By Sam Dallas
More than a week after The Gruen Transfer attracted its biggest ever audience, its format has been sold to an overseas distributor.
Fox LOOK, a division of Fox Networks Group, has picked up the show from Andrew Denton’s production company Zapruder’s Other Films and ABC and will be known as The Big Sell.
“We’re extremely proud of Gruen and seeing our audiences continue to grow in our third series,” Andrew Denton said of the advertising analysis show in a statement.
The news comes after the September 8, election-themed episode was seen in almost 1.8 million homes on both ABC1 and ABC2.
Fox LOOK president David Lyle compared the success with Channel 10 hit Masterchef.
“As an Australian working in the international TV business, I have been very aware of how well The Gruen Transfer has done in beating the opposition, season after season,” the former Nine executive said in a statement, describing the Wil Anderson-led show as “smart, witty [and] contemporary”.
“…The Big Sell should be Australia’s next big export success.”