Five Life to be Rebranded as FIVER

LONDON, March 20: As part of a rebranding
effort for all the digital channels operated by U.K. broadcaster Five, Five
Life will be renamed FIVER, and will roll out with a new on- and off-air look
beginning the end of April.

The newly renamed channel will feature a mix
of established programming and new exclusive, commissioned and acquired shows.
In a deal with RDF Rights, FIVER has secured the VH1 series Celebrity Rehab, which sees nine drug- and alcohol-addicted celebrities check into a
rehabilitation facility in an effort to conquer their demons. The celebrities
include Daniel Baldwin, Jeff Conaway and Brigitte Nielsen. Glamour’s Best
Dressed List, a fashion-themed five-part series
produced by Target TV, also joins FIVER’s lineup. Returning for a second season
is the FX series Dirt, with Courteney Cox reprising
her role as Lucy Spiller, the editor-in-chief of glossy tabloid magazine DirtNow. The series was produced by ABC Studios and acquired from Disney-ABC
International Television. And from CBS Paramount International Television,
FIVER has picked up the complete series of HBO’s Sex and the City.

FIVER has also secured
Madventures, a
travel-adventure series that sees its two presenters, Riku and Tunna, go in
search of extreme destinations and activities. During the ten-part series, they
travel with one camera through 20 countries on six different continents.

Hannah Barnes, the director of programs for
FIVER and Five US, said: “I’m really pleased with the evolution of Five Life.
The channel has enjoyed considerable success since launch 18 months ago and the
time is right to build on that success with an exciting raft of new
programming. FIVER will hold on to the best bits of Life, but be younger,
faster and louder.”

Added Lisa Opie, Five’s managing director of
content, “I’m really excited about FIVER. Its new position will complement the
Five family perfectly. It’s absolutely the right time to refresh the channel’s
identity to better reflect its development in content. FIVER is the first step
toward an invigorated and refreshed portfolio.”

—By Irene Lew