MUMBAI: FremantleMedia has acquired a 75 per cent stake in Dutch business No Pictures Please, a controversial factual programming company owned by presenter and producer Ewout Genemans.

The company will sit alongside FremantleMedia’s entertainment and scripted businesses in the Netherlands, Blue Circle and FourOne.Media. 

No Pictures Please is best known for De Roze Wildernis (Fathers Pride), about gay sons and their fathers; Super Fans: Mijn idool is mijn leven(Super Fans: My idol is my life), which follows fans as they try to get closer to their idols; and From Russia With Love, a look at the men who travel to the former Eastern bloc to find love.

This is the latest in a number of recent investments by FremantleMedia including scripted businesses Wildside (Italy), Fontaram (France) and Corona Pictures (UK). 

The No Pictures Please deal was brokered by Blue Circle CEO Georgette Schlick. 

“Ewout has been on Dutch screens for more than ten years and has developed a very keen eye for what audiences want. We’re delighted to be working with him and excited for what he will continue to produce for the Dutch and global market,” Schlick said. 

Genemans added, “Being a part of Blue Circle and ultimately FremantleMedia presents a great opportunity to work with a fantastic Dutch operation as well as a globally established network of some of the best creative minds in television.”