Post by ericcantona203 on Sept 15, 2006 19:17:48 GMT 1
By SARA NATHAN
TV Editor
September 15, 2006
ANT and Dec may pocket £2.7million each when their celebrity golf tournament, the All Star Cup, tees off with a US telly deal next summer.
America’s big broadcasters ABC, NBC and CBS — as well as specialist golf channels — are all said to be interested after the show pulled in 4.9 million viewers for ITV this August bank holiday.
Any US deal would be worth around £10.8million for the Geordie duo’s production company Gallowgate and co-producer TWI.
With a US broadcaster on board, the plan would see the event moved from its current base at the Celtic Manor course in Wales to a top-flight golfing venue in Florida.
The format would remain the same, with a European team of celebrities taking on an all-star team from the States.
The event would be filmed for both the US broadcaster and ITV — and could see Ant and Dec front the coverage on both sides of the Atlantic.
A show insider said: “The Americans are really interested in the show because they’ve seen that we can get big names.
“And taking it to the US would be a great way of having a return match as it’s been held in the UK for the past two years.
“It would also work well for ITV as the time difference would mean all the best action would be live in peak time.”
This year’s event featured a line-up including Dallas star Patrick Duffy, actor William Baldwin, actress Jane Seymour and rocker Meat Loaf for the US and Ross Kemp and Chris Evans for Europe.
Other stars included model Jodie Kidd, Cold Feet star James Nesbitt, singer Ronan Keating, soccer’s Ian Wright and US rocker Alice Cooper.
The European team clinched the title for the second year running with Bruce Forsyth sinking the winning putt.
Ant and Dec who scored a hit with TV movie Alien Autopsy earlier this year are chasing US success after their quiz show Poker Face was dropped by ABC last week.
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