATCOM is resilient by design, offering path diversity that eliminates vulnerabilities by routing data across the best available networks i...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. Organizers of NAB Show New York said they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countries along with 260 exhibitor...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C The organizers of The 2025 NAB Show New York have announced that they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countr...
22/10/2025
Masque Sound, a leading theatrical sound reinforcement, installation and design company, supplied an extensive gear package of professional-grade equipment for ...
22/10/2025
Lightware, a global leader in signal management and AV connectivity solutions, is seeing strong market momentum for the UCX-3x3-TPX-RX20, a compact transmitter-...
22/10/2025
MELVILLE, N.Y. Chyron has released PAINT 10.2, the latest update for its telestration platform, adding support for SMPTE ST 2110 IP workflows, expanding brandin...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON Run3TV today said NBCUniversal is joining as an investor in the ATSC 3.0 Framework Authority, which develops the Run3TV NextGen TV application platfo...
22/10/2025
ATLANTA swXtch.io will feature two new networking solutions extending the company's reach across more cloud and on-prem workflows at NAB Show New York, set ...
22/10/2025
The Warner Bros. Discoverys HBO Max streaming services has increased prices for all its streaming tiers effectively immediately for new customers. Existing cust...
22/10/2025
LOS ANGELES OpenDrives has signed a new distribution partnership deal with Versatile Distribution Services (VDS) to strengthen its channel and streamline how it...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C The organizers of The 2025 NAB Show New York have announced that they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countr...
22/10/2025
Samora Pinderhughes Brings Immersive Sound to Berklee's Signature Series The artist and composer, who's worked with Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Co...
22/10/2025
BMI Day at Berklee Celebrates Composer Fil Eisler and Awards Scholarship to Stud...
22/10/2025
October 22nd, 2025 TRIBECA ANNOUNCES STAR-STUDDED LINEUP OF MEMBERSHIP EVENTS F...
22/10/2025
Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF cooperate in drone defense Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF partner to deliver a comprehensive drone defense solution combining Rohde & S...
22/10/2025
European Broadcaster Upgrades To Grass Valley's NativeIP LDX 135 Cameras And...
22/10/2025
Everyone Gets a Better Deal on Verizon with New FOX One Perk The $15 FOX One streaming service perk is yet another way Verizon continues to add savings for cu...
22/10/2025
First Look Hidden Assets Series 3
Premieres on 9th November 9:30pm on RT One & RT Player
WATCH HERE Promo Link: Hidden Assets Series 3 | RT
The Crimin...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Although AES Show Is on Its Own, Audio Will Be a Major Part o...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Business of Broadcast and Media,' Future of Content'...
21/10/2025
SVG All-Stars: Ethan Folz, Senior Director, Digital Operations and Quality of Ex...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: Livestream Offers Graphic Overlays, Predictive Gaming, Ancil...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: At the Front Bench With Producer Frank DiGraci and Director ...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: NBC Sports, NEP Build Ultra-Flexible Production Plan That Se...
21/10/2025
Indigenous storytelling has been at the heart of the work of the Sundance Instit...
21/10/2025
Top L-R: Mysterious Skin, American Dream Second Row L-R: Little Miss Sunshine, D...
21/10/2025
Last week, Spotify and Columbia Records transformed Pier 4 at the Brooklyn Army ...
21/10/2025
SBS Learn's Dharug Ngurra resource empowers classrooms to meaningfully celeb...
21/10/2025
As global operators simplify and evolve their digital platforms, NPS improvement...
21/10/2025
Critical Design Review completion is a key milestone on the path toward Wideband Global Satellite Communications certification for the network in 2026, opening ...
21/10/2025
New Australian undersea training range to implement and improve warfighting tactics, proficiency and safety; enable joint/allied training that contributes to pr...
21/10/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
21/10/2025
September, the beginning of autumn, brought an expected revival to the TV market, largely due to the new fall TV schedules. The time spent in front of the TV sc...
21/10/2025
Broadcast Booms with 20% Uptick vs. August, Achieving Largest Monthly
Increase ...
21/10/2025
During September, streaming's share of TV viewing in Mexico settled at 24.5%, a marginal shift of -0.5 share points from the previous month.
Disclaimer: YU...
21/10/2025
RENNES, France BBright and GlobalM have conducted a technical trial validating Ultra HD interoperability across the entire contribution chain in the cloud, achi...
London - 4th February 2016 Multi-award winning broadcaster UKTV has commissioned 20 episodes of factual entertainment series, Deadliest Pests Down Under (20x30). This fast and funny job-doc series will air in Spring 2016, on leading entertainment channel Dave.
