Channel 4 announces 'True Crime on Channel 4'

13 July 2021

True Crime on Channel 4 will launch with brand new commissions Murder in the Alps and Bling Ring

Surviving Jeffrey Epstein and Surviving R Kelly to be available free-to-air in the UK for first time, along with 100’s of hours of premium crime content

Building on the huge success and popularity of series like 24 Hours in Police Custody, Murder in the Outback, and Barrymore: Body in the Pool, Channel 4 is to launch an all new destination for real crime fans, True Crime on Channel 4, bringing together all the newest crime commissions, talked about acquisitions and 100s of hours of handpicked content from the All 4 catalogue.

Set to launch this Autumn across All 4 and the Channel 4 network, True Crime on Channel 4 will be headlined by all new 24 Hours in Police Custody, as well as new factual commissions, Murder in the Alps, a three-part series about the murders of the Al-Hilli family and Sylvain Mollier, in Chevaline on the 5th of September 2012, and Bling Ring, which lifts the lid on one of most infamous crime sprees of the internet age in a new three-part series.

True Crime on Channel 4 will kick off with over 150 hours of crime content to stream, with fresh shows landing fortnightly, so there’ll always be something new to watch.

As well as the gripping mix of new shows, audiences will be able to watch two of the most talked about crime documentaries of the last few years, the award-winning Surviving R. Kelly, and Surviving Jeffery Epstein, for free in the UK for the first time, as well as long-running real crime series, First 48, thanks to a new partnership with A+E Networks.

From Arrow Pictures, Channel 4 has acquired I, Sniper: The Washington Killers, which over six-parts is the minute-by-minute account of the 2002 Washington DC Sniper case, one of the most terrifying crimes in recent history.

Channel 4 has also extended its deal with VICE to bring the most gripping titles in its crime catalogues to True Crime on Channel 4, including popular series, The Devil You Know Series 2 and The Dark Side of the Ring Series 3.

Danny Horan, Head of Factual at Channel 4 said: “We are incredibly proud to have some of the best original crime programmes on 4. Year on year the quality rises, as does the appetite for more stories particularly with younger audiences. In response to the demand, my team working with the Content Strategy and Planning team, have spent the last year curating brilliant international crime content to complement our British programming. We are thrilled to launch True Crime on 4, the first dedicated, cross-platform crime content strand on a UK PSB.”

Further information about the series’ included in the True Crime on Channel 4 launch is below:

Commissions:

Murder in the Alps
Prod Co: Blast
Murder in the Alps (w/t) is a three-part series about the murders of the Al-Hilli family and Sylvain Mollier, in Chevaline on the 5th of September 2012.  Almost a decade later, this series will re-examine this extraordinary unsolved case; with the use of archive footage and interviews with victims’ friends and family, witnesses, former suspects, journalists and those close to the investigation in France and the UK. The film explores the huge impact this crime has had on all those involved as we revisit the police investigation, contemporary media reporting and explore a variety of theories that arose to explain it.  In re-examining events, the series will raise important questions about the case and the challenge of getting justice.

Bling Ring
Prod Co: Double Act Productions
This 3-part series from Double Act will lift the lid on one of most infamous crime sprees of the internet age. Between October 2008 and August 2009 a wave of burglaries took place in some of the richest suburbs of LA. Dubbed the ‘Bling Ring’ by reporters, the thieves stole over $3m worth of cash, art, designer goods and jewellery from A-List celebrities including Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom and Lindsay Lohan. The culprits were eventually revealed to be a group of middle-class suburban teenagers who planned their heists based on paparazzi sites and social media posts, which revealed when their famous victims would be away from their homes.

Acquisitions
I, Sniper: The Washington Killers
Acquisition: Arrow Pictures
Six-part crime serial I, Sniper: The Washington Killers is the minute-by-minute account of the 2002 Washington DC Sniper case, one of the most terrifying crimes in recent history.  Lee Malvo, the surviving shooter, is heard in a series of phone calls from his Supermax cell at Red Onion State prison in Virginia, where he is in solitary confinement.

Featuring a wealth of testimony from victims, survivors, families and investigators, the series tells how a chance meeting between a vulnerable Jamaican teenager and a disaffected Army veteran sets in motion a murderous road trip and how a chain of events led them to commit unthinkable acts of violence.  Told from many angles, this definitive account of a shocking American crime story examines how Malvo came to be a mass murderer at the age of just seventeen.

 

Surviving R Kelly
Acquisition: A+E Networks
Celebrated as one of the greatest R&B singers of all time, R. Kelly's genre-defining career and playboy lifestyle has been riddled with rumours of abuse, predatory behaviour, and paedophilia. Now, in this acclaimed bombshell documentary survivors and people from R. Kelly's inner circle come forward with shocking new accusations, and they are determined to share their full story.

 

Surviving Jeffrey Epstein
Acquisition: A+E Networks
In the glamorous world of the global elite, an open secret lingered. One trafficking ring, with one man at the centre. Hundreds of survivors. Who knew; who refused to see; and who helped him get away with it? He's dead, but his survivors are still living with the traumatic aftermath. Surviving Jeffrey Epstein is a four-part documentary event series that investigates how the elusive Epstein allegedly ran a global network targeting young girls for himself and his cabal of rich and powerful friends. Operating from his luxurious homes in New York City, Palm Beach, New Mexico, Paris and the Caribbean, he was also accused of using his extreme wealth and influence to cover his predation. Following his August 10, 2019 death by suicide in federal prison, Jeffrey Epstein stole one more thing from his victims: the chance to face their accuser and finally see justice prevail. This documentary series provides a platform for these courageous women to share their stories first person as we examine Epstein's rise to boundless wealth, the people surrounding him who potentially procured and protected, and his second arrest, shocking death and the stories yet untold.

First 48
Acquisition: A+E Networks
For homicide detectives, the first 48 hours is everything. Once that line is breached without a lead, the odds of solving a case are cut in half. Each passing hour means more time for suspects to flee and for crucial evidence to be lost. The First 48 is a gritty, fast-paced race against the clock as detectives and homicide teams work furiously to solve breaking cases.

The Devil You Know S2
Acquisition: Vice
The series returns with a six-part season that uncovers the proliferation of online cults in America through the investigation of cult leader Sherry J. Shriner, her New Age Alien Agenda, and how she used YouTube as a breeding ground for a diabolical lizard cult. In this ground-breaking second season, The Devil You Know looks deep into the mysterious murder of Steven Mineo and suicide of Kelly Pingilley, revealing self-described “granny from Ohio” turned cult leader Sherry J. Shriner as the link between the two.

Dark Side of the Ring S3
Acquisition: Vice
The third season of the critically acclaimed wrestling series Dark Side of the Ring continues the rich storytelling that defined seasons one and two. Through first-person interviews, rare archival footage and dramatic recreations, Dark Side of the Ring exposes the wild and often criminal elements that dwell in the shadows of professional wrestling. Narrated by AEW superstar Chris Jericho, this season explores some of the most dramatic moments in wrestling history with a compelling cast of insiders who are often telling their truth on camera for the very first time.

True Crime on Channel 4 will launch on All 4 and across the Channel 4 network this Autumn.

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