All televisions around the world have been broadcasting reality shows of all kinds, forms and content, showing how anonymous singers would start a successful career, or how celebrities would survive on a tropical island or simply living in a luxurious apartment with all kinds of se comfort yourself by doing just nothing until people vote for you.
But lately it seems that some TV channels, especially from Northern Europe, have started to get attracted to the Italian way of life and want to see how some people from their country would deal with it.
It all started in the Netherlands, where the producers of KRO, one of the main television channels in the country, choose the center of Italy, in the impressive region of Le Marche, more precisely in the town of Piticchio, a peculiar little town of 720 inhabitants. people, like the set of a new reality show.
Four Dutch couples left their home, family, work and friends behind to take part in “De Italiansee Droom”, as the reality show is called, which means “The Italian Dream”. The television channel bought a house to restore in the center of Piticchio and the participants had to restore it and turn it into a nice and cozy Bed & Breakfast. The property consists of a three-storey house of 120 square meters on each floor plus a basement and an annex, an old jeans factory, for a total property area of 1,000 square meters.
Just to give you an idea of the amount of restoration work to be done, the property before the restoration had only one bathroom for the whole house and after the restoration the B&B had to have 6 bedrooms, each with an en-suite bathroom.
Obviously, that was the “easiest” part of the game, as they also had to learn all aspects of the Italian way of life: they had to learn the Italian language, how to cook Italian dishes, and last but not least, how to restore a typical lifestyle. Italian house. To do this, the producers choose three locals, an Italian teacher, a chef and an architect, to teach them how to perform the tasks and judge the results.
After the first five weeks, the couple with the lowest score would leave the reality show, after another five weeks, the other couple with the lowest score would leave the game. Eventually, the winner of the remaining two couples would literally win the entire B&B.
The reality show was so successful that the format was also taken over by a Belgian channel that duplicated the reality show in another town in Le Marche, the town of Montelparo, and also a Danish channel has commissioned The Italian Dream and four Danish couples have already done so. arrived in Italy, although the program will be aired this coming spring. There are rumors that a British channel is also interested in the format.
The stunning setting of central Italy and the allure of the Italian lifestyle that the reality show offered its audience have also given a new impetus to the already high interest in Italian houses for sale from Belgian and Dutch investors with a sharp increase. in demand for properties. throughout Italy, particularly in the Le Marche region where the reality shows were held.