ITV Enters Hell’s Kitchen With Gordon Ramsay

ITV Sales has secured Sherry brand Tio Pepe as the broadcast sponsor of its forthcoming Hell’s Kitchen series, which sees Gordon Ramsay employ a team of celebrities to work in his restaurant.

The new live programme will see ten celebrities receive a week’s training before trying their luck in Ramsay’s new kitchen. Viewers will be able to watch how the trainees cope with the pressure of working for one of the UK’s leading chefs, before choosing which one they want to vote off the show.

The sponsorship package for the series includes full broadcast credits, as well as an extensive online and SMS presence. There will also be a range of licensing and off-air marketing opportunities with the strapline: “Good food tastes better with Tio Pepe.”

The deal was negotiated by Andy Thompson and Stewart Hunt at ITV Sales, along with Richard Cox at John Ayling & Associates. Cox said: “Having previously sponsored the ITV London Restaurant awards we are delighted to be continuing Tio Pepe’s association with ITV restaurant programming.”

The series follows the recent success of Channel 4’s Jamie’s Kitchen, which attracted an average of 3.5 million viewers keen to follow the development of a group of underprivileged teenagers through chef school, and then later in Jamie Oliver’s new restaurant.

Jamie’s Kitchen was also the inspiration behind Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, which launched on Channel 4 last month. The series follows the notoriously foul-mouthed chef as he attempts to reverse the fortunes of a struggling restaurant in just a week.

ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com

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