Confused.com to sponsor ITV game show Catchphrase

Price comparison website Confused.com is to be the sponsor of long running ITV game show Catchphrase.

The series, produced by STV for ITV, began on the channel in 1986 running for over fifteen years. The show returned to the network last year proving a popular part of the ITV schedules. Now Catchphrase, the game in which contestants try to guess well-known phrases or sayings from animated picture puzzles, is teaming up with Confused.com and its brand icon, BRIAN the Robot, for the launch of the new series, airing from Sunday 16th March.

 This is the first time the price comparison site has sponsored a prime time TV show, with the deal described by Confused.com Marketing Director Joby Russell as “one of our biggest and most exciting brand opportunities yet.”

Each episode of Catchphrase will feature a number of different Confused.com idents, ranging from 5 to 15 seconds in length, which will see BRIAN the Robot act out popular catchphrases in real life. BRIAN will be seen in a variety of amusing scenarios – from chasing after farmyard animals to causing trouble on the football field. At the end of each ident, the public will be encouraged to guess the well-known catchphrase that is being acted out and engage with BRIAN on Twitter.

Catchphrase is returning to ITV for a second series, hosted by Stephen Mulhern and his animated sidekick – Mr Chips. Sponsorship of the twelve-part series runs across broadcast, online and mobile platforms.

Catchphrase is one of Britain’s most entertaining and best-loved game shows, so we are delighted to be partnering with such an iconic programme. We’re really looking forward to giving audiences a chance to ‘say what they see’ as they play along with BRIAN, Mr Chips and the studio contestants – including a few famous faces along the way. – Joby Russell, Marketing Director at Confused.com

Catchphrase was originally produced by TVS with Roy Walker as host, a role he held from 1986 until 1999. The series ran until 2002.