LONDON. 18 July, 2019: Red Arrow Studios International has closed a deal with Talpa TV in The Netherlands for the innovative new social experiment format ‘The Restaurant That Makes Mistakes’,which sees a group of people living with dementia tasked with helping to run a restaurant.

Talpa TV has commissioned a local version which will be produced for SBS6 in early 2020 by Concept Street. Additionally, in Belgium Red Arrow Studios International has licensed the format to production company Roses are Blue.

In this extraordinary new social experiment, a group of people living with dementia, spanning different ages and at various stages of the disease, are tasked with helping run a restaurant led by a successful chef. The series sets out to change perceptions about the condition and demonstrate that a diagnosis doesn’t have to mean the end of a career.


Over a five-week period, and with a dementia expert on hand to advise, the group take on all the roles of a busy restaurant – including cooking, taking orders, serving and making drinks. Celebrity diners and members of the public visit the restaurant to put the newly trained staff to the test. At the beginning of the experiment all volunteers are tested for cognition, mood and memory. The tests are then repeated at the end with surprising results.

‘The Restaurant That Makes Mistakes’ was originally created and produced by Red Arrow Studio’s CPL Productions, makers of ground-breaking, multi-award winning format ‘Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds’, and Motion Content Group, co-producers of Channel 4’s ‘Dementiaville’.

 The UK version, overseen by Michelin-starred chef Josh Eggleton, successfully aired on Channel 4 in June.

Bo Stehmeier, President, Red Arrow Studios International said: “As we see the demand for kinder, socially responsible and uplifting content continue to rise, we’re delighted to be building the presence of ‘The Restaurant That Makes Mistakes’ in Europe. This timely show, which taps into wider national conversations surrounding how we think of people living with dementia, makes for poignant, heart-warming and distinctive viewing and we’re confident it will play a crucial role in challenging perceptions about this increasingly common condition.”

The deals were concluded by Yi Qiao, Senior Sales Manager, Benelux, UK, Scandinavia, Africa and Middle East.

– Press release ends –

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

About Red Arrow Studios International

Red Arrow Studios International is a world-leading TV distributor of scripted, formats and factual shows from a global network of in-house production companies, outstanding third-party producers and digital-content partners.

Led by Bo Stehmeier, with offices in Munich, London and Los Angeles, Red Arrow Studios International co-produces and finances global entertainment, and distributes acclaimed content to over 200 territories worldwide.

Red Arrow Studios International is part of Red Arrow Studios, which is comprised of 20 production companies in seven territories; digital studio, Studio71; and film distributor Gravitas Ventures. Red Arrow Studios is a ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE company, one of Europe’s leading media groups.

About CPL Productions

CPL Productions, a Red Arrow Studios company, and Edinburgh TV Festival’s Production Company of the year, is one of the most successful independent TV and radio production companies in the UK. An impressive roster of hit shows includes Sky One’s double BAFTA-winning series A League Of Their Own, the second series of Sky One comedy The Reluctant Landlord written by and starring Romesh Ranganathan, There’s Something About Movies for Sky 1, Channel 4’s multi-award winning Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds, The Restaurant That Makes Mistakes (C4), Married At First Sight (C4) and the return of Harry Hill to our screens in NIT Television’s Alien Fun Capsule for ITV1.

Additional programmes include, Sky One’s A League of Their Own US and European Road Trips, Rob and Romesh Vs, ITV’s popular drama Brief Encounters and NIT TV’s comedy sketch show for BBC Three, Ellie & Natasia.

About Motion Content Group

Motion Content Group is a global content investment and rights management company. It invests and partners with the world’s leading talent, producers and distributors to fund, develop, produce and distribute premium content. Motion supports editorially and commercially vibrant networks and platforms by helping meet the ever-increasing demand for premium content, for the benefit of advertisers and its content partners. Headquartered in London and Los Angeles, Motion currently operates in 26 countries worldwide and has a broad range of award-winning programming distributed globally. Motion Content Group is part of GroupM, the world’s leading full-service media investment management operation, a WPP company.