Lifting the veil on 4's wedding plans

5 April 2011

50 Greatest Wedding Shockers

Programmes from across the genres will be giving a royal wave to the country's regal newlyweds, with a Come Dine with Me Street Party, new documentaries and a special comedy among the shows getting in on the act to celebrate the forthcoming wedding.

Channel 4's coverage will provide contemporary historical insight from David Starkey, a documentary tracing the contrasting parallel family histories of Kate and William, alongside an  hour long quick turnaround programme capturing the mood of the nation, reflecting on what the big day meant to a cross section of people in contemporary Britain.  

The royal family's history is well established but that of the bride-to-be is much less well known, so in the documentary Meet The Middletons, Kate Middleton's wider family throw open their doors. Cousins, aunts and distant relations of Kate share the stories of five generations of her family, from coal miners, to mill owners, to a whole generation of sons lost in World War One. The film is a revealing social history of the last hundred years of British working life and aspiration, which contrasts the story of Kate's family with the more familiar history of William's.

In Kate and William: Romance and the Royals (w/t), Dr David Starkey will argue the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton is not the radical break with royal tradition that has been widely claimed. In fact, William's marriage to a ‘commoner' is a return to form for the British monarchy, and is the logical final step in a century-long process that has been gradually returning the British monarchy to its ancient roots. He will argue that despite much being made of her mother's former career as an air hostess, our potential future queen is in many ways a modern debutante, a 21st century version of William's own great-grandmother Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon.

Channel 4's evergreen dinner party format, Come Dine With Me, will be pulling out the stops -inviting four royalists from around the UK to do culinary battle with one another in throwing their idea of the perfect royal wedding themed street party. Enlisting the help of friends and relatives, the four hosts will go to each others' parties marking their efforts out of 10. As always, they will critique and score each other in secret, taking into account everything from the food and entertainment to the overall atmosphere, before the winner is crowned.

Channel 4 Comedy will provide some light relief in the shape of a specially commissioned one off show.

Whether royalist or republican, Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding will be the nation's talking point on 29th April. Channel 4's News and Current Affairs department have commissioned The Unofficial Royal Wedding (w/t), which will air 48 hours after the big event. The programme will follow around a dozen people from across the country the day before, of and after the ceremony - all with something special planned, or something strong to say, about William and Kate's big day. The hour special will represent a range of different reactions, from resentment to jubilation - providing an insight into and a moment to reflect on, what the monarchy means today to a cross section of people in contemporary Britain.

Channel 4's youth Entertainment Channel, E4, will look at the most outrageous weddings of all time in 50 Greatest Wedding Shockers. We'll count down through celeb celebrations and tear jerking TV weddings, whacky themes, naked nuptials and record breakers to discover the number one most shocking wedding in the world.

Exact scheduling plans for the week will be announced in due course, including a further very special commission that will light up the schedule in the run up to the wedding.

Channel 4's Chief Creative Officer, Jay Hunt said; "Channel 4 will be joining in the celebrations with its unique take on the royal wedding. From the mayhem of a Come Dine with Me street party to David Starkey's historical perspective on the marriage, we will be using documentary and comedy to offer an alternative perspective on this national event."  

 

Meet The Middletons 1x60

Specialist Factual Com Ed:  Julia Harrington

Prod Co: NBC Universal and Monkey Kingdom

 

Kate and William: Romance and the Royals 1x60

Head of Specialist Factual:  Ralph Lee

Prod Co: Dox Productions

 

50 Greatest Wedding Shockers 1x120

Entertainment Com Ed:  David Williams

Prod Co: TwoFour

 

My Royal Wedding 1x60

Head of News and Current Affairs:  Dorothy Byrne

Prod Co: back2back productions

 

Come Dine With Me Street Party 1x60

Head of Daytime: Helen Warner

Prod co: ITV Studios