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Channel 4 is now officially crap. Discuss.
Dolby Kid
Posts: 912 Forum Member
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I remember a warm November evening in 1982, when the premise of a new TV channel was an exciting event, an alternative, and how we spent ages manually turning the circular dial on a black and white Hitachi portable to watch what was then a moment in history.
I was 11 years old, my sister was 9.
I got so excited I had to go to the shops, I couldn't stand the tension. Channel 4 had been on "stand-by" for about 4 hours, which back then comprised of bars and 0dB tone with a "coming soon" type affair, if memory serves me well, which is most likely doesn't.
Then I got back from purchasing a packet of Refreshers and possibly some Monster Munch wheat snacks to catch the end of Blockbusters.
I was underwhelmed to say the least, so much so that even given the artificial additives contained within aforementioned newsagent fodder I fell asleep soundly without even exploring further.
Basically Channel 4 was going to be a crappy quiz channel with arts stuff thrown in. My BMX bike held far more promise at the time.
And so it was, endless nights of chunder and toe-dipping, with the occasional highlight (I will never forget the 80's defining popera "Zero Zero" with it's black and white futurism and Mike Batt's indelible soundtrack theme "Love Drives You Crazy").
Then of course the thrill of foreign cinema and style never before seen on UK TV, specifically in the area of porn, to a 13 year old (by now!) the famed and infamous Red Triangle season which was mostly a bunch of Derek Jarman-esque twaddle but interspersed with some decent European erotica with the art theme firmly in situ.
It was exciting, it was raw, and new, and it would certainly make those old bores at the BBC blush!
It was new and as fresh as hip hop at the time, things were happening, art was liberated and sprayed onto walls, even Max Headroom himself was eventually canned up onto the underground car-park aluminium doors that led down to the bowels of C4HQ in Charlotte Street way back in the 80's.
Channel 4 doesn't give me that any more, that sense of excitement, all she gives me now is Hollyoaks repeats, which on the face of it is a High Def porn film with all the decent nookie bits edited out. With even worse actors.
FilmFour suffered so that Redmond's kids might have lived?
Shame on you, Horseferry Road!
Speaking of shame, Shameless is OK, but not for much longer, it's done. You lost your big stars, and Threlfall is knackered.
And Friends. Fiends, more like! Every day there is Friends.
Nobody cares about Friends anymore, for crying out loud - Channel Four you've milked that sacred cow to death even E4 viewers are groaning because the daft ***** bought the entire series as a job lot down Oxfam three years ago.
Skins is a joke, so much so that all the humour has been drained out of it, like a washed up '90's DJ all you have left is suicide comedy and deeply sad issues that leave you cold and regretful...
It's like C4 are trying to lecture kids about the dangers of drugs, when all the while only the sad muppets who didn't spend their student days shagging and snorting everything in sight are the only people watching the show.
Big Brother is no longer the dynamic social experiment it was meant to be, it has become the thermometer by which Channel 4 basic decency and good business practice is judged.
How desperate must Channel 4 be to even bother rolling out the last series without Davina involved??
Where is the joy of life in Channel 4 anymore?
Bring back The Word, Ali G, even Clive Anderson, anything but this dull hangover and Tory-style lecturing to your supposedly ideal audience that clearly knew better than you to begin with!
This was once supposed to be the true face of British Broadcasting, yet I feel let down, instead of Channel 4 being the answer to stagnant university professors on the Beeb it has become the same, but worse, at least the old OU professors had genuine charisma even when explaining quantum physics, now all we have is Steve Jones, a man so depressingly devoid of personality he makes Max Headroom look like Bill Pullman.
Alex Zane? Alexa Chung? These are non-personality people, these are the kind of strung out ignorant brats that make an evening with Naomi Cambell at a mobile phone convention seem appealing.
Get a grip, for Grade's sake, get a f***ing grip, before you become second prize in a race against endless repeats of M.A.S.H.
Because the ultimate irony for almost anyone working at Channel 4 these days is that they don't even realise that the huge glass walkway between the revolving doors at the entrance is, when viewed from the top floor, a giant plonker, with the revolver doors as the balls.
With the past few years of broadcasting in mind, Richard Rogers was being even more ironic than even he would have dared to imagine.
You have cocked it up for long enough, Channel 4.
Now is the splinter of your disco tent.
:mad:
I was 11 years old, my sister was 9.
I got so excited I had to go to the shops, I couldn't stand the tension. Channel 4 had been on "stand-by" for about 4 hours, which back then comprised of bars and 0dB tone with a "coming soon" type affair, if memory serves me well, which is most likely doesn't.
Then I got back from purchasing a packet of Refreshers and possibly some Monster Munch wheat snacks to catch the end of Blockbusters.
I was underwhelmed to say the least, so much so that even given the artificial additives contained within aforementioned newsagent fodder I fell asleep soundly without even exploring further.
Basically Channel 4 was going to be a crappy quiz channel with arts stuff thrown in. My BMX bike held far more promise at the time.
And so it was, endless nights of chunder and toe-dipping, with the occasional highlight (I will never forget the 80's defining popera "Zero Zero" with it's black and white futurism and Mike Batt's indelible soundtrack theme "Love Drives You Crazy").
Then of course the thrill of foreign cinema and style never before seen on UK TV, specifically in the area of porn, to a 13 year old (by now!) the famed and infamous Red Triangle season which was mostly a bunch of Derek Jarman-esque twaddle but interspersed with some decent European erotica with the art theme firmly in situ.
It was exciting, it was raw, and new, and it would certainly make those old bores at the BBC blush!
It was new and as fresh as hip hop at the time, things were happening, art was liberated and sprayed onto walls, even Max Headroom himself was eventually canned up onto the underground car-park aluminium doors that led down to the bowels of C4HQ in Charlotte Street way back in the 80's.
Channel 4 doesn't give me that any more, that sense of excitement, all she gives me now is Hollyoaks repeats, which on the face of it is a High Def porn film with all the decent nookie bits edited out. With even worse actors.
FilmFour suffered so that Redmond's kids might have lived?
Shame on you, Horseferry Road!
Speaking of shame, Shameless is OK, but not for much longer, it's done. You lost your big stars, and Threlfall is knackered.
And Friends. Fiends, more like! Every day there is Friends.
Nobody cares about Friends anymore, for crying out loud - Channel Four you've milked that sacred cow to death even E4 viewers are groaning because the daft ***** bought the entire series as a job lot down Oxfam three years ago.
Skins is a joke, so much so that all the humour has been drained out of it, like a washed up '90's DJ all you have left is suicide comedy and deeply sad issues that leave you cold and regretful...
It's like C4 are trying to lecture kids about the dangers of drugs, when all the while only the sad muppets who didn't spend their student days shagging and snorting everything in sight are the only people watching the show.
Big Brother is no longer the dynamic social experiment it was meant to be, it has become the thermometer by which Channel 4 basic decency and good business practice is judged.
How desperate must Channel 4 be to even bother rolling out the last series without Davina involved??
Where is the joy of life in Channel 4 anymore?
Bring back The Word, Ali G, even Clive Anderson, anything but this dull hangover and Tory-style lecturing to your supposedly ideal audience that clearly knew better than you to begin with!
This was once supposed to be the true face of British Broadcasting, yet I feel let down, instead of Channel 4 being the answer to stagnant university professors on the Beeb it has become the same, but worse, at least the old OU professors had genuine charisma even when explaining quantum physics, now all we have is Steve Jones, a man so depressingly devoid of personality he makes Max Headroom look like Bill Pullman.
Alex Zane? Alexa Chung? These are non-personality people, these are the kind of strung out ignorant brats that make an evening with Naomi Cambell at a mobile phone convention seem appealing.
Get a grip, for Grade's sake, get a f***ing grip, before you become second prize in a race against endless repeats of M.A.S.H.
Because the ultimate irony for almost anyone working at Channel 4 these days is that they don't even realise that the huge glass walkway between the revolving doors at the entrance is, when viewed from the top floor, a giant plonker, with the revolver doors as the balls.
With the past few years of broadcasting in mind, Richard Rogers was being even more ironic than even he would have dared to imagine.
You have cocked it up for long enough, Channel 4.
Now is the splinter of your disco tent.
:mad:
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Comments
No more danger on channel 4.
Channel 4 news is one good example. Which other comercial broadcaster does indepth news coverage like this?
Channel 4 pioneered Youth TV, and the T4 strand is much loved by teenagers across britain as the ONLY place on TV with shows they want to see.
I could go on, theres a massive list of Ch4 shows I watch and love.
Location Location, Hollyoaks, richard & Judy, Paul O'Grady, Grand Designs, Ugly Betty, 8 out of 10 cats, Big Brother, BBLB, Studio 60, west Wing, skins, shameless... all from memory, Im sure if I had the listings in front of me I'd name even more.
Interesting rant! Seriously though you raise many interesting points.
Channel 4 does seem to have become a Big Brother, Cooking, property and makeover channel now.
Still does some good stuff though.
Maybe it's my age, or my need to switch off, but I spend more time watching stuff on Living TV or Discovery than any other channels.
I miss the great Arena programmes, really serious chat shows, decent music progs, thought provoking late night discussions, genuine wit and clever scripts. It's all gone to hell in a handcart with talentless, hair flicky, inarticulate presenters.
I even get my movies elsewhere - through my letterbox actually. They don't show the stuff I want to see.
I know lots of young people that watch nothing but Channel 4 and E4.
Older than 34? Pass me my cardie and pipe, there's a dear. I won't be watching any more exciting TV from now on.
I too remember the anticipation that was felt when C4 first started broadcasting. It felt like finally a channel that was making programmes for young people, that was different, daring and not afraid to push the boundaries. Recently C4 showed the first episode of Brookside, as part of the 25 years of C4 celebrations. While watching I couldn't help but smile at the 'colourful' language that some of the younger characters were coming out with. The papers were in uproar at the time, but what really hit me was the fact that although such words were now far more commonplace and less shocking than people thought 25 years ago, even soaps in 2008 wouldn't dare use the words 'bollocks', '********' etc in a pre watershead slot!
I've always felt that C4 was my channel and even though I probably watch less than I used to, they are still producing some great stuff. C4 News, Shameless, Grand Designs, Cutting Edge, Dispatches, Transmission etc. However I feel like they just need more of an edge again, need to be a channel that challenges the viewer but without resorting to cheap thrills and wheeling in some C list celebrities.
It must be very difficult for C4 though. An ambition to be cutting edge but struggling to keep advertisers happy in a world very different to 1982 when most folks only had the choice of 4 TV channels.
I'd like to see C4 experimenting again with new programme ideas. More home grown drama, a primetime adult skewed soap, music back in the early evening, no more big brother or friends or Simpsons!
I'm getting sick & tired of the amount of rubbish on C4/E4/M4/F4.
I rarely bother to watch ether of the C4 channels, Only when there's a decent movie on which to be honest is once in a blue moon.
I can remember a time when C4 was always on in every room in our house, mostly it was when brookside was airing.
I like the Simpsons, But I've seen most of the eps that air on C4. And if I'm honest I don't watch much TV anymore.
I can't stand Ugly betty, Friends 'ugh'!. Although I can sit & watch Ghost Whisperer but only because I'm into ghosts & Jennifer Love Hewitt! Hmm..
No Big Brother would mean no Channel 4. Channel 4 only have enough money to last them until 2012. 10% of their annual income comes from Big Brother and if they only have another 4 years before their money could run out, then take 10% per year away from that and they will run out a lot sooner. IMO, the whole Channel 4 network would be worth the license fee alone.
The IBA would have canned this sorry show years ago.
No idea, perhaps because they didn't have as many channels and viewing shares were traditionally bigger throughout the 80's and 90's? Its quite an old article but HERE is my source.
I am reluctantly prepared to concede that Series 1 was a genuine social experiment. However, it soon descended into a tawdry freakshow which literally messed with the lives of those taking part. At its lowest point the show included a sufferer of Tourette's, and another man with mental issues who may well have killed himself in the house had he not left when he did.
It spoke volumes about the British viewing public that the most recent incarnation of Big Brother, featuring clean-living, inoffensive and happy young people, was not a ratings success. That might have in a large part had something to do with it being on a digital channel, but we should be ashamed that "freakshow" programmes are so popular.
Simply bring back:
- The Big Breakfast
- The 11 O'clock show
and if you're feeling really generous, how about an intelligent, spectacular "game show" like Wanted?
Shameless.
What other channel would show that in it's uncut sweary, drug and violence filled glory?
Imagine it on ITV? It would either star Amanda Redman or Caroline Quanitan and the strongest storyline would be they broke a nail.
Also programming like Disptaches, (the brilliant) Channel 4 news, Sugar Rush and enjoyable comdey like The Friday Night Project.
Oh, and stuff like Teachers which I am currently re-enjoying on DVD.
I think that most of you saying that it is now crap are probably older now, and aren't part of the 16 to 34 age range that it targets. Society has changed, so programmes must change. But the programmes still have the same intensions. It is just that we keep comparing them to 20 years ago, which is not fair or accurate.
What also annoys is that people keeps saying how some shows like The Big Breakfast should be brought back and that Big Brother should be axed. Back when TBB first started, people kept saying that C4 was going downhill and was bad for the channel. This is what people are saying about BB now. What is wrong about C4 having a successful mainstream show?
Pete had just as much right as anyone else to be in the house and seemed to enjoy it more than anyone else.
I think not.
Channel 4 have just commissioned a huge run of political programming on T4. I dont think you can accuse them of shying away from intelligent or quality tv for young people.
Largely what I object to is saying "oh, you don't understand because you're old". Really, I'm in C4's target group and I don't feel targeted in the slightest. I feel like C4 is a glorified children's channel, just aimed at 13-14 year olds instead of prepubescent children.
I think its exactly what channel 4 should be doing - new actors, new writers, big original uk production.