A new six-part docuseries taking viewers behind the scenes of British horse racing is heading to ITV and streaming service ITVX next year.
ITV is the home of free to air British horse racing with viewers able to enjoy over 100 days of live and exclusive racing until at least 2026 following a recent new three-year extension of the deal between the broadcaster and rightsholders.
Promising to “tell the stories of lives, journeys, and adventures – both human and equine – which make horse racing so dramatic and compelling,” the new series will be produced by South Shore with support from Flutter and Racecourse Media Group.
ITV adds that the series is a “a racing-wide collaboration” with additional support from the Professional Jockeys’ Association and British Horseracing Authority (BHA).
ITV’s Simon Daglish said: “Racing drives an enormous amount of passion and excitement among ITV viewers as we know from our unrivalled coverage.
“This new series is a fantastic chance to build on that excitement and bring this adrenaline filled sport to a new audience. We are delighted to be working with the racing community to showcase racing in a way that has never been seen before.”
BHA Chief Executive, Julie Harrington, added: “This is an extremely exciting development for the sport.
“The industry’s strategy is all about reaching new audiences and showing them the brilliance of our sport, while at the same time making racing more interesting and engaging for our current fans. There promises to be a little bit of something for everyone in this new programme.
“We’re proud of our sport and all it stands for, and anything that brings the passion and excitement of racing and the characters who work in it into people’s homes can only be a good thing.”
Ian Brown, CEO of Flutter UKI, said: “We are delighted to announce the forthcoming horse racing documentary series in conjunction with ITV, South Shore and RMG.
“This is an idea we have been championing for some time and we are hugely excited to be bringing the inner story of horse racing, and all the wonderful people who support it to a new and broader audience through a prime time slot on ITV1 and ITVX.
“We have long supported the horse racing industry across both the UK and Ireland and we are committed to working together with all racing stakeholders to support and modernise this unique and enthralling sport through initiatives like this brilliant new series.”
