Entertainment & Events

Introduction

In Entertainment & Events we commission award-winning, channel defining unscripted content across Channel 4, E4 and streaming, working with an array of new and established talent both on and off-screen. Our growing slate covers everything from the live spectacular of Stand Up to Cancer to the topical satire of The Last Leg and the unique mix of consumer and comedy in Joe Lycett’s Got Your Back; from gold standard comedy entertainment like Taskmaster, I Literally Just Told You and The Lateish Show right through to E4 Reality with The Real Dirty Dancing and Celebs Go Dating.

 

COMEDY ENTERTAINMENT 

With Joe Lycett, Taskmaster, One Night In and I Literally Just Told You we’ve made Thursdays a real destination for comedy entertainment, but we want more. What shows could appeal to a Taskmaster audience when it isn’t on? What would hold the attention of our viewers straight after Cats Does Countdown? We are looking for comedy entertainment vehicles that could sit in or outside the studio with talent at the heart of them. We are especially keen to hear ideas featuring female talent. 

  

9PM PRIME TIME ENTERTAINMENT 

Taskmaster does brilliantly for us at both on linear and streaming and while we don’t want another version of Taskmaster, we’d love to hear ideas that share some of the same DNA. 

We want shows that are big, broad and funny with a simple, joinable premise. They will probably feature a returning - or rotating - cast which mixes big names and new talent, all doing things you wouldn’t expect.  Viewers at 9pm like a continuing narrative with twists and turns across the series, and while comedy rather than jeopardy can be the driver, they enjoy seeing people under pressure.  Your ideas should be very accessible, attract youngs and with a clear eye on streaming performance. 

Shows could be in or out of studio, but we’re particularly keen on ideas set in a real-world or changing location.  We’re still open to panel ideas but they need to be more than just two teams firing gags at each other; think Cats Does Countdown as opposed to 8 out of 10 Cats.  

We don’t want shiny floor or multi stranded shows led by a single piece of talent.  And we feel well served currently for quiz and game. 

  

10PM COMEDY/ENTERTAINMENT HYBRID 

We know from shows like Friday Night Dinner and The Last Leg that both sitcom and studio entertainment can work at 10pm, but it’s not often we blend the two worlds. So, in an exciting cross genre move, we’re joining forces with the Comedy Department to invite cross genre submissions that could work alongside our existing comedy entertainment brands like Taskmaster or I Literally Just Told You. 

We are particularly interested in ideas that mix elements of scripted comedy with unscripted entertainment. It could be a mash up, like Cats Does Countdown with scripted turns and spontaneous gameplay, a sketch show, or a prank-show that feels of the moment, naughty, irreverent and can gather an ensemble cast and a high gag rate.  

There is room for these ideas to take on a satirical slant; what would The Last Leg look like if it was given The Thick Of It treatment for example? Shows like Star Stories, Da Ali G Show, Fonejacker and The 11 O’Clock Show are good historic examples of previous success with this cross-genre approach. 

Any successful submissions will have a clear idea, returnable format with broad appeal and feature new and established talent, and crucially will need to work well on streaming. 

  

CELEB BIOG AND MODERN NOSTALGA 

We want to expand on the recent success of Johnny Vegas: Carry On Glamping and One Night In with more popular, funny factual. We’re particularly keen to hear out-of-studio ideas that show celebrity talents in a different light; series that will not only entertain but also give the audience lots of take out. 

We’d like you to think about nostalgia and celebrity profiles; how can we tell the life stories of big-name talent via modern pop culture and creative use of archive? We don’t always need to play for laughs; we could take our central characters on an emotional journey along the way. It could be across a stranded series or closed episodes. 

Your ideas should feature warm, funny and broad talents and don’t just limit your thinking to comedians. We’d love you to bring us some fresh takes on popular celebrities from other worlds. It could be stars of music, film or sport; high profile stars featured in a way you haven’t seen before. 

We’re not looking for studio shows, list shows, or purely talking heads or archive. This opportunity is about us placing big talents in a heightened ob-doc scenario. All your ideas should have an original, fun top-line premise; ideally we’re looking for a new hook that will bring a broad audience, lots of press and ultimately stand out on streaming. 

  

E4 

We now boast a really healthy E4 slate with, among others, Celebs Go Dating, Coach Trip, One Night Stand, The Real Dirty Dancing and a brand-new competitive reality series coming later this year. 

We have two perennial asks: premium reality like Celebs Go Dating and lower-cost repeatable formats like One Night Stand. For more details on E4’s current brief click here. 

Genna Gibson is the commissioner who leads on E4 for the team, but please feel free to submit your ideas to any of the entertainment team.