Primedia Studios partners with BBC Studios’ owned production company Rapid Blue to create BBC Studios’ multi-award-winning format.
Primedia Studios, African media giant Primedia’s trailblazing television content and distribution hub, has signed a license agreement with the BBC Studios-owned production company Rapid Blue to bring the multi-award-winning format Dancing with the Stars back to South Africa.
Licensed to over 60 countries, Dancing with the Stars continues to inspire millions of fans with the uplifting mix of joy, warmth, and wow factor. The revitalized South African audiences will see A-list local celebrities teaming up with professional dancers to learn, master, and perform Latin and ballroom routines and be judged by a panel of renowned ballroom experts.
“Primedia Studios is delighted to be joining forces with esteemed and prolific production company Rapid Blue, which also produced the country’s previous spectacular and much-loved local edition of Dancing with the Stars,” says Jan du Plessis, President of Primedia Studios. “We are incredibly proud to add this global phenomenon to our Primedia Studios fantastic ‘shiny floor’ content slate. It underlines our quest to bring the biggest and best international formats to mass South African audiences.”
Ziyanda Ngcaba, Managing Director of Rapid Blue, part of BBC Studios’ Global production network, adds, “We are so excited to see this worldwide hit return to South African screens. Dancing with the Stars has seen SA’s very own superstars performing and judging on versions across the world, with Oti Mabuse, Motsi Mabuse, Johannes Radebe, Keo Motsepe and Cameron Lombard showcasing SA’s immense dancing talent. It’s time to celebrate our local dancers, celebrities and love of dance. With the incredibly talented team at Primedia Studios, we will bring the Dancing with the Stars sparkle back to South African homes”.
This year, Dancing with the Stars (also known as Strictly Come Dancing) will be produced in multiple countries, including the UK, US, Denmark, Spain, France, Germany and Italy. Dancing with the Stars also recently returned to Telecinco in Spain.
One of the Top 10 best-selling formats of all time, Dancing with the Stars has won over 130 international awards and has enthralled audiences on every continent except Antarctica. In the US, the show has been an all-time favourite with 32 seasons, and in the UK, it still holds the position as the #1 entertainment show and is celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2024.