What Double Act TV does

Double Act TV is an independent, privately-held television production company founded in 2005 and headquartered in London. The company produces factual television programming — spanning true crime, premium documentary, sports documentary, and factual entertainment — for the world's major broadcasters and streaming platforms. Its recent portfolio includes The Real Bling Ring: Hollywood Heist (Netflix), Jared From Subway: Catching a Monster (Discovery+), Italia 90: When Football Changed Forever and Virgin Island (Channel 4), SAS: Catching The Criminals and Confessions of a Steroid Gang (BBC), Fugitive Hunters Mexico (A&E), and Shark Academy (National Geographic). The business is co-owned by founders Rob Davis and Alastair Cook, with Mike Davis serving as Vice President of US Development.

The company generates revenue through project-based commissioning: it develops, pitches, and produces original factual formats that are licensed to broadcasters and streamers on a per-project basis. The go-to-market motion is enterprise field sales — pitching concepts directly to commissioning editors at BBC, Netflix, Channel 4, Discovery+, ITV, National Geographic, and A&E — with additional revenue from international co-productions. Content is not sold directly to consumers; distribution is entirely through broadcast and streaming partners. Underlying production capabilities are traditional television production and post-production, with no disclosed proprietary technology platform, API, or AI/ML tooling.

Double Act operates from three offices: its London headquarters (8th Floor, Blue Star House, Stockwell Road), a regional office in Birmingham (Double Act Midlands, Walker Building, Oxford Street), and a US subsidiary (Double Act Productions (US) Inc.) in Dover, Delaware. Headcount is in the 11–50 range, consistent with a small-to-mid-sized independent production house. The company is self-described as "multi-award winning" and is positioned as a returnable-format specialist with two decades of relationships across the industry's leading on-screen and behind-the-camera talent.

Name

Double Act TV

Legal name

Double Act Productions Ltd

Website

https://doubleact.tv

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Double Act TV is an independent UK-based television production company founded in 2005 that creates factual programming — true crime, documentary, sports, and factual entertainment — for major global broadcasters and streamers including BBC, Netflix, Channel 4, Discovery+, ITV, National Geographic, and A&E.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Television Production

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

True Crime Documentaries (MPADADAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Reality & Factual Entertainment (Unscripted) (MPADADAO), Sports Production & Outside Broadcast (OB) for Live Events (MPABAJAI)

Keywords

• Factual television production
• Documentary series
• True crime programming
• Factual entertainment
• Television production company

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Television Production and Commissioning: Double Act generates revenue by producing factual television programming commissioned by major broadcasters and streaming platforms. They create original content across documentary, true crime, and factual entertainment genres, with productions commissioned on a project-by-project basis. Revenue comes from production fees, licensing of content, and international co-production arrangements with broadcasters worldwide.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Double Act TV is an independent production company that develops and produces original factual television programming, including premium documentary series, true crime documentaries, factual entertainment formats, and sports documentaries. The company pitches, develops, and delivers commissioned content on a project-by-project basis to major global broadcasters and streaming platforms such as BBC, Netflix, Channel 4, Discovery+, ITV, National Geographic, and A&E. Productions are delivered turnkey from concept development through post-production.

Product overview

Double Act TV is a multi-award winning independent television production company established in 2005 that produces factual television programming. The company offers a portfolio of documentary series and factual entertainment content across multiple genres including true crime, sports, and reality formats. Key productions include premium documentary series for major streaming platforms and broadcasters such as Netflix (The Real Bling Ring: Hollywood Heist, Jared From Subway: Catching a Monster), BBC (SAS: Catching The Criminals, Confessions of a Steroid Gang), Channel 4 (Virgin Island, Italia 90: When Football Changed Forever), A&E (Fugitive Hunters Mexico), and Discovery+ (Shark Academy). The company operates as a traditional production house rather than a technology platform, creating content across factual entertainment, premium documentaries, and returnable factual formats.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Real Bling Ring: Hollywood Heist A true crime documentary for Netflix telling the story of LA teenagers who robbed celebrity homes in 2008-2009, featuring interviews with participants and prosecutors.
• Virgin Island A reality series following 12 adult virgins at a luxury Mediterranean retreat undergoing a unique intimacy course led by world-leading sexologists.
• Jared From Subway: Catching a Monster A three-part series documenting the rise and fall of Subway pitchman Jared Fogle, exposing him as a child sex predator through survivor accounts and an undercover journalist's investigation.
• Italia 90: When Football Changed Forever A documentary recounting the 1990 World Cup that was pivotal for English football, exploring Thatcher's 80s, hooliganism concerns, and the team's journey to the semi-finals.
• SAS: Catching The Criminals A BBC One series where Billy Billingham follows police forces using military and SAS tactics to catch criminals involved in theft, fly tipping, and environmental crimes.
• Fugitive Hunters Mexico A 12-part A&E series following an elite Mexican undercover police unit that hunts down American fugitives evading justice in Mexico.
• Confessions of a Steroid Gang A true crime documentary following a father and son from Wales who built an illegal steroid empire, blending family drama with true-crime grit.
• Shark Academy A documentary series where shark expert Dr. Riley Elliott puts eight recruits through a six-week crash course in shark research in Bimini, The Bahamas, to find his next crew member.

Quantifiable outcome

• Virgin Island achieved C4's highest share of young viewers for any new Channel 4 format since modern records began
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Raw TV: UK independent factual production company producing premium documentaries and true crime (e.g. Louis Theroux series). Direct peer to Double Act in genre, scale, and BBC/Netflix commissioning relationships.
• Love Productions: UK indie producer of returnable factual entertainment formats (e.g. The Great British Bake Off). Closely comparable to Double Act in the factual entertainment and returnable-format business, with similar blue-chip UK broadcaster relationships.
• Studio Lambert: UK independent producer behind unscripted hits like Gogglebox and The Circle. Directly comparable in unscripted factual / returnable-format space, scale and Channel 4 / streamer commissioning footprint.
• Outline Productions: UK indie factual and documentary producer. Similar scale and genre focus (true crime and factual), with overlapping BBC and Channel 4 commissioning relationships.
• Crackit Productions: UK indie factual producer working across documentary and reality formats. Comparable in scale, ownership profile and commissioning relationships with major UK broadcasters.
• Pulse Films: UK indie producing premium documentaries, factual entertainment and branded content for global streamers and broadcasters. Comparable in international co-production model and factual/true crime slate.
• Twenty Twenty Productions: UK indie factual and entertainment producer (e.g. First Dates). Direct peer in size, genre mix and UK broadcaster/streamer commissioning footprint.
• Wonderhood Studios: UK indie spanning factual, entertainment and scripted. Comparable in scale, multi-genre strategy and BBC/Channel 4 commissioning relationships.

Broad incumbents

• All3Media: Large UK-based global production group housing numerous factual and entertainment labels. A broad incumbent competitor and potential acquirer/partner for independents like Double Act.
• Banijay UK: Global content production and distribution group (incorporating Endemol Shine). A broad incumbent operating across unscripted, factual and entertainment — directly competitive supplier to the same broadcasters and streamers Double Act serves.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Double_Act_TV
• Facebookfacebook.com/doubleacttv
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/double-act-productions-limited

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Double Act TV