Following a slightly different, online Edinburgh TV Festival last week, we are thrilled to announce a raft of new commissions coming to Channel 4 soon.
Channel 4 Builds The Bridge
Channel 4 Entertainment has moved into the reality space with an ambitious new reality competition show narrated by Bafta winning and Golden Globe nominated actor James McAvoy.
The Bridge will see 12 strangers come together, on the banks of a picturesque lake in the British countryside, totally clueless as to what awaits them. Ready for adventure and excited by the unexpected, they will face an epic challenge that requires teamwork and trust in order to achieve the common goal of winning £100k.
Channel 4 commissions Black, British and Funny (w/t) by Mo Gilligan
If you were to ask the average British person on the street to name five well-known Black British comedians, they would struggle to give you an answer. But last year a new stand-up burst onto the scene with his own unique brand of comedy. He is Black and he is British… enter Mo Gilligan, the first Black comedian to front a prime time show in 20 years.
Mo Gilligan’s first big break came from the Black British comedy circuit; a thriving yet little known about stand up scene which has been packing out theatres up and down the country for the last 30 years, with its stars selling out major venues like the O2 and Hackney Empire. Now Mo wants to celebrate the icons who paved the way for artists like him and shine a light on the new wave of acts coming through. He’ll look back at the history of the Black comedy circuit, asking why this scene has remained hidden in plain sight and, importantly, question why he is one of the few comedians from the scene who have crossed over and ‘made it’, enjoying mainstream success.
The Black Full Monty
Channel 4 has ordered single documentary The Black Full Monty, looking at life on and off stage for a group of Black male strippers. The programme will air on Channel 4 next month.
The programme goes behind the curtain with The Chocolate Men – A Black-owned business making waves as Britain’s first all-Black touring strip dancing group, filmed during their 2018 nationwide tour. With a revealing look at what brings audiences from all walks of life flocking to their performances, the men behind the saucy strip shows explain what motivates them to bare all.
The Black Full Monty will air on Channel 4 on 10 September at 10pm.
Channel 4 Announces New 6-Part Drama Series: Screw
Channel 4 has commissioned Screw, a new six-part prison drama series from STV Studios (the newly rebranded STV Productions), by BAFTA nominated writer Rob Williams (The Victim, Killing Eve).
This is prison as never seen before - the uncensored, terrifying and often darkly funny reality of life as a prison officer in an all-male prison in 21st century Britain.
Channel 4 sends Rosie Jones on a Great British, Female, Gay, Disabled, COVID Compliant Adventure (w/t)
Comedian Rosie Jones isn’t going to let a global pandemic stand in the way of her travel plans, this year she’s off on an adventure that ticks all the boxes... A Great British, Female, Gay, Disabled, Covid Compliant Adventure (w/t).
In this new four-part subversive travelogue from Studio71 UK, a Red Arrow Studios company, Rosie will endeavour to prove that you don’t need a big budget to have the time of your life - you just need to have the power of minority and an infectious sense of humour.
In the heightened reality of this series, Covid-19 and subsequent financial constraints put an end to Rosie’s planned global, luxury travelogue. But this doesn’t damper Rosie’s enthusiasm to get the show made, as she convinces Channel 4 telly bosses to instead let her explore the UK and all it’s amazing eccentricities, oddities and beauty spots - all on a shoestring.
Channel 4 commissions The National Comedy Awards for Stand Up To Cancer (w/t)
Channel 4 will celebrate the stars of UK comedy with a glorious viewer-voted awards show set to air in 2021 in aid of Stand Up To Cancer.
The awards will bring the year’s best-loved comedy stars together for a night that celebrates the brilliant work of the comedy world, and all for a good cause. The coveted trophies will be awarded to the winners during the spectacular star-studded red-carpet event which is to be broadcast on Channel 4.
The National Comedy Awards for Stand Up To Cancer will honour both emerging and established British comedy talent, with the public voting on key prizes, alongside two additional special recognition awards.
Head to www.channel4.com/press for lots more of our latest commissions