Channel 4's downhill on programming - The same shows for 10 years.
22/08/24 - This has *only* been grammar-checked by AI.
Crippling Channel 4's schedules are repeats, reruns, and the same collective "count-on-one-hand" shows.
Gogglebox is on it's 20th season, Grand Designs is on it's 25th, The Great British Bake Off on it's 15th... What’s the issue with Channel 4’s commissioning team? It seems that the once risk-taking broadcaster — one that famously aired a magician playing Russian Roulette — has now become risk-averse. Instead of pushing boundaries, Channel 4 is leaning heavily on a few tried-and-tested formats that are guaranteed to pull in the same predictable audience, almost as if its schedule is as pre-packaged as a ready meal. And every year, Channel 4 just reheats it in the microwave (don’t forget to stab the package endlessly since Channel 4 like killing new original formats, too). Why bother experimenting with new ideas? Everything’s fine, right? How could it possibly become tired and overdone? But after this endless reheating, the result is a schedule that feels stale, with nothing to excite or challenge viewers. The channel’s commitment to its original remit seems to be fading, replaced by a sense of complacency — a reliance on what has worked before, rather than a willingness to explore what might work in the future.
The dangers of this approach are as clear as glass, so clear that Phil Spencer would be proud. By sticking to a small number of familiar formats, Channel 4 risks alienating the very audience it was created to serve—those, like me, who are looking for fresh, original content. You know, the stuff that was risky and innovatively new! Meanwhile, in an absolutely rapidly changing media landscape, TikTok has become a major platform for discovering new TV shows, and movies featuring old 00's songs are suddenly topping the charts as the latest "TikTok hits." It's wild how much this Chinese company has gripped our culture, right? Anyway, Channel 4’s reluctance (and downright avoidance) to change anything about its programming undermines almost everything that once made the channel great. Audiences today have little patience for repetition; they crave novelty and have more options than ever before. So why is Channel 4 still catering to the same audience that enjoys less than one-minute, fast-paced, and sped-up videos? Hypocritical, I know, as I also enjoy fast-paced, brain-rotting content to forget everything — but you get what I mean, right?
Looking forward, Channel 4 faces a crossroads. Channel 4 claims it’s strapped for cash and uses that as an excuse not to fund new shows, yet its CEO pockets over £800k in an "extra paycheque." It’s ironic, isn’t it? How is this the state of UK television today? Of course, I can’t control one of the greatest beasts in commercial television, so it can continue down its current path, risking irrelevance as it clings to its aging lineup thats aging faster than Paul Hollywood ever could, or it can rediscover the spirit of innovation that once made it a powerhouse of British television. After all, Channel 4 was created to break the boundaries that the "playing-it-safe" BBC and ITV wouldn’t dare to cross. In today’s world, bold decision-making, a willingness to take risks, and, crucially, investment in new talent and ideas are essential. Why not dedicate an entire channel to this mission and refocus everything? As it stands, Channel 4 recycles the same old shows as if they’re about to go out of fashion — only to realise they’ve already gone out of style. If the channel doesn’t wake up to the reality of its situation, it may find that the only thing viewers are tuning in to see is the final episode of its long-running legacy. Because let’s face it, I am more then sure that even Gogglebox can’t watch Channel 4 rehashing the same old content forever.
Thank you for reading! A huge shoutout to (the old) Channel 4 for once being the bold and daring broadcaster we all knew and loved! I am so hoping you rediscover that spark! And of course, thank YOU for sticking with me! Even if you don't know what Channel 4 is!