Channel 4's Q1 Highlights

9 February 2021

Q1 HIGHLIGHTS

ENTERTAINMENT, FACTUAL ENTERTAINMENT, FEATURES AND DAYTIME 

STEPH’S PACKED LUNCH

Monday to Friday, 12.30pm, from Monday 4th January

Expectation & Can Can Productions for Channel 4

Contact: Gemma Bareham & Ryan Johnson-Leigh

Steph McGovern presents Channel 4’s daytime show live from Leeds. Steph’s Packed Lunch features celebrity guests, fantastic food, intriguing real-life stories and a mix of entertainment, lifestyle and consumer news making the headlines.

DARCEY BUSSELL’S WILD SCOTTISH COAST

4 x 60’

True North productions for More4

Contact: Lesley Land

Dame Darcey Bussell is swapping her famous pointe shoes for walking boots as she heads to the beautiful islands off the west coast of Scotland to explore their stunning landscapes and find out more about her own Scottish ancestry. Her Scottish grandfather, as a young boy, spent most of his summers on the isle of Bute, speaking of magical landscapes and spectacular sights, and Darcey has only ever seen it in pictures. Her journey takes in Skye, the Outer Hebrides, Islay, Jura and Bute, where she sees for the first time, the house where her grandfather spent so many of his childhood summers.

Throughout the series, Darcey will meet the people who call the islands home and indulge her passion for dance, trying out several types of Scottish dancing. Along the way, she’ll sample fresh scallops from a loch in Skye, undertake a spot of wild swimming and will of course toast her grandfather with his favourite whisky.

EXTRAORDINARY ESCAPES WITH SANDI TOKSVIG

4 x 60’

Tuesday’s Child productions for Channel 4

Contact: Lesley Land
 

Sandi Toksvig and some of her well-known female friends are about to embark on stay-cations like no other in a brand-new series. With Britain bursting at the seams with one-of-a-kind holiday stays for every budget, Sandi, along with some of the very best names from her little black book of travel companions, namely acting royalty Alison Steadman, funny woman Sindhu Vee, comic actress Jessica Hynes, and close friend and foodie Prue Leith, will explore the delights of the UK’s wildest, most remote and beautifully designed holiday digs.

The pair will uncover the design stories behind each ingenious build and marvel at the lengths the owners and architects have gone to, to ensure each property offers a unique experience. They will also immerse themselves in the natural beauty of each location making the most of their time away, indulging in wildlife spotting, picnicking on the beach, forest-bathing, cooking local produce and sharing stories as the sun goes down.

STAND UP & DELIVER

2 x 60’

Lime Pictures productions for Channel 4

Contact: Lesley Land

For most people, the thought of performing stand-up comedy is a nightmare inducing act. But five plucky celebrities are about to take on the challenge of their lives, in support of Stand Up To Cancer. While the professionals take years to hone their craft, our famous faces have two weeks to refine their act before they take to the stage in front of a comedy hungry crowd.

Five of the UK’s top comics will be mentoring the celebrities through the process – David Baddiel will be coaching Reverend Richard Coles, Jason Manford is tasked with shepherding Shaun Ryder, Nick Helm guides Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, Judi Love drills Curtis Pritchard and Zoe Lyons is championing Katie McGlynn. Just fifteen days after first starting their comedy training, the celebrities will take to the stage for one last gig. With the audience voting using the time-tested clapometer, who will have the last laugh and get top billing as the Stand Up and Deliver champion?

CAROLINE FLACK: LIFE STORY (W/T)

1 x 60’

Curious Films productions for Channel 4

Contact: Lucy Zilberkweit

Family and friends will pay tribute to the TV Presenter Caroline Flack in an emotional, intimate and candid documentary celebrating Caroline’s life and legacy.

The 1x60’ documentary will hear from those closest to Caroline, delving beyond the headlines to reveal the woman behind the public persona, as well as exploring the pressures that fame, mental health, press and social media had on Caroline throughout her life.

THE GREAT BRITISH DIG: HISTORY IN YOUR BACK GARDEN

4 x 60’

Strawberry Blond productions for More 4

Contact: Sian Thompson

Hugh Dennis presents a new four-part archaeology series. Together with a team of archaeologists, historians and experts, the actor and comedian descends on a variety of suburban settings to find the historic artefacts hidden beneath people’s back gardens – recruiting local people to get digging too.

This series sees Hugh and the team visit Newcastle in search of a Roman fort, as well attempting to unearth the long-lost Lenton Priory in Nottingham. In North Yorkshire, the team must dig deep in the hope of locating a Viking graveyard, and they’re also on the hunt for a secret army base in South Shields.

CELEBRITY BAKE OFF FOR STAND UP TO CANCER

5 x 75’

Love Productions for Channel 4

Contact: Kate Conway, Lesley Land, Sian Thompson

The Great British Bake Off tent is welcoming some very special celebrity bakers for five new episodes of The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer for Channel 4

The stars lining their baking tins in the Bake Off tent are BAFTA winning and Golden Globe nominated actor James McAvoy, actress Daisy Ridley, double Olympic Champion, Dame Kelly Holmes, actor and comedian John Bishop, documentary maker and author Stacey Dooley, comedian and presenter Tom Allen, comedian, author, screenwriter and television presenter David Baddiel, Little Mix star Jade Thirlwall, internet celebrity KSI,TV presenter and Paralympian Ade Adepitan MBE, author and broadcaster Philippa Perry, broadcaster Nick Grimshaw, comedian Rob Beckett, singer-songwriter Alexandra Burke, TV personality Anneka Rice, actor Reece Shearsmith, musician Dizzee Rascal, multi-platinum selling artist, Anne-Marie, singer-songwriter Nadine Coyle and comedian, writer, presenter and actress Katherine Ryan

THE CELEBRITY CIRCLE FOR STAND UP TO CANCER

6 stripped celebrity episodes

Studio Lambert Productions for Channel 4

Contact: Nick Walker, Gemma Bareham

The award-winning reality game is reloading as the competition returns for an all-celeb series to raise funds for Stand Up to Cancer. The starts entering The Circle are Baga Chipz, Charlotte Crosby, Denise van Outen, Duncan James, Lady Leshurr, Saffron Barker. And playing the game as double acts controlling one profile are: Kaye Adams and Nadia Sawalha, Rickie Haywood-Williams and Melvin Odoom, Sam Thompson and Pete Wicks

With some of the celebs playing as themselves and others taking on a celebrity catfish persona, this edition of the game will see suspicions heightened and gameplaying galore as the celebs compete for the title of most popular player.

THE CIRCLE S3

21 stripped episodes

Studio Lambert productions for Channel 4

Contact: Nick Walker, Gemma Bareham

The award-winning reality game is back for a third series.

Emma Willis hosts as the most talked about apartment block in Britain welcomes a new set of residents who will live in separate apartments and befriend each other using only a social media platform called The Circle. In the popularity game where anyone can be anyone players rate each other based on whom they like – and dislike. Competing against each other, the most popular players gain power and unpopular players get blocked. The series is voiced by Sophie Willan.

TASKMASTER

10 x 60’

Avalon productions for Channel 4

Contact: Florrie Sheehan

The Taskmaster returns with a new intake of comedians desperate to impress the unimpressible Greg Davies and his side kick little Alex Horne.

Battling for points in series 11 will be actor Charlotte Ritchie (Ghosts, BBC One), acclaimed stand-up Jamali Maddix (Hate Thy Neighbour, Vice), BAFTA-winning comic Lee Mack (Not Going Out, BBC One), actor, writer, and comedian Mike Wozniak (Man Down, Channel 4), and BAFTA-nominated actor and comedian Sarah Kendall (Frayed, Sky One) battle it out in a series of stupefying tasks testing their ingenuity, and weeding out their stupidity.

GOOD WITH WOOD: BRITAIN’S BEST WOODWORKER

8 x 60’

Plimsoll productions for Channel 4

Contact: Gemma Bareham

The UK’s most talented woodworkers are to be put to the test in a new, six-part factual entertainment series.

Presented by Mel Giedroyc, Good With Wood: Britain’s Best Woodworker sees a group of woodworkers challenged to craft beautiful and ambitious builds to exacting briefs. Over a series of competitive rounds taking place in a stunning woodland setting, they will have their skills tested to the limits.

Each episode centres around a ‘Big Build’ in which the contestants create large and imaginative wooden structures and objects, as expert judges scrutinise their designs, techniques and skills. The competitors are pushed to their limits, with only one crowned as winner in the ultimate whittle whittle.

DRAWERS OFF

20 x 30’

MultiStory Media North and Motion Content Group for Channel 4

Contact: Gemma Bareham

Comedian Jenny Eclair presents a brand-new Daytime format. In Drawers Off, amateur artists reveal their naked ambition as they compete to win a cash prize by creating life-portraits of each other.

Stripped Monday to Friday, this new series will feature five different artists each week who will all take turns to pose in the altogether. As each competitor strikes a pose, their fellow artists must showcase a different technique for every masterpiece they create, from charcoal and oils to the avant-garde and mixed media collage - overseen by visual artist and curator Diana Ali.

A variety of props will be available to ensure the life-model’s modesty and different poses will be chosen to reflect their personality. At the end of each episode, that day’s artist-turned-model will score the works of art ‘blind’, not knowing who painted which likeness. Whoever tops the leader board on Friday takes home the cash prize.

 

SCRIPTED

FRANK OF IRELAND

Production Company: Merman

Press Contact: Alex Dyche

Channel 4 and Amazon Studios are frankly gleeful to announce the commission of Frank of Ireland, a brand-new series from Sharon Horgan and Clelia Mountford’s Merman starring Brian Gleeson. A co-production between Channel 4 and Amazon Studios, the 6x30 series is the first comic vision penned by brothers Brian and Domhnall Gleeson and Michael Moloney. Frank Marron, played by Brian Gleeson (Peaky Blinders, The Bisexual), is a 32-year-old catastrophe. A misanthropic, narcissistic, fantasist in arrested development who thinks the world owes him something. But, nonetheless, he’s our hero. They don’t all wear capes, okay?!

ACKLEY BRIDGE

Production Company: The Forge

Press Contact: Dingile Kasote & Alex Dyche

Award-winning Ackley Bridge is to return to Channel 4 for a fourth series, in a revised format.  The previous weekly, 60’ format will be played out in a series of 10 episodes, each 30’ duration. Inspired by real-life Lancashire and Yorkshire schools established to integrate the white and Asian communities in some of the most divided towns in the country, Ackley Bridge has won praise across its previous three series for tackling real-life situations and issues in an irreverent, insightful way, with humour and punchy, big hearted stories. Returning cast include: Sunetra Sarker, Rob James Collier, Jo Joyner, Charlie Hardwick, Tony Jayawardeena, Fern Deacon, Phoebe Tuffs-Berry, Cody Ryan, Nazmeen Kauser and Zara Salim.  

 

E4

CELEBS GO DATING: THE MANSION

20x60’

Lime Pictures for E4

Contact: Jess Culshaw

In this brand-new series, our single and unlucky-in-love celebrities will be heading off on a luxurious UK dating retreat where they will spend four weeks looking for love. But that’s not all – for the first time in Celebs Go Dating history, our cameras will be following our celebs 24/7 as they try to navigate the choppy waters of modern dating.

Joining this supersized series is Geordie lass Chloe Ferry, Love Island fave and dancing pro Curtis Pritchard, actor and Strictly Come Dancing runner up Karim Zeroual, Former Hollyoaks and Coronation Street actor Kimberly Hart-Simpson, socialite with razor sharp wit, Made In Chelsea’s Sophie Hermann, Internationally renowned DJ Tom Zanetti and Ibiza’s King of Ocean Beach Wayne Lineker.

DEAD PIXELS SERIES 2

6 x25’

Various Artists Limited for E4

Contact: Dingile Kasote

The show that takes an affectionate and humorous look at the world of online gaming – no loot boxes required, is back.

Our GG gamers Meg (Alexa Davies - Mamma Mia 2, Raised by Wolves, Detectorists), Nicky (Will Merrick - Poldark, Skins), Russell (David Mumeni – Damned, Lost in London) and Usman (Sargon Yelda – Spectre, Innocent) make attempts to truly be AFK and build lives in reality… which ironically draws them further back into the online world of the Kingdom Scrolls, and with an expansion pack available anything could happen.

Things become even more emotionally complicated for the gang with non-gamer Alison (Charlotte Ritchie - Call the Midwife, Raised by Wolves, Fresh Meat) still stuck on the side lines. Only one thing’s for certain: we’re not ready for Game Over yet.

PETE AND SAM'S REALITY NEWS

12x15’

Monkey Kingdom for E4

Contact: Ryan Johnson-Leigh

We know it’s almost impossible to keep up with all the gossip and drama from the world of reality TV. But fear not, TOWIE’s Pete Wicks and Made in Chelsea’s Sam Thompson have the perfect solution.

Following the hugely popular Instagram series, you can catch Pete & Sam’s Reality News on Snapchat, YouTube, Instagram and All 4 from Monday 25th January 2021 and it also airs on E4 at 11pm each week.

Across each episode, the self-described z-listers will anchor the news service providing you with all the essential information - including high and lows, rows and reconciliations from the hottest reality TV shows.

The duo will bring their unique charm and honest opinions to some of the most laugh out loud and outrageous stories making the headlines. The boys will also be joined by celebrity guests, conduct some juicy interviews and give a platform to up and coming comedians and presenters.

TEMPTATION ISLAND

11x60’

Acquisition

Contact: Ryan Johnson-Leigh

Four couples at a crossroads in their relationships will put their love to the ultimate test, by mutually deciding to live the single life. Travelling to the Hawaiian island of Maui, they will live in separate houses with sexy singles, in order to discover if their current partner is the one, or if there is someone else they desire more. In the end, will the couples leave together, alone or with someone brand new?

RESET AND REWIND

Mother’s Best Child for E4 social and All 4

Contact: Ryan Johnson- Leigh

A new short form animated series, aimed at teenagers, that sees some of the UK’s leading MC’s, rappers and lyricists talk openly about mental health and the things that have impacted them, from grief and body image to trauma. The series will also reimagine science-based mindfulness techniques to help young people improve their wellbeing.

Across the five episode series produced by Mother’s Best Child & TOAD, viewers will be taken on an absorbing visual journey where they’ll be offered tips and methods to help cope with their mental health struggles, all backed by South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation.

Ep 1: Trauma / Konan
Ep 2: Mindful Breathing / Ray BLK
Ep 3: Grief / Krept
Ep 4: Body Image / MS Banks
Ep 5: Sleep / D Double E

DARLING, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO YOUR HAIR?

5 x 5’ for E4 social

Sharp Jack and Initial for E4

Contact: Gemma Bareham

Contestants compete to win a cash prize and the hairstyle of their dreams in a five-part digital shorts series for E4, presented by Tom Read Wilson.

Pairs of contestants arrive at Tom’s salon, whether they be friends, partners or family, with one half of the duo taking to the stylist’s chair to answer general knowledge questions posed by Tom. Get all the questions right and they walk away with the cash and a fab new do, but get the final question wrong and they must face the haircut of nightmares – chosen by the other half their pairing!

Dropping weekly from on E4 social media platforms: Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

TEEN FIRST DATES

6x60’

TwentyTwenty for E4

Contact: Ryan Johnson-Leigh

Fred and his team of matchmakers will be aiming cupid’s arrow at E4 as they bring together a bunch of teens, who are all looking to delve into the sometimes-choppy waters of dating and love by going on their first, first dates.

This new six-part series will see the brand-spanking new First Dates restaurant in Manchester open its doors to teens aged 16-19, who’ll experience the thrill of a real-life, face to face blind date.

While our teens may not be ready to settle down with their soulmate just yet, Teen First Dates gives these young romantics the chance to put their phones in their pocket, escape from the pressures of social media and talk face-to-face with a potential match. They’ll be able to put their flirting to the test, but most importantly, take a journey of self-discovery. Through their own experiences and viewpoints, the teens will explore who they are, who they want to be, and what it takes to make the perfect connection with another person.

Whilst dating can be terrifying at any age, Fred, Merlin, Cici, Grant alongside some new faces will be on hand to guide our teens through their journey step by step, helping to build their confidence and create a memorable first dating experience.

SUPERNANNY USA - SERIES 1 PART 2

8x60’

Acquisition

Contact: Ryan Johnson-Leigh

From stubborn toddler tantrums and tweens who just won’t listen, to parents on the edge of a complete meltdown – it’s safe to say that things on E4 are about to seriously get a whole lot more explosive. Returning to our screens is Supernanny USA, starring no other than our beloved parenting expert Nanny Jo Frost and she is not holding back.

LEGOMASTERS USA

10 x60’

Acquisition

Contact: Ryan Johnson-Leigh

Teams of LEGO enthusiasts from the USA compete against each other in ambitious brick-building challenges.

MADE IN CHELSEA SERIES 21

Monkey Kingdom for E4

Contact: Ryan Johnson-Leigh

The E4 favourites from SW3 are back as BAFTA-award winning show Made in Chelsea returns.

BELOW DECK: MEDITERRANEAN

13x60’

Acquisition

Contact: Ryan Johnson-Leigh

Below Deck has ventured into a new latitude, the hub of yachting, the Mediterranean. Follow Chef Ben Robinson joined by eight new crew members as they embark on a new charter season around the Greek Isles aboard the 150' luxury yacht, Ionian Princess. A new boat, demanding guests, cultural differences and a predominately single group can make for a rocky ride even for the most experienced crew member in foreign waters.

 

FACTUAL

 

JANIS AND LUCY

Contact: Lucy Zilberkweit 

This is the fascinating story of a female chimpanzee raised as a human and the woman who took on the near impossible task of giving her freedom, by living with her in the wild.  Chimpanzee Lucy was raised in a suburban family as if she was a human, from birth to 12 years old.  When Lucy became too strong and dangerous to live in a human family a young student called Janis Carter, who had befriended Lucy, was asked to take her to Africa to teach her to be a wild chimp. This powerful single documentary centres on Janis’s emotionally charged first-person account and uses previously unseen archive film and photographs as well as dramatic reconstruction.

THE DOG HOUSE
Contact: Samantha Fraser and Tom Watts

The Channel 4 series The Dog House is back at Wood Green, The Animals Charity. With the demand for puppies rising by 104% compared to the prior year at the peak of lockdown in May 2020, the team are match-making abandoned dogs with even more hopeful new owners – aiming for nothing less than love at first sight, but things rarely go that smoothly.  

MAX CLIFFORD
Contact: Samantha Fraser  

Channel 4 goes behind the headlines to reveal the story of Max Clifford, the notorious publicist who was jailed for indecent assaults against underage girls and young women, in a revealing documentary by Story Films. With access to over 30 hours of previously unheard audio recordings of Clifford, and devastating testimony from victims of his crimes, this 1 x 90 film pieces together an extraordinary picture of a man who was a ruthless and manipulative sex offender.

Over a 20-year period, this self-appointed arbiter of right and wrong became one of the most influential men in Britain, carrying more sway than politicians, celebrities and multi-millionaires.   In 2014 Clifford was jailed – one of the first to be convicted as part of Operation Yewtree’s investigations into historic sex crimes. 

Speaking publicly for the first time some of Clifford’s victims tell their story, what it took for them to come forward and what it was like to be in the middle of the media circus that Clifford’s trial would inevitably become.

SECOND-HAND FOR 50 GRAND 
Contact: Gerard Corvin

An entire industry has grown around delivering the luxury, second-hand goods of our dreams – items than can cost anything from two grand to over two hundred grand. This documentary follows the staff of Xupes, a Hertfordshire-based business hoping to corner the market in pre-owned luxury handbags, watches and jewellery, as they go the extra mile to get the exact items for their clients and revealing the often highly personal stories behind them. Window cleaner Grant’s dad wants to buy him a Cartier watch to go with the timepiece that Grant got from his late mother. Rebecca asks Head of Handbags Reece to scour the globe for an exact match for a stolen Prada bag that also had a special, family connection for her. And Kristen wants the thrill of buying herself a dream Chanel bag for her birthday, to add to her bulging collection. But can the team from Xupes deliver?

FIRST DATES HOTEL
Contact: Nora Dunn at Multitude Media 

The First Dates Hotel is throwing open its doors, and dusting off the sun loungers for another spectacular season of love. The rooms are fully booked and manager Fred and his team of cupids are pulling out all the stops to make sure that every whim of the UK’s singletons is fully met. Injecting a dose of much-needed La Dolce Vita, the First Dates Hotel is packed full of unlikely chemistry, roaring rivalries and heart-warming stories.

GUY MARTIN: BATTLE OF BRITAIN
Contact: Gerard Corvin

Could Guy Martin have been a fighter pilot in the Battle of Britain? The 1940 conflict saw dashing Spitfire and Hurricane pilots outnumbered and outgunned by Nazi Germany's Luftwaffe. Yet these men, with an average age of just 20, inflicted Hitler's first defeat. Guy will find out how by experiencing their same RAF training, from learning to fly in a Tiger Moth to performing high g-force combat manoeuvres at 200mph. When Guy's instructor, vintage aircraft specialist Anna Walker, thinks he's good enough, he'll face every fighter pilot's toughest test: he'll fly a Hawker Hurricane head-to-head in a dogfight with a Messerschmitt 109.

 

24 HOURS IN POLICE CUSTODY

Contact: Samantha Fraser

BAFTA-nominated 24 Hours in Police Custody will return with gripping new episodes that will take viewers behind the scenes in a series of police investigations.

YEAR OF CORONA (W/T)

72 Films for C4

Contact: Gerard Corvin

Year of Corona (w/t) is a landmark feature documentary charting the year the country went to war with Covid. Told through the eyes of those who have a unique perspective on the crisis; weaving in stories from the scientists who advised the government, medical staff who put their lives on the line and others whose lives were turned upside down when their world suddenly shrank.

 

UNREPORTED WORLD

Contact: Press_Enquiries@Channel4.co.uk

Channel 4's acclaimed current affairs documentary series Unreported World, which sees reporters travel the world looking at stories that go unreported - returns to our screens.

Unreported World will tell distinctive stories with a fresh, engaging storytelling style. The series will focus on strong character-led films and diverse voices - all told through the eyes of the people who live there.

 

BABY SURGEONS (W/T)

Wonderhood Limited for C4

Contact: Steve Rosier

Filmed across a year in one of the UK’s leading Fetal Medicine Units at St George’s Hospital, South London, this new three-part documentary series is told through the eyes of the women and the medical teams who treat them. Following expectant parents as they navigate medically and emotionally complex pregnancies, each episode reveals how, or even if, the parents and staff should intervene with the pregnancies. Using cutting-edge and pioneering new techniques, the fetal medicine clinicians face the most complex and challenging cases that exist in the womb but for some of the parents, the option to intervene comes too late.

 

RAPE: BEHIND THE HEADLINES (W/T)

Hardcash Productions for C4

Contact: Samantha Fraser

This two-part series looks at the policing of rape in the UK. Filmed over the course of a year, with exclusive access to Avon & Somerset Police, the series will examine the complex reasons why conviction rates for these appalling crimes are so low. It will feature powerful testimony and actuality with victims, whose experience and point of view will be central to each episode. Going behind the headlines, the series will seek to challenge many of the myths and stereotypes associated with these crimes – and ask what can and needs to be done to change and improve the system. 

 

Ends