Possessed ramps up operations with two senior appointments and a double order for 5 Gold Rings

Published: Mon 21 Jan 2019

Possessed ramps up operations with two senior appointments and a double order for 5 Gold Rings

Possessed, the fast-growing ITV Studios label, has begun 2019 by securing a double recommission of its popular ITV game show 5 Gold Rings, as well as confirming the appointment of two senior hires.

Adam MacDonald has become the label's first Chair and will work with founder Glenn Hugill to shape the strategic and creative future of the label. Lesley Davies joins as Head of Production.

Following a successful second series last year, ITV has now ordered two more runs of 5 Gold Rings. The fast-growing Possessed slate also includes Cash Trapped for ITV and recent BBC One commission, Catchpoint, a physical quiz show set for Saturday teatime co-produced with fellow ITV Studios label, 12 Yard.

Internationally, Possessed is also enjoying success with 5 Gold Rings on air in territories including France, Vietnam and Holland; quiz show Cram, an ITV Studios Australia production for Channel 10 and game show Keep It Spotless, produced by ITV America label, ITV Entertainment, for Nickelodeon.

The stature of the new appointments recognises the pace of development at Possessed. MacDonald ran Sky One and Sky Living over the past five years, and Davies previously headed production at Warner Brothers and at Endemol.

Glenn Hugill, Founder and MD of Possessed, said: From the very outset Possessed has been defined by the originality of our ideas and the quality of our delivery. Backed by the ITV Studios powerhouse, we were determined to stand toe to toe with the established majors. Rational optimism has always been the house mantra. Adam and Lesley joining up, followed by confirmation of a double recommission of 5 Gold Rings, speaks volumes as to just how far this exceptional team can go.

Adam MacDonald said: I believe Glenn is one of the very best format developers and producers there is. I have always said that it would be great to work with each other again, so it was a perfect moment when Glenn invited me to join him and his hugely impressive team at Possessed.

5 Gold Rings is a ground-breaking primetime game show presented by Philip Schofield in which two teams go head to head for the chance to win up to £50,000. Battling it out to answer a host of visual questions against the clock by placing gold rings on a supersized image beneath them on an LED floor, the contestants know that every pixel counts as state of the art software, specially crafted for this game, detects exactly where each ring is placed. As each round gets decidedly more difficult, so the gold rings decrease in size as the prize money increases.

MacDonald was previously Director of Sky One and Sky Living for five years where he commissioned the likes of A Discovery of Witches, A League of Their Own Road Trip and Karl Pilkingtons first scripted comedy Sick of It, as well as relaunching Sky Living as Sky Witness. Prior to that MacDonald worked at Channel 4, ITV, A&E and the BBC as well as for Lion TV and IWC Media, commissioning and developing shows such as Come Dine With Me, Coach Trip, Deal or No Deal and Time Commanders.

Prior to joining Possessed, Davies was Director of International Production at Warner Bros where she and her team facilitated the adaptation and production of scripted and non-scripted formats including First Dates, The Bachelor, Little Big Shots, Who Do You Think You Are, Gossip Girl, ER and Pretty Little Liars. Before that, she was acting Deputy MD of Optomen TV, with corporate and operational management of the company, and was also Head of Production for Endemol UK.

Ends

Notes to Editors

5 Gold Rings is distributed globally by Talpa.

LINK:	https://www.itv.com/presscentre/press-releases/possessed-ramps-operati...
	See more stories from itv

Most recent headlines