Channel 14 closedown (5 June)
On June 4th 2007, Channel 14 ceased operations. Scheduling and censorship difficulties, unreliable investors, diminishing audiences and the recent decision against going digital all played their part in ending the vast empire Channel 14 held over viewers in the late 90s. On behalf of Channel 14's CEO Albert Tonnington, Jeremy Blythe issued the following statement:
"At its peak, the standards of Channel 14 were unsurpassed. Problems arose in the past five years, which in hindsight could have been avoidable. However, circumstances beyond our control made it troublesome to cope with these problems in the areas we needed to most.
"New and exciting ideas are hard to come by and admittedly, we sometimes relied on the same old formulas which have possibly become tired for the new, YouTube generation rather than striving to generate contemporary and unique productions.
"The public expectations of Channel 14 were rightly always high, but recently, due to issues relating to a lack of funding from investors, we were unable to produce satisfactory content to meet these expectations. This in turn increased distrust from new possible investors.
"A downwards spiral is a hard thing to escape from. Channel 14 had already begun to slide in terms of ratings and finances. Rather than continuing to broadcast sub-par programming and become a shadow of what we once were, we have decided to quit, whilst still retaining most of the quality we were once associated with."
"At its peak, the standards of Channel 14 were unsurpassed. Problems arose in the past five years, which in hindsight could have been avoidable. However, circumstances beyond our control made it troublesome to cope with these problems in the areas we needed to most.
"New and exciting ideas are hard to come by and admittedly, we sometimes relied on the same old formulas which have possibly become tired for the new, YouTube generation rather than striving to generate contemporary and unique productions.
"The public expectations of Channel 14 were rightly always high, but recently, due to issues relating to a lack of funding from investors, we were unable to produce satisfactory content to meet these expectations. This in turn increased distrust from new possible investors.
"A downwards spiral is a hard thing to escape from. Channel 14 had already begun to slide in terms of ratings and finances. Rather than continuing to broadcast sub-par programming and become a shadow of what we once were, we have decided to quit, whilst still retaining most of the quality we were once associated with."
What will happen to the website?
The website will remain online for the foreseeable future. This will allow our loyal audience to search for information. All content will be locked as of June 5th 2007, with this press release being the last update. Any future news of the closure of Channel 14 will no doubt be available from other news sources.
Will we be able to watch our favourite programmes?
Some programmes made by external production companies - such as Strangers and Win or Don't Win - will hopefully be picked up and find a new home on other TV networks.The rights of some popular in-house productions have already been sold to GoldTV, and whilst not creating new episodes, they will be broadcasting re-runs. Regrettably, some shows have come to end - Dick and Julie will no longer be running a chatshow due to their divorce and The Village will be discontinued.
Jeremy Blythe, Channel 14 spokesman 2000-2007
Is there a chance Channel 14 will return?
Channel 14 has come to an indefinite end - even if the required funding is provided, the executives have made the decision to move on in their professional broadcasting lives. We hope you wish them the best for their future endeavours and support them in this way instead.