Format

According to Teleformat, which publishes a monthly report tracking new unscripted launches around the world, February delivered a diverse lineup of premieres across broadcasters and streaming platforms. The latest titles ranged from character-driven factual productions and documentary series to a wide variety of entertainment formats built around competition, humour and psychological challenges. The month once again highlighted the growing diversity of the non-fiction landscape, with streaming services continuing to invest in premium documentary storytelling while traditional broadcasters experimented with new game shows and reality concepts designed for international circulation.

Factual and Documentary Titles
The factual space in February was dominated by high-profile documentary and docuseries projects exploring subjects from sports and celebrity culture to true crime and environmental activism.
Among the most prominent launches was Glitter & Gold: Ice Dancing, a sports docuseries following some of the world’s leading ice-dancing pairs as they prepare for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina. The production provides a behind-the-scenes look at athletes such as Madison Chock and Evan Bates, Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, and Guillaume Cizeron and Laurence Fournier Beaudry, capturing the intense physical and emotional preparation required to compete at the highest level.

Celebrity-focused storytelling also played a key role in the February lineup. Netflix released Being Gordon Ramsay, a six-part docuseries offering an intimate portrait of the chef at a pivotal moment in his career as he plans to open five new restaurants at London’s 22 Bishopsgate while managing his global culinary empire. The series explores the pressures behind Ramsay’s relentless expansion and provides rare access to his professional and personal life.

In the music world, Man on the Run retraces Paul McCartney’s artistic journey following the breakup of The Beatles, focusing on the creation of Wings and the challenges he faced in redefining his musical identity in a new era. Drawing on rare archive footage and personal reflections, the documentary paints a portrait of transformation during one of the most significant phases of McCartney’s career.

Environmental themes also emerged strongly with Finding Harmony: A King’s Vision, a documentary exploring King Charles III’s long-standing commitment to sustainability. Through archival material and interviews, the film traces decades of environmental advocacy and the philosophy of harmony between humanity and nature promoted by The King’s Foundation.

True crime continued to attract audiences with titles such as Murder in Glitterball City, a docuseries investigating a complex murder case in Louisville, Kentucky, and Le Iene presentano: Il Verdetto, an Italian factual series examining controversial criminal cases through documents, testimonies and investigative storytelling.
Other notable factual projects include Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, which offers a revealing look behind the scenes of the influential reality franchise, Wild Boys: Strangers in Town, reconstructing the mysterious story of two brothers who claimed to have grown up isolated in the Canadian wilderness, and Over de A4, a Dutch docuseries portraying the daily work of the people who keep one of the Netherlands’ busiest highways functioning.

Entertainment Formats and Reality Concepts
One of the most original concepts is Konvooi, an adventure game show in which four families embark on a journey across Europe, completing quizzes and challenges in spectacular locations. Throughout the competition, participants accumulate points represented by “lighthouses,” while each episode ends with a high-stakes quiz that may eliminate a family member and leave them behind. The format combines travel, strategy and family competition in a road-trip structure designed to keep tension high throughout the series.
Knowledge-based entertainment also features prominently. In the UK, Secret Genius seeks to identify hidden intellectual talent among ordinary people, with contestants drawn from workplaces such as factories, hair salons or supermarkets competing in logic and creativity challenges. In the United States, The Greatest Average American, hosted by comedian Nate Bargatze, celebrates everyday knowledge by testing contestants on their ability to predict how “average Americans” think and behave.