ITV, C4 set for summer reality head-to-head

ITV is planning to throw a number of reality shows against the seventh series of Channel 4's Big Brother this summer, Broadcast says this week.

The reality megaweight's dominance had largely gone unchallenged until ITV pitted Celebrity Love Island against it last year, to some effect. Despite being panned by critics, the show generated acres of column inches in the tabloids and, crucially, managed to dent ratings for the early weeks of Big Brother.

The series will now return in the summer, complete with a tweaked format and new presenter Denise Van Outen.

Ironically, BB producers Endemol have developed a format called Soccer Idol for ITV, which is also being primed to take on Big Brother. With Robbie Williams already signed up, the show is expected to target C4's share of the 16-34 demo.

The final series facing off against C4 will be a reworking of Pop Idol, Celebrity Pop Idol, to be hosted by Ant & Dec. If it gets the greenlight - Simon Cowell's involvement will be the determining factor - the new show will command ITV's primetime schedule for ten consecutive days.

"For as long as C4 puts all its eggs in the Big Brother basket we are conscious of and have plans for competition wherever it goes," ITV's director of television Simon Shaps told the magazine. "There are other things in the pipeline that make this summer very different from '05, '04 and '03."

Channel 4, meanwhile, is aiming to counter ITV's attack by lengthening the duration of Big Brother - it is expected to last at least thirteen weeks - and shifting it out of its traditional 10pm slot. "ITV went for us last year with Love Island but I don't know that they thought it was a marvellous success," said C4 director of television Kevin Lygo, predicting: "This year they'll throw Coronation Street all over the place too."