Channel 4 has announced the first four unscripted formats for its new digital channel, A Comedy Thing by Channel 4. The new formats have been developed by Strong Watch Studios, which will manage the channel and have been commissioned to produce the first wave of episodes for the channel and additional social content.
Each of the Strong Watch Studios’ formats will be fronted by an ensemble cast of the stand-up comics. The commissioned shows will play with four core online comedy pillars: Crowd work, panel shows, podcasting, and quickfire gags.
According to C4 and Strong Watch, the channel will launch next week with an ensemble cast (pictured) comprised of Vittorio Angelone, Finlay Christie, Olga Koch, Gbemi Oladipo, Micky Overman, Mike Rice and Dan Tiernan, – described collectively as “seven of the freshest and wittiest comedians established in the UK”.
The first commissions for the channel are:
The Split – The comedians pair up to use their wit and prejudice to decipher what side of a binary line public participants will fall in.
The Front Row – Competing for points, each of the comics is tasked with working with a studio audience to find out who they are through a simple Q&A game.
Joke Swap – The ensemble cast of comics must write jokes for ordinary punters to deliver, testing the age-old debate if comedy is all in the delivery.
The Lying Game – The comics each tell an anecdote about the same randomly selected topic. However, while five of them are telling a true story, two are lying through their teeth. Fellow comedians must suss out the liars from the true stories.
Charlie Hyland, digital commissioner, Channel 4 said: “This new channel is built on a deep understanding of what people love to watch online and where we want to be creatively. We’re working with incredible talent, both on and off screen, to create a bold, diverse, and brilliantly funny channel and our first shows are an eclectic array of formats. From smart, quickfire jokes that grab attention, to longer-form, podcast-style shows where audiences feel part of the conversation and classic panel shows that continue to resonate, we’re excited about the comedy this new channel will offer.”
Thom Gulseven, co-founder, Strong Watch Studios added: “We couldn’t be happier to be working with Channel 4 and this group of super-talented comedians on this channel, it is a genuinely fresh, exciting approach to how content like this is made. We love where digital comedy is at the moment in the UK, and what we’re doing is trying to reflect that brilliant place through a bunch of games that tap into the things that people love on different platforms. Part of the joy of the new way we make things is the freedom to respond to the audience, and how ideas evolve, change and grow over time; we’re looking forward to seeing where this channel takes us.”
A Comedy Thing by Channel 4 launches on Monday July 21 on YouTube. It is commissioned by Charlie Hyland with Sacha Khari, head of digital commissioning. Thom Gulseven and Ben Powell-Jones from Strong Watch Studios are executive producing. The channel will publish weekly long-form programming for YouTube, while cutdowns will engage audiences across TikTok and Instagram.
