London/Munich, 15th February 2023. Eagle Eye Drama and Beta Film’s Hotel Portofino is about to open its doors for a third season. The upstairs/downstairs drama, praised by British media as “the new Downton” (RadioTimes), will return with six new episodes after a strong streaming performance across the globe. Season one recently launched on ITV to glowing reviews ‘Glamour, intrigue, aristocrats…. it’s perfect escapism’ (Daily Mail). Episode 1 attracted 2.3m viewers and 11% share (7 day consolidated). The second series of the show is also due to launch on Sky Italia in early spring. Hotel Portofino (18 x one hour) has now sold to over 70 territories and is available on five continents.

In Hotel Portofino’s season three cast and crew will travel back to Portofino, Italy, and along the Croatian coastline. Natascha McElhone (Ronin, Californication, Halo) will again head up the cast as Bella Ainsworth, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist who has moved to Italy to set up a quintessentially British hotel in the breathtakingly beautiful town of Portofino. Mark Umbers (Home Fires) plays her charming but dangerous aristocratic husband, Cecil, and Lily Fraser (Saint Maud, Motherland) will return as the hotel’s most famous guest singer turned movie star, Claudine Pascal.

All six episodes in season three will once again be written by Matt Baker, who created the original Hotel Portofino series. Jo McGrath and Walter Iuzzolino will again oversee the production as executive producers. Season three will see Bella and Cecil, now estranged, being forced to come together to figure out a way forward but their negotiations are

complicated by the fact that Cecil has inherited his father’s title and now has an enormous inheritance tax bill to pay. However, Bella is reveling in her newfound independence and formulates her own plans for a new beauty venture. The series builds to an explosive climax with a party at the hotel, where one guest will get their ultimate revenge.

Season three will be funded by a combination of distribution money, tax breaks and a number of global broadcaster pre-sales (to be announced in due course.)

PBS Distribution holds the North American rights to Hotel Portofino. Season two will launch in the US later this year on PBS and will be available to stream on the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS Video app, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO.

The series is produced in cooperation with the Beta Group, which also handles world sales. Production service is provided by Drugiplan.

Jo McGrath, CCO of Eagle Eye Drama, says: “Hotel Portofino is Eagle Eye’s first original commission, so it’s wonderful to see the show being embraced by so many international audiences. The series has a strong ensemble cast of warm characters, beautiful locations, and compelling cliffhanger plotlines – all qualities that help explain its international appeal with audiences. Season three is set to be our most sumptuous yet, with new passions and old rivalries threatening the future of the Ainsworth family.”

Oliver Bachert, Beta Film’s Chief Distribution Officer, adds: “Hotel Portofino brings good joy and drama to global screens, and we are honored and energized to be the international partner of Eagle Eye and PBS in this successful franchise. Hotel Portofino will surely extend its fan-base and continue captivating audiences with a pinch of dolce vita and the good vibes we all long for.”