BBC3 and BBC Northern Ireland have jointly greenlit a documentary fronted by Northern Irish influencer Olivia Neill exploring love in the metaverse. The commission underlines the growing impact of digital first talent on the traditional TV business
Produced by The Connected Set, Unreal! With Olivia Neill launches on Monday May 29. The show sees Neill meet people who’ve formed relationships through virtual reality, before trying her hand at VR dating to see if she can find her own Mr Right.
BBC Three was looking for fun, provocative ideas related to real experiences and was introduced to Neill through BBC NI commissioning editor Mary McKeagney. The Connected Set then created a format that would feel authentic to Neil and her audience. This process builds on The Connected Set’s track record of bringing social talent across to TV including Munya Chawawa and TikTok’s Chezablonde.
Executive producers for The Connected Set Tom Payne and Jason Mitchell said: “Authenticity is key when bringing influencers across to long-form, so our approach was to lean into the language, grammar and visual mechanics that are at the heart of what Gen Z audiences consume. Paired with Olivia’s intrigue and infectious passion for the subject and people she meets, we’ve created what we hope will become an exciting new fact-ent series for BBC Three and BBC Northern Ireland.”
