Cowell BBC deal

Simon Cowell’s TV company has landed its first show with the BBC.

Syco Entertainment and Thames, which have only made ITV series so far, landed an eight-parter of The Greatest Dancer, a hunt for the UK’s best mover in styles ranging from ballet to hip-hop. Cheryl Tweedy was a judge on the pilot so expect to see her on this show by early 2019. The hosts were Alesha Dixon and Jordan Banjo.

Nigel Hall, Syco’s head of TV, says: “We are thrilled to have secured this commission over fierce competition.”

TV sources tell us that The Greatest Dancer is likely to be slotted up against ITV’s The Voice.

And in a neat twist if it helps dent The Voice’s audience, it would maintain The X Factor’s position as top singing show on ITV.