Channel 4’s 40 best shows – ranked



Giddy and deliriously comic … Smack the Pony. Photograph: Channel 4Giddy and deliriously humorous … Smack the Pony. Photograph: Channel four

From a apical curate violating a pig to a pre-watershed lesbian kiss, Catastrophe to, er, Countdown, Channel 4 has been astatine the starring borderline of modern programming. As the presumption turns 40, we complaint its bully suggests

On 2 November 1982 astatine four.44pm (see what they did there?), announcer Paul Coia stated: “Good afternoon. It’s a delight to beryllium capable to accidental to you: welcome to Channel 4.” That multicoloured 4 marque had simply appeared connected our monitors for the archetypal time, soundtracked via a 4-observe philharmonic ident, titled Fourscore. That’s a fig of fours.

In the pursuing 4 galore years, the terrestrial broadcaster has aired pioneering drama, nurtured drama expertise, supported modern journalism and created nary cease of nifty existent codecs. Reality! Dating! Food! Property! Post-pub grime! More courting, this clip with gratuitous nudity!

To rejoice the station’s landmark anniversary, we’ve hand-picked its forty fantabulous indicates. Homegrown originals handiest, successful penchant to imports oregon acquisitions – which guidelines retired US comedies consisting of Friends, Frasier, and Sex and the City, oregon dramas inclusive of Lost, ER, Homeland and The Handmaid’s Tale, positive buy-ins similar Taskmaster oregon Bake Off. Well, it’s champion fair. Anyway, it’s a restitution to beryllium capable to accidental to you: invited to Channel four’s exceptional bits …

‘Vowel delight Carol!’ … Countdown. Photograph: Channel four

One from the bottommost of this standing please, Carol. The precise archetypal show aired connected the transmission is inactive going robust. An day staple loved by pensioners, assemblage students and Twitter meme-makers alike.

Alan Bleasdale’s kingdom-of-the-Labour-birthday solemnisation saga, loosely chiefly based astatine the Derek Hatton case, pitted corrupt councillor Robert Lindsay towards Michael Palin’s principled headteacher. Both were excellent, arsenic turned into the Elvis Costello soundtrack.

Ooh, fwend … The Inbetweeners. Photograph: Everett Collection Inc/Alamy

Bus wanker! Clunge! Ooh, fwend! The Rudge Park Comprehensive quartet person been noticeably quotable and starred successful deed movie spin-offs. We person been spoilt for penchant whilst it came to Channel four’s sitcom slate, with (deep breath) Black Books, Nathan Barley, We Are Lady Parts, Friday Night Dinner, Chewing Gum, Stath Lets Flats, This Way Up and Drop the Dead Donkey narrowly lacking the reduce. The suburban sixth formers facet them retired done sheer taste ubiquity.

Kevin McCloud’s home-constructing bid has proved the astir enduring of Channel four’s 00s assets strong, which included Property Ladder and Location, Location, Location. Watch with a premix of envy and schadenfreude arsenic bold architectural projects omit clip limits and bust budgets, adjacent arsenic Kev tries to quality sympathetic successful a pugnacious hat.

He was warned it go unlawful, nevertheless went up anyhow … The Autopsy. Photograph: Channel four

Channel 4 is nary alien to controversy. In truth, they’re intimately familiar. Down the a agelong time, it has introduced america the transgressive Red Triangle strand, week-lengthy heroin withdrawal postulation Going Cold Turkey, Drugs Live: The Ecstasy Trial, Naked Attraction, Big Fat Gypsy Weddings and the mercifully brief-lived Wank Week. That stir-inflicting canon besides consists of anatomist Gunther von Hagens performing Britain’s archetypal nationalist post-mortem successful 170 years earlier a unrecorded assemblage and TV cameras. The hat-clad prof was warned it go unlawful nevertheless it aired anyway, drafting a study quantity of Ofcom complaints. Pass the scalpel. Actually, don’t.

Vic and Bob’s surreal scope show made alternate cabaret chill erstwhile much – drama was surely the marque caller rock’n’roll – and proved hugely influential. That’s proper, they conscionable wouldn’t licence it lie.

The fly-on-the-maternity-ward-wall favourite blazed a way for the channel’s palmy strand of intimate “constant rig” docuseries. It go observed by 24 Hours successful A&E, 24 Hours successful Police Custody and 24 Hours From Tulsa. OK, possibly nary longer the closing one.

Ddeepfake Queen … it tin champion beryllium the alternate Christmas message. Photograph: Channel four/PA

This mode of beingness started successful 1993 with self-styled queen Quentin Crisp scheduled against the existent monarch. Now it’s a festive fixture. Speech-makers since dwell of Doreen and Neville Lawrence, Edward Snowden, Ali G, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Marge Simpson, Danny Dyer and a deepfake Elizabeth II.

Channel 4 has a inclination to spell distant recreation to stations with deeper wallet. Two fantabulous exceptions had been the landmark 2005 Ashes and James Richardson’s play Serie A display, which added a epoch to calcio, cultured punditry and cappuccinos astatine pavement cafes. Golazzo!

Alan Plater’s conspiracy enigma followed the emergence of tough-left Labour person Harry Perkins (Ray McAnally) to 10 Downing Street, astir effectual to find his guidelines thwarted by the establishment. It gained 4 Baftas and an Emmy, and proved eerily prescient of Jeremy Corbyn.

Still a Channel 4 papers … Desmond’s. Photograph: Channel four

Oh, Porkpie. The heat, gossipy sitcom, acceptable successful a Peckham barbershop and starring a successful peculiar British-Guyanese cast, ran for 71 episodes – nevertheless a Channel 4 document. As creator Trix Worrell proudly mentioned, it go additionally the archetypal clip a black-owned concern changed into disposable connected UK screens.

Taking the “constant rig” attack and strolling with it, embedded cameras accompanied mundane events astatine Thornhill assemblage academy successful Dewsbury. Cue a compelling communicative arsenic shy student Musharaf became coached to triumph implicit his stammer with the assistance of English teacher Mr Burton. Other bid went to secondary schools successful Essex, London, Cardiff and Salford.

A nudge-wink digest of continental oddness … Eurotrash. Photograph: Channel four

Bonsoir, my British pals! In a pre-net age, Antoine de Caunes and Jean-Paul Gaultier’s nudge-wink digest of continental oddness drew an people assemblage of 3 cardinal to late-night clip Fridays, hoping for gratuitous nudity and usually getting it.

The mentalist foxed america on with his blend of “magic, inspiration, psychology, misdirection and showmanship”. Brown pivoted into one-off specials, with 2003’s Russian Roulette condemned by utilizing constabulary and 2004’s Séance attracting loads of lawsuits.

The precocious Robbie Coltrane delivered a towering show successful Jack Thorne’s Yewtree-inspired play astir a liked comic accused of historical rapes. A hauntingly ambiguous treatise connected sex, powerfulness and movie star.

“What a unhappy small existence, Jane.” The unassuming nighttime repast contention has extremity up a wonderment success, exported to forty 2 planetary locations international. Show your appreciation by mode of becoming a balloon whisk into your mouth.

Messrs Buxton and Cornish’s bedsit cartoon show featured Toymovies, BaaadDad, Vinyl Justice and each mode of mischief. Unashamedly amateurish but afloat of charm and ingenuity, this changed into cult TV astatine its purest.

Bold and beguiling … Utopia. Photograph: Ryan Mcnamara/Channel four

Where … is … Jessica Hyde? Dennis Kelly’s conspiracy enigma turned into beguilingly plotted and boldly shot, with squirm-inducing bursts of ultraviolence. Two words: eyeball, teaspoon.

A erstwhile naval serviceman becomes a resistance queen successful Faking It. Photograph: Channel 4

Classical cellist turns residence DJ? Posh homosexual antheral turns nightclub bouncer? Pitched arsenic “a contemporary-day Pygmalion”, this transformational information bid turned into warm, intimate and brilliantly forged – arsenic an alternate similar Gogglebox, which its writer, Stephen Lambert, went connected to devise. It edges retired stablemate Wife Swap, which became a tad excessively cartoonish and manipulative.

Fiona Allen, Doon Mackichan and Sally Phillips’ comic portion show became without extremity inventive, deliriously humorous and each excessively uncommon astatine immoderate constituent of a male-dominated procreation for TV comedy. Many of the aforesaid squad went connected to marque the further giddy Green Wing.

What a launchpad!… the coagulated of Skins. Photograph: Channel 4

A decennary earlier than Sex Education oregon Euphoria, the grungy comedy-drama astir Bristolian sixth formers driven obstacles for TV portrayals of teens. It proved a assemblage launchpad for the likes of Dev Patel, Nicholas Hoult, Jack O’Connell and Daniel Kaluuya.

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With its accelerated cuts, movie homages and geek-pleasant gags, the flatshare sitcom became up of its time. Edgar Wright, Jessica Hynes and Simon Pegg’s surreal instauration near enthusiasts wanting more, lasting simply 14 episodes.

From the quality beings successful the backmost of trailblazing “yoof” indicates Network 7 and Club X, The Word’s progressive premix of unrecorded track, bizarre reviews and uncensored chat invented the genre of “publish-pub TV”. Oliver Reed were fixed drunk. L7 dropped their jeans. “The Hopefuls” ate maggots and snogged grannies. No astonishment it became the scourge of the tabloids.

As if that could ever manifest … Black Mirror. Photograph: Hal Shinnie/Channel four

Charlie Brooker kicked disconnected his dystopian sci-fi anthology with a communicative astir the apical curate violating a pig. As if that could ever occur. The visionary dramas support to pull A-listing stars and boldly propulsion barriers. Like gangland saga Top Boy and Mae Martin’s Feel Good, it changed into snapped up by Netflix but Channel 4 deserves recognition people for having the braveness to committee and nurture them.

The investigative documentary strand is Channel four’s adjacent of the BBC’s Panorama, often breaking testimonies and winning Baftas. Headline-hitting standouts see BNP exposé Young, Nazi & Proud, aesculapian deep-dive MMR: What They Didn’t Tell You and the coverage-changing How Councils Blow Your Millions. Proper nationalist work journalism.

Over 4 scabrously humorous collection, Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney’s form-shifting advent evolved from filthy intercourse romp close into a parenting satire, past a grief and addiction memoir. And subsequently got present “that” ending.

Adapting David Peace’s knotty novels, acceptable successful Ripper-stalked 70s Yorkshire, became nary casual undertaking nevertheless this trilogy of characteristic-period acheronian dramas pulled it off. Visually arresting with an all-superstar forged, it’s the signifier of formidable ngo lesser broadcasters could blanch at.

Halcyon days … The Big Breakfast. Photograph: Channel four

For an afternoon-glo decade, Channel 4’s greeting show provided an anarchic alternate to staid cereal accompaniments immoderate spot else. It enjoyed halcyon durations – its Chris ’n’ Gaby pomp, past its Johnny ’n’ Denise renaissance – energising the TV scenery similar a treble espresso.

Catch your aforesaid on. Lisa McGee’s joyous youngster drama followed 4 Northern Irish schoolgirls (and 1 “wee English fella”) coming of property for the duration of the Troubles. It mixed the idiosyncratic and governmental with aplomb. This spring’s victorious finale – each A-listing cameos, 90s nostalgia and poant moments – sealed its repute arsenic 1 of the greats.

Made hire-a-celebs look to beryllium mugs … Brass Eye. Photograph: PR handout

Cake is simply a made-up drug. Welcome to Paedogeddon. I’m speakme Nonce Sense. Chris Morris’s scabrous cutting-edge affairs satire whitethorn person lone ran to 7 episodes nevertheless it made a monolithic splash arsenic it pitilessly mocked media hysteria and made lease-a-celebs look similar mugs. Tabloids referred to arsenic it “ill”. Politicians went percent-confronted. So iconoclastic, it astir became iconic itself.

Writer Paul Abbott deftly became his ain chaotic upbringing into comedy-drama golden with the rambunctious communicative of the ne’er-do-well Gallagher clan connected Manchester’s Chatsworth estate. Its bracingly authentic depiction of working-magnificence beingness blazed a way for the likes of Brassic and Derry Girls. Scatter!

The ecclesiastical sitcom astir 3 exiled priests and their tea-crazed housekeeper reclaimed Irish jokes with surreal glee. Its enduring brilliance is illustrated by the throwaway traces – “I wage attraction you’re a racist now”, “extremely bully clump of lads”, “down with this benignant of issue”, “careful now” – nevertheless wide quoted successful topical discourse. That could beryllium an ecumenical remember.

Made Middle England prehend its pearls … Queer As Folk. Photograph: Channel four

Russell T Davies could aboriginal smash our hearts with It’s A Sin, nevertheless helium made his telephone with the latter’s spiritual comparative – this addictive deser play astir 3 hedonistic men connected Manchester’s Canal Street scene. Unapologetically explicit scenes of people A pills and underage intercourse wrong the opening occurrence connected my ain made Middle England snatch its pearls. Funny, inclusive and intoxicatingly fashionable, it’s been remade successful America not erstwhile nevertheless twice.

You admit nothing, Jon Snow. Except the mode to marque a captious accusation programme – different than Countdown, the lone subsister from Channel 4’s merchandise night. It’s inactive rivalled champion by Newsnight and Radio 4’s Today successful presumption of the British broadcast media protecting energy to account.

Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong’s mercilessly comic flatshare drama go astir axed aft its 3rd bid due to the fact that of debased ratings. Thankfully it lasted six other runs, becoming the definitive noughties sitcom. Innovative successful signifier and painfully honorable astir the antheral psyche, it made stars of David Mitchell, Robert Webb and a definite Olivia Colman. The penning duo followed it with scholar-com Fresh Meat, earlier than Armstrong went stratospheric with Succession.

A Friday nighttime fixture … Gogglebox. Photograph: Jude Edginton/Channel four

Who’d person guessed that watching antithetic quality beings watching tiny surface tv mightiness crook retired to beryllium a Friday nighttime fixture? Not me, Nutty. The postmoderrn sofa murphy amusement is brilliantly coagulated and precision-edited. Hilarious, heartwarming and rather meme-in a position, there’s nary amended bellwether of the state wide temper.

Tender and coruscating … This is England. Photograph: Channel 4

Transplanting the skinhead pack from Shane Meadows’ movie straight to TV became a unstable determination but proved a changeable of genius. Across 3 collection, creaseless and coruscating by utilizing turns, their testimonies painted a parallel societal records of Britain, spanning from mid-80s mod revival to 90s rave culture.

Phil Redmond’s scouse soap made opponents look aged fashioned by mode of contrast. Covering utmost societal problems and processing indelible characters, it ventured into regions feared done cosier soaps: rape, incest, tablets, home maltreatment and TV’s archetypal ever pre-watershed lesbian buss – a snog truthful momentous it popped up astatine the 2012 Olympics starting ceremony. That Merseyside cul-de-sac became an contented hotspot, adjacent earlier it started retired burying bodies beneath patios.

La! … It’s a Sin. Photograph: Ben Blackall/Channel 4

Russell T Davies’ devastatingly non-public portion astir the 80s Aids situation turned into turned down with the assistance of each the BBC and ITV. Only Channel 4 had the courageousness to greenlight it, a determination vindicated erstwhile It’s a Sin person go its largest ever play merchandise and maximum-binged series. Full of coronary bosom and humour, it made hundreds of thousands of visitors weep and, astir importantly, brought astir a surge successful HIV testing. La!

‘You are enactment connected Channel 4. Please bash nary longer swear’ … Big Brother. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

From Nasty Nick to Fight Night, from Kinga’s vino vessel to the Shilpa Shetty racism typhoon which sparked an worldwide incidental – the summertime clip houseshare stalwart enactment world TV connected the coronary bosom of the nationalist communique. Can you judge a Portuguese trans pistillate oregon a punk with Tourette’s triumphing Love Island? No, babes, you could’t. It whitethorn not beryllium the astir highbrow Channel 4 creation, nary substance aboriginal claims of being a “social experiment”, but it’s arguably the largest and maximum influential. Now the technology-defining, gamechanging archetypal is coming back. Please bash present not swear.