Channel 4 will continue its celebration of cleverness with a second series of Child Genius. The programme will return next year and will once again follow 20 extraordinary children, most with IQs in the top 0.01% of the country, as they compete to be crowned the UK’s Child Genius of the Year.
The 4 x 60’ series, produced by Wall to Wall (a Shed Media company), will document the lives of the children and their families as they make their way through the competition, organised in association with British Mensa.
Child Genius will capture the families in the build-up to each round of the competition as the children prepare to take on their highly intelligent peers. From the naturally gifted to the highly competitive, children and parents, the second series of Child Genius will shine a light on the highs and lows of being one of Britain’s most fascinating and brightest 5 – 12 year olds.
The first series of Child Genius aired earlier this year and averaged an audience of 2.1million across the four episodes and a 8.2% share.
Child Genius was commissioned by Channel 4’s Liam Humphreys, Head of Factual Entertainment and Lucy Leveugle, Factual Entertainment Commissioning Editor. The series will be executive produced by Wall to Wall’s Mark Saben and will return to Channel 4 in 2014.
Of the commission Lucy Leveugle said: “After the success of the first series, Channel 4 is proud to highlight some more outstanding children and their families in this exploration of what it’s like to be considered a gifted child in the UK today.”
Lyn Kendal, British Mensa’s Gifted Child Consultant added: “I was delighted with the feedback from the first series, particularly from schools who were keen to find out how they could support such children. In this second series I’m looking forward to finding children who are even more outstanding in terms of their interests and abilities. This continues to be a great opportunity to raise the profile of children who have the potential to become leaders in society."
