On 18 November 1996, Hansard noted a parliamentary question from John Whittingdale, MP for Maldon: “Will my Hon Friend congratulate Channel 4 on its success in avoiding recourse to the ‘safety net’ and on making a profit last year of £128m? Does that not demonstrate that it is possible for Channel 4 to meet its remit and to operate commercially? Will he therefore consider its privatisation at the first opportunity?”
The four-part series will see Leith trade in cake for compost, as she parts with her home and lovingly manicured garden of nearly 50 years to move in with her husband John Playfair.
However, she has a two-acre sized problem in the form of the overgrown garden around the new modern barn that she and Playfair have designed.
Strewn with rubbish, rubble, rusting buildings and overgrown vegetation, there is little of a garden left.
Hosted by Joel Dommett, the new reality game show will explore how hard it is to know who to trust in the modern world of dating.
Subverting familiar dating show tropes, The Love Trap will see twelve women all compete over a series of dates to win the affection of one single man.
However, only half of the women will be hoping to win the bachelor’s heart. The other six will be hoping to stay in the game with the hope of winning a huge cash prize.
Hosted by Craig Charles, the high-stakes quiz show sees contestants given a series of general knowledge questions, with the answers on moneybags that pass along a conveyer belt in front of them.
The contestants will have to think quickly to grab the right answer and see how much that bag is worth.
A bag with the correct answer can be work anything from £1000 to £100,000, but if contestants pick the wrong bag, they could lose everything.
Each week an eye-watering £1 million will pass down the conveyer belt, but it’s up to the contestants to grab it.
With a multi-location format broadcasting from Tokyo, Leeds and London, Channel 4’s coverage will feature an all-star presenting team, over 70% of whom are disabled.
The Paralympic Breakfast Show, presented by Arthur Williams and Steph McGovern, and the live morning sports competition, hosted by Clare Balding, will air live from Leeds, the home of Channel 4’s national headquarters.
When Team GB hit an all-time low at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, finishing 36th in the league of nations, the governing bodies launched an ambitious project to transform British sport.
Created by comedian Aisling Bea, the first series of the dramedy followed the whip-smart teacher Aine (Bea) in her attempts to get herself back on track after a nervous breakdown, with the help of her sister Shona, played by Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe).
Jason Fox will take part in a new challenge in an ambitious new three-part series commissioned by Channel 4 in association with Land Rover.
In each episode, Fox will be joined by a celebrity guest and take part in a series of high-octane challenges that have been uniquely designed for each celebrity, testing their physical and mental strength.
Filmed in Wales, Fox will use the unique skills he has acquired from years of serving in the British special forces to push the celebrities to their limits.
The 32-year-old boyband singer was diagnosed with a grade four glioblastoma last October, which doctors told him was “the worst case scenario.”
For this year’s Stand Up To Cancer, Tom, his wife Kelsey and their two children will document their efforts to remain positive and leave a legacy for Tom by staging a concert at the Royal Albert Hall.
Tom is planning a joyful event and will split proceeds between Stand Up To Cancer, the national fundraising campaign from Channel 4 and Cancer Research U, and The National Brain Appeal.
The groundbreaking series explored issues from mental illness to depression, eating disorders to sexuality, drug abuse to sexual promiscuity.
The young cast were mostly unknown actors but have gone on to develop illustrious careers in film and television.
Here are some of the biggest names from the series and where they are now.
