Some of the most acclaimed American TV shows were originally adapted from UK television. Some shows on this list may surprise you.

American Series Adapted from British Television

There are many things Europe does just as well as America. TV shows are also among the things Europe, especially the UK, is pretty good at. You can easily see this by looking at the number of American serials adapted from British television. As a very simple example, we can look at the site where European players can find the most suitable bonus for them in just a few seconds, whenever they want: https://finland-bonusesfinder.com/no-deposit-bonus/.

“British shows aren’t just being adapted for American TV,” says Tony Sloterman, the product owner of Casino Bonuses Finder company. “There are so many slots that these shows are adapted into. Hell’s Kitchen, MasterChef, The X-Factor – these are all UK shows, and each has been adapted not only for US television but also for US slots.” So, what are the most famous series that originally appeared in the UK and were later adapted for US television? In this article, you can find the answer to this question.

The Office

The Office was a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. It was the first broadcast on BBC 2 in July 2001 and only lasted for two seasons. It was a show about the employees of a paper company called “Wernham Hogg”, and Ricky Gervais played the boss named “David Brent”. You can also see a young Martin Freeman in this “cringe comedy” show: he played the salesperson flirting with the receptionist. The Office UK was an absurd, weird, and disturbing comedy, and people loved it for precisely those reasons.

Fans of the show included Greg Daniels, and when offered to be the showrunner for the US adaptation, he accepted without hesitation. Steve Carell took on the role of Ricky Gervais in the US version of The Office, and this time the boss was named Michael Scott. In other roles, there were names that were not very well known at that time, such as John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, and Rainn Wilson. Greg Daniels also cast almost all the show’s writers: BJ Novak, Mindy Kaling, Paul Lieberstein, and Michael Schur have all played prominent and permanent roles in the series.

The Office US was even more successful than the original. It was one of the most watched series on every platform it was broadcast on (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Peacock, etc.). There was even a user base that continued their Netflix subscription only for The Office. Almost 10 years have passed since the last episode of the series, but The Office US is still watched by millions of people.

Hell’s Kitchen

Hell’s Kitchen may have completed its 20th season in the US, but when it first aired on ITV in 2004, it was quite different from what it is now. ITV was a channel that was set up to rival the BBC: it is now broadcast in the UK as “Channel 3”. Gordon Ramsey was the host of this series, and in the first season he was teaching Hollywood celebrities how to cook. Celebrities were competing by splitting into two teams, Red – Blue, and many celebrities such as James Dreyfus, Jennifer Ellison, and Al Murray participated in the show. Hell’s Kitchen only lasted for 5 seasons in the UK from 2004 to 2009.

However, it became so popular that it was adapted to US television in 2005 and started to be broadcast on the FOX channel, again with Gordon Ramsey. Ramsey presented both UK and US shows for 4 years. The US adaptation was more aggressive and was based on aspiring chefs trying to prove themselves, rather than the concept of Hollywood celebrities. In general, Gordon Ramsey was also more aggressive, but this whimsical style was one of the things that made the show famous.

MasterChef

There are so many MasterChef shows right now that you don’t know which ones to watch. However, the original show aired on the BBC in 1990 and ran until 2001. The original concept was for competitors with a certain price limit to prepare the best possible meal in 2 hours. So, each competitor was free to choose any ingredient they wanted, but within a certain budget. The show’s first host was Loyd Grossman, a writer. The BBC canceled the show in 2001 due to falling ratings.

However, FOX realized the potential of the show and began airing an adaptation in 2010. Like most other adaptations, MasterChef got a little more aggressive and turned into a real game show. FOX decided that this show would also be run by Gordon Ramsey, but in a three-man team with Graham Elliot and restaurateur Joe Bastianich: Graham Elliot was one of the creators of the US Hell’s Kitchen show. MasterChef has completed its 11th season on US television and will begin its twelfth season in 2024.

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

For almost 20 years, David Briggs has designed games and quizzes for the “Breakfast Show”, the UK’s most popular morning show. In 1996, he decided to turn them into a TV show in its own right and created the “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”. The show started to be broadcast on the ITV channel in 1998 and continued until 2014. In the original concept, there was no time limit, contestants could only get help once, and the number of questions was less. Over time, all of these changed, and today’s concept emerged. “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” is ranked #23 on the British Film Institute’s list of the “Best TV Shows”.

David Briggs was also an entrepreneur, and only a year later he started selling the contest he designed to other countries. The US version of the show began airing on ABC in 1999 and has remained virtually unchanged compared to other adaptations. Season 21 of the US version wrapped up in 2020, and the show’s host, Regis Philbin, holds the record for most hours spent on US television. You also knew him from other successful shows such as “America’s Got Talent” and “Million Dollar Password”.