Channel 4 at 40: The TV Revolution in Bristol

A celebration of Channel 4’s 40th birthday and its connections to Bristol

Channel 4 first broadcast on 2 November 1982. Hailed as a ‘TV revolution’, Channel 4’s remit was to produce innovative, challenging programmes that appealed to audiences not catered for by the other broadcasters, the BBC and ITV.  

Part of a nationwide series of events, ‘Channel 4 at 40: The TV Revolution in Bristol’ explores what Channel 4 has contributed to UK broadcasting and its close connections with Bristol from the earliest days to the present.

Through a series of talks and screenings, academics and filmmakers will discuss Channel 4’s Bristol-based programmes  across various genres – animation, factual/documentary and drama showing what was innovative and distinctive about them. We’ll also consider how the broadcaster’s relationship to Bristol has changed over time, including establishing a Creative Hub in the city.

There will be opportunities throughout for audience discussion and debate about the role Channel 4 has played over four decades and what role it might have in the future, in Bristol and in the UK.

This event offers an unrivalled opportunity to understand Channel 4, how it works and what it tries to do, and its importance to Bristol. Following the daytime event will be a full screening of The Falklands War: The Untold Story (2022).