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Poker.co.uk - Poker News Archive
Tuesday 11th October 2005 Backgammon is back with a Bang on pokerzone Sky channel 226
Monday 10th October 2005: The world’s first televised Backgammon event is to air on pokerzone SKY Channel 226 starting Wednesday 7th December at 9pm. The championships took place at the Fairmont, Monte Carlo in July 2005 with over 500 competitors, including some of the most accomplished players in the world, vying for the WORLD TITLE and the $100,000 prize.
Las Vegas based legends Mike Svobodny and Paul Magriel and their beautiful Russian protégé Victoria Smirnoff make television history in the 30th Backgammon World Championships.
As well as world class tournament action viewers will enjoy a behind the scenes look at the high stakes players as they prepare for the big event. Backgammon, a game that desires considerable skill and experience, is known for its outrageously eccentric players. One famous tale from the scene tells of an all-night backgammon session in which Leo Spitz wagered $100,000 with Svododny that he wouldn’t have breast implants for one year. Spitz had the implants. Svododny lost the bet.
To celebrate, pokerzone will kick off the Backgammon season on Wednesday 16th November with a three part series called Ernie’s Game an intriguing documentary revealing the High Stakes life of a gritty UK backgammon player.
pokerzone has been known for it’s forward thinking approach and their uptake of the Backgammon is no exception. Since it’s launch in May pokerzone has experienced rapid growth, quickly surpassing the Poker Channel, to become the leading brand in Poker Lifestyle television.
Director of Programming, Sam Orams says,
“Backgammon and Poker complement each other perfectly and offer a similarly engrossing experience to the viewer. We’re doubly delighted to add to our list of ‘world-firsts’ with World Championship Backgammon. After the stunning success of Poker Night Live, our nightly flagship online poker show, we are confident that Backgammon will make an equally big splash. It seems our viewers just can’t get enough of high stakes skill gaming, a fact that is reflected by our consistently increasing ratings.” Sam then said, “The addition of a format with far reaching international appeal was an obvious move when considering our pan European strategy. The commission, a joint venture with 8mm Productions, reflects our continued commitment to producing high quality and innovative niche programming.”
Note to editor:
From the end of November pokerzone will move to a new specialised section of the EPG, Gaming & Dating on Channel 843.
For more information, contact:
Naomi Hissey / Nick Garcia
SBI Communications
020 7559 2809 / 020 7559 2807
naomi.hissey@sbi.co.uk / nick.garcia@sbi.co.uk
Esther Whitehead
Marketing Manager
pokerzone
+44 (0) 208 104 0412
esther.whitehead@pokerzone.tv
Source: OnlineCasinoNews
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