‘Come Dine With Me’ fans in the Middle East, rejoice — an Arabic version of the show is coming soon, and it’s going to be filmed in the UAE.
OSN network has signed a deal with ITV Studios for the exclusive rights to an Arabic production of the popular British reality TV show and will shoot the first season in the UAE this year. A casting call is now open to UAE residents between the age of 23-45, who can apply online by emailing itvsme-casting@itv.com with their name, age and address.
The series, which has been on in the UK for 15 years, follows a different group of four strangers every week, who each take a turn to host a party in their home. The guests have to rate the evening out of 10. At the end of the week, one winner will be dubbed the ultimate host and walk away with a prize.
The Middle East version of ‘Come Dine With Me’ will follow the same format. The 45-episode series will run weekly from Sunday to Thursday, and each contestant will have to cook a starter, main and dessert. The contestants will come from places such as Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Egypt, Bahrain and Oman, as well as Western expatriate nationalities, according to an announcement.
“OSN is thrilled about the upcoming OSN Original, ‘Come Dine with Me’, which will be the first an original production of the extremely popular show comes to our region,” said Rola Karam, VP of acquisitions and head of Arabic programming at OSN.
“We believe that ‘Come Dine with Me’ will be as huge a success in the Middle East as it is in the United Kingdom and are very excited for what’s to come in the pipeline in terms of original productions.”
An airdate for the series has not yet been announced.
