Coordinates	55°45′06″N37°37′04″N
Name	Channel 4
Logosize	150px
Logofile	Channel 4 New Logo.svg
Logoalt	Channel 4's logo is now cut out from a white background, and is shown in moving distortions that reveal programme-specific graphics underneath
Launch	2 November 1982
Picture format	576i (SDTV 16:9)1080i (HDTV)
Timeshift names	Channel 4+1
Share	5.9%1.0% (+1)
Share as of	June 2011
Share source	BARB
Sister names	Film4,E4,More4,4Music,Kerrang!,Kiss,Magic,Q,Smash Hits!,The Box
Owner	Channel Four Television Corporation
Country	United Kingdom
Web	channel4.com
Terr serv 1	Analogue
Terr chan 1	''Normally tuned to 4''(excluding Wales) ''(To be phased out nationwide by 2012)''
Terr serv 2	Freeview
Terr chan 2	Channel 4Channel 8 (Wales)Channel 13 (+1)Channel 52 (HD, excluding Wales) (Currently being rolled out)
Sat serv 1	Freesat
Sat chan 1	Channel 104Channel 120 (Wales)Channel 121 (+1)Channel 126 (HD)
Sat serv 2	Sky
Sat chan 2	Channel 104Channel 117 (Wales)Channel 135 (+1)Channel 135, 136 +1 (IRL)Channel 140 (HD)
Sat serv 3	Astra 2D|
Sat chan 3	10714H 22000 5/610729V 22000 5/6|
Sat serv 4	Astra 2A|
Sat chan 4	12480V 27500 2/3|
Sat serv 5	Eurobird 1|
Sat chan 5	12606V 27500 3/4 (HD)|
Cable serv 1	Virgin Media
Cable chan 1	Channel 104Channel 143 (+1)Channel 142 (HD)
Cable serv 2	UPC Ireland
Cable chan 2	Channel 111|
Cable serv 3	Cablecom (Switzerland)
Cable chan 3	Channel 163 (CH-D)
adsl serv 1	TalkTalk TV
adsl chan 1	Channel 4
online serv 1	4oD
online chan 1	Main online service of Channel 4 }}

Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA), the station is now owned and operated by the Channel Four Television Corporation, a public body established in 1990, coming into operation in 1993. With the conversion of the Wenvoe transmitter in Wales to digital on 31 March 2010, Channel 4 became a UK-wide TV channel for the first time.

The channel was established to provide a fourth television service to the United Kingdom in addition to the television licence-funded BBC's two services and the single commercial broadcasting network, ITV.

Public service remit

Channel 4 was established with, and continues to hold, a remit of public service obligations which it must fulfil. The remit changes periodically, as dictated by various broadcasting and communications acts, and is regulated by the various authorities Channel 4 has been answerable to; originally the IBA, then the ITC and now Ofcom.

The preamble of the remit as per the Communications Act 2003 states that:

"The public service remit for Channel 4 is the provision of a broad range of high quality and diverse programming which, in particular:

demonstrates innovation, experiment and creativity in the form and content of programmes;

appeals to the tastes and interests of a culturally diverse society;

makes a significant contribution to meeting the need for the licensed public service channels to include programmes of an educational nature and other programmes of educative value; and

exhibits a distinctive character."

The remit also involves an obligation to provide programming for schools, and a substantial amount of programming produced outside of Greater London.

Channel Four Television Corporation

name	Channel Four Television Corporation
type	Private/Limited
foundation	2 November 1982
location city	London
location country	United Kingdom
area served	United Kingdom
industry	Broadcasting
products	Television and Radio
homepage	www.channel4.com
intl	}}

As an organisation, Channel 4 is known as the Channel Four Television Corporation (sometimes abbreviated to C4C), a statutory corporation, though this form is more recent than the station itself, having previously been the Channel Four Television Company Limited, a subsidiary of the IBA, between 1982 and 1993.

Towards the end of the 1980s, the government began a radical process of re-organisation of the commercial broadcasting industry, which was written onto the statute books by means of the Broadcasting Act 1990. Significantly, this meant the abolition of the IBA, and hence the Channel Four Television Company. The result led to the creation of a corporation to own and operate the channel, which would have a greater deal of autonomy and would eventually go on to establish its other operations. The new corporation, which became operational in 1993, remained publicly owned and was regulated by the new Independent Television Commission (ITC), created under the same act. The ITC and its duties were later replaced by Ofcom, which like its predecessor is responsible for appointing the Corporation's board, in agreement with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

In terms of the station's remit and other duties, the creation of the corporation meant little change; the new corporation would have to manage its own advertising, rather than this being carried out on its behalf by the local ITV contractors (see Funding).

History

Wales

At the time the fourth service was being considered, a movement in Wales lobbied for the creation of dedicated service that would air Welsh-language programmes, then only catered for at 'off peak' times on BBC Wales and HTV. The campaign was taken so seriously by Gwynfor Evans, former president of Plaid Cymru, that he threatened the government with a hunger strike were it not to honour the plans.

The result was that Channel 4 as seen by the rest of the United Kingdom would be replaced in Wales by ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru (S4C)'' (). Operated by a specially created Welsh Fourth Channel Authority, S4C would air programmes in Welsh as made by HTV, the BBC, or from independent companies. Initially limited frequency space meant that Channel 4 could not be broadcast alongside S4C, though some English Channel 4 programmes would be aired at less popular times on the Welsh variant, a practice that carried on up until the closure of S4C's analogue transmissions in 2010.

Since then, carriage on digital cable, satellite and digital terrestrial has introduced Channel 4 to Welsh homes where it is now universally available.

Conception

Before Channel 4 and S4C, Britain had three terrestrial television services: BBC1, BBC2, and ITV. The Broadcasting Act 1980 began the process of adding a fourth, and Channel 4, along with its Welsh counterpart, was formally created by an Act of Parliament in 1982. After some months of test broadcasts, it began scheduled transmissions on 2 November 1982.

The notion of a second commercial broadcaster in the United Kingdom had been around since the inception of ITV in 1954 and its subsequent launch in 1955; the idea of an 'ITV2' was long expected and pushed for. Indeed television sets sold throughout the 1970s and early 1980s had a spare channel called 'ITV/IBA 2'. Throughout ITV's history and until Channel 4 finally became a reality, a perennial dialogue existed between the GPO, the government, the ITV companies and other interested parties, concerning the form such an expansion of commercial broadcasting would take. It was most likely politics which had the biggest impact in leading to a delay of almost three decades before the second commercial channel became a reality. With what can crudely be summed up as a clash of ideologies between an expansion of ITV's commercial ethos and a public service approach more akin to the BBC, it was ultimately something of a compromise that eventually led to the formation of Channel 4 as launched in 1982.

One clear benefit of the 'late arrival' of the channel was that its frequency allocations at each transmitter had already been arranged in the early 1960s, when the launch of an ITV2 was highly anticipated. This led to very good coverage across most of the country and few problems of interference with other UK-based transmissions; a stark contrast to the problems associated with Channel 5's launch 14 and a half years later.

Launch and IBA control: 1982–1993

The first voice ever heard on Channel 4's opening day of Tuesday 2 November 1982 was that of continuity announcer Paul Coia, who intoned, "Good afternoon. It's a pleasure to be able to say to you: Welcome to Channel Four", before heading into a montage of clips from its programmes set to the station's signature tune, "Fourscore", written by Lord David Dundas, which would form the basis of the station's jingles for its first decade. The first programme to air on the channel was the teatime game show ''Countdown'', at 16.45 produced by Yorkshire Television; it is still running as of 2010. The first person to be seen on Channel 4 was Richard Whiteley with Carol Vorderman being the second and the first female on the channel. Whiteley opened the show with the words "As the countdown to a brand new channel ends, a brand new countdown begins." On its first day, Channel 4 also broadcast controversial soap opera ''Brookside'', which ran for 21 years.

Upon its launch, Channel 4 committed itself to providing an alternative to the existing channels, an agenda in part set out by its remit which required the provision of programming to minority groups.

In step with its remit, the channel became well received both by minority groups and the arts and cultural worlds during this period, especially under Isaacs, where the channel gained a reputation for programmes on the contemporary arts. The channel often did not receive mass audiences for much of this period, however, as might be expected for a station focusing on minority interest.

Channel 4 also began the funding of independent films, such as the Merchant-Ivory docudrama ''The Courtesans of Bombay'', during this time.

In 1992, Channel 4 also faced its first libel case by Jani Allan, a South African journalist, who objected to her representation in the documentary ''The Leader, His Driver and the Driver's Wife''.

Channel Four Television Corporation: 1993 onwards

After control of the station passed from the Channel Four Television Company to the Channel Four Television Corporation in 1993 (see above), a shift in broadcasting style took place. Instead of aiming for the fringes of society, it began to focus on the edges of the mainstream, and the centre of the mass market itself. It began to show many US programmes in peak viewing time, far more than it had previously done. It premièred such shows as ''Friends'' and ''ER''.

In the early 2000s, Channel Four began broadcasting reality formats such as ''Big Brother'' and obtained the rights to broadcast mass appeal sporting events like cricket and horse racing. This new direction increased ratings and revenues.

In addition, the channel launched a number of new television channels through its new 4Ventures off-shoot, including Film4, At The Races, E4 and More4 (see Other services).

Partially in reaction to its new 'populist' direction, the Communications Act 2003 directed the channel to demonstrate innovation, experimentation and creativity, appeal to the tastes and interests of a culturally diverse society and to include programmes of an educational nature which exhibit a distinctive character.

Under the leadership of Freeview founder Andy Duncan, 2005 saw a change of direction for Channel 4's digital channels. Channel 4 made E4 'free to air' on Digital Terrestrial, and launched a new 'free to air' digital channel called More4. By October, Channel 4 had joined the Freeview consortium. By July 2006, Film4 had also become a 'free to air' and re-started broadcasting on Digital Terrestrial.

Venturing into radio broadcasting, 2005 saw Channel 4 purchase 51 per cent of shares in the now defunct Oneword radio station with UBC Media holding on to the remaining shares. New programmes such as the weekly, half-hour ''The Morning Report'' news programme were among some of the new content Channel 4 provided for the station, with the name 4Radio being used. As of early 2009, however, Channel 4's future involvement in radio remained uncertain.

On 2 November 2007, the station celebrated its twenty-fifth birthday. It showed the first episode of ''Countdown'', an anniversary ''Countdown'' special, as well as a special edition of The Big Fat Quiz and using the original multicoloured 1982-1996 blocks logo on presentation and idents using the Fourscore jingle throughout the day.

In November 2009, Channel 4 launched a week of 3D television, broadcasting selected programmes each night using stereoscopic ColorCode technology. The accompanying 3D glasses were distributed through Sainsbury's supermarkets.

The future

Channel 4 has raised concerns over how it might finance its public service obligations after digital switch-over. However, some certainty lies in the announcement in April 2006 that Channel 4's digital switch-over costs would be paid for by licence fee revenues.

On 28 March 2007, Channel 4 announced plans to launch a music channel "4Music" as a joint venture with British media company EMAP which would include carriage on the Freeview platform. On 15 August 2008, 4Music was launched across the UK. Recently, Channel 4 have announced interest in launching a high-definition version of Film4 on Freeview, to coincide with the launch of Channel 4 HD, however the fourth HD slot was given to Channel 5 instead. Channel 4 has since acquired a 50% stake in EMAP's TV business for a reported £28 million.

Carriage

Channel 4 was carried from its beginning on analogue terrestrial, which was practically the only means of television broadcast in the United Kingdom at the time. It will continue to be broadcast through these means until the changeover to digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom is complete. Since 1998, it has been universally available on digital terrestrial, and the Sky platform (encrypted, though free of charge) as well as having been available from various times in various areas, on analogue and digital cable networks.

Due to its special status as a public service broadcaster with a specific remit, it is afforded free carriage on the terrestrial platforms, in contrast with other broadcasters such as ITV.

Channel 4 is also available overseas: parts of the European mainland have been able to receive terrestrial transmissions from the United Kingdom, and some overseas cable networks have carried the service.

Channel 4 Ulster has been available in large parts of Ireland, especially border counties which have been able to receive terrestrial transmissions from Northern Ireland. Channel 4 Ulster has been carried on Irish cable networks since the station went on the air in 1982. S4C has been available as a terrestrial transmission from Wales in southern counties such as Cork, Waterford, Wexford and Wicklow.

From 4 December 2006 Channel 4 was officially available to Sky viewers in Ireland; some programmes, mainly imports, are not aired on this channel variant, due to Channel 4 not owning the relevant broadcast rights within the country.

Channel 4 allowed Internet users in the United Kingdom to watch Channel 4 live on the Internet. However some programmes (mostly international imports) were not shown and this service no longer exists. Channel 4 is also provided by Virgin Mobile's DAB mobile TV service which has the same restrictions as the Internet live stream had.

Channel 4 also makes some of its programming available "on demand" via cable and the Internet (see 4oD).

Funding

During the station's formative years, funding came from the ITV companies in return for their right to sell advertisements in their region on the fourth channel.

Nowadays it pays for itself in much the same way as most privately run commercial stations, i.e. through the sale of on-air advertising, programme sponsorship, and the sale of any programme content and merchandising rights it owns, such as overseas sales and video sales. It also has the ability to subsidise the main network through any profits made on the corporation's other endeavours, which have in the past included subscription fees from stations such as E4 and Film4 (now no longer subscription services) and its 'video-on-demand' sales. In practice, however, these other activities are loss-making, and are subsidised by the main network. According to Channel 4's last published accounts, for 2005, the extent of this cross-subsidy was some £30 million.

The change in funding method came about by the Broadcasting Act 1990 when the new corporation was afforded the ability to fund itself. Originally this arrangement left a 'safety net' guaranteed minimum income should the revenue fall too low, funded by large insurance payments made to the ITV companies. Such a subsidy was never required, however, and these premiums were phased out by government in 1998. After the link with ITV was cut, the cross-promotion which had existed between ITV and Channel 4 also ended.

In 2007 due to severe funding difficulties, the channel sought government help and was granted a payment of £14 million over a six-year period. The money would have come from the television licence fee and would have been the first time that money from the licence fee had been given to any broadcaster other than the BBC. The plan was scrapped by The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Andy Burnham, ahead of "broader decisions about the future framework of public service broadcasting". The broadcasting regulator Ofcom released their review in January 2009 in which they suggested that Channel 4 would preferably be funded by "partnerships, joint ventures or mergers".

Programming

Channel 4 is a "publisher-broadcaster", meaning that it commissions or "buys" all of its programming from companies independent of itself, and was the first broadcaster in the United Kingdom to do so on any significant scale. This had the consequence of starting an industry of production companies that did not have to rely on owning an ITV licence in order to see their programmes air, though since Channel 4, external commissioning has become regular practise on the numerous stations that have launched since, as well as on the BBC and in ITV (where a quota of 25% minimum of total output has been imposed since the 1990 Broadcasting Act came into force). Ironically, having been the first British broadcaster to completely commission its core product from third parties, and after 25 years in-house, Channel 4 will now become the last terrestrial broadcaster to outsource its transmission and playout operations (to Red Bee Media).

The requirement to obtain all content externally is stipulated in its licence. Additionally, Channel 4 also began a trend of owning the copyright and distribution rights of the programmes it aired, in a manner that is similar to the major Hollywood studios' ownership of television programs that they did not directly produce. Thus, although Channel 4 does not produce programmes, many are seen as belonging to it.

Channel 4 also pioneered the concept of ''stranded programming'', where seasons of programmes following a common theme would be aired and promoted together. Some would be very specific, and run for a fixed period of time; the ''4 Mation'' season, for example, showed innovative animation. Other, less specific strands, were (and still are) run regularly, such as ''T4'', a strand of programming aimed at teenagers, on weekend mornings (and weekdays during school/college holidays); ''Friday Night Comedy'', a slot where the channel would pioneer its style of comedy commissions, ''4Music'' (now a separate channel) and ''4Later'', an eclectic collection of offbeat programmes transmitted to a cult audience in the early hours of the morning.

In its earlier years, ''Red Triangle'' was the name given to the airing of certain risqué art-house films due to the use of a red triangle DOG in the upper right of the screen, dubbed as being pornographic by many of Channel 4's critics, whilst general broadcasting of films on the station for many years came under the banner of ''Film on Four'' prior to the launch of the ''FilmFour'' brand and station in the late 1990s.

Its critically acclaimed news service, ''Channel 4 News'', is supplied by ITN whilst its long-standing investigative documentary, ''Dispatches'', causes perennial media attention.

Other services

November 1998 saw Channel 4 expand beyond its remit of providing the 'fourth service' in a significant way, with the launch of FilmFour. Since then the corporation has been involved in a range of other activities, all in some way associated with the main channel, and mainly using the '4' brand.

In March 2010 these additional services were reviewed by the government's Culture, Media and Sport select committee. The channel and its Chief Executive were criticised for breaking service commitments, a lack of transparency in accounting for digital channels, poor governance and failed investments

4Ventures/4Rights

In 2001 4Ventures was created as the parent body of Channel 4 related commercial activities, rather than public-service obligations, with the intent of making profit which would serve to subsidise the main Channel 4.

Following the sale of Quiz Call (a gaming channel operated by the then-owned subsidiary Ostrich Media) in 2006, a restructure of 4Ventures saw many of its activities re-integrated back into the main channel's operations (including day-to-day running of E4, Film4 and More4).

4Rights, was formed from an amalgamation of ''Channel 4 International'' and ''Channel 4 Consumer Products''. As part of the restructure, much of the 4Ventures management team either left the company - former chief executive (and Channel 4 commercial director) Rob Woodward, and managing director Anmar Kawash are now Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer respectively of STV Group plc - or transferred to other posts within Channel 4.

In 2007, the expanding, UK-based, independent distribution group Digital Rights Group (DRG) announced an intention to buy Channel 4 International (adding it to Zeal and ID Distribution among its other companies), following a review by Channel 4 of its commercial division. The deal was completed in November of the same year. The Consumer Products division has been retained by Channel 4 as part of a new, restructured, 4Rights division.

Television

Film4

Channel 4 has had a long record of success in funding the production of films through Channel Four Films, renamed FilmFour in 1998 to coincide with the launch of its digital channel of the same name. Notable successes include ''The Madness of King George'', ''The Crying Game'' and ''Four Weddings and a Funeral''. However, this dedicated film-making wing was scaled back in 2002 as a cost-cutting measure in the face of substantial losses.

Channel 4 launched a subscription film channel, FilmFour, in November 1998. It was available on digital satellite television and digital cable. Companion services, such as FilmFour+1, FilmFour World and FilmFour Extreme were also available on some digital services. In 2003 Extreme and World were discontinued, and replaced with FilmFour Weekly. FilmFour Weekly closed in July 2006, when the main, newly named Film4 channel went free-to-view and became available on Digital Terrestrial. The switchover to digital terrestrial was heavily advertised. The adverts featured Lucy Liu, Christian Slater, Ewan McGregor, Dame Judi Dench, Gael García Bernal, Willem Dafoe, Mackenzie Crook, Rhys Ifans and Ray Winstone declaring "Film4 is now free" in various situations across London. It remains the only film channel available free on digital terrestrial television.

In 2002, Channel 4's film financing division (Film4 Productions) was seriously scaled back, due to massive losses, although total closure was averted. It had however had various successes, most notably ''Four Weddings and a Funeral'' and ''Trainspotting''. In 1994, BAFTA/LA (the Los Angeles branch of the British Academy of Film & Television Arts) presented a full-length film festival in Los Angeles in conjunction with the American Cinematheque (the US equivalent of Britain's National Film Theatre) that saluted the considerable contributions to British film of Channel 4's film division since its inception. The festival presented many of the most celebrated Channel 4 films, and also featured panel discussions about Channel 4's role between Channel 4 chief executive Michael Grade and US TV producer Norman Lear.

When Channel 4 had the rights to broadcast test match cricket in England, the downtime of the FilmFour channel was often used to broadcast uninterrupted coverage of a match when the main channel was committed elsewhere, usually to racing. At these times FilmFour was available unencrypted and free-to-air.

E4

E4, a digital entertainment channel previously available on the Internet, with a target age-range of 16-34, was launched in January 2001. It features premières of US imports and supplementary footage for programmes on its main channel (most notably extended ''Big Brother'' coverage).

In 2005 it launched on Digital Terrestrial. E4 now has as much coverage as other services available on Cable, Satellite and Digital Terrestrial like ITV2 and BBC Three. It is a very successful channel with a ''first look'' or sneak peek, with the next episode of some series, such as ''Hollyoaks ''and ''Desperate Housewives'' appearing on E4 immediately after the show on Channel 4 has finished. Also they have "Second Chance Sunday" which allows you to see programmes you have missed during the week on a Sunday. New show ''Skins'' was a massive success for E4, peaking at the 2 million mark - one of the most viewed premières in digital TV history. There has, however, been some criticism that E4 (like many other digital channels), relies on seemingly endless repeats of a small selection of shows (notably ''Friends''), with further suggestion that it is often the same ''season'' of a particular show that is endlessly repeated.

During ''Big Brother'', E4 plays host to live coverage of the show, subject to a delay. Until 2005, programmes on the channel did not air until 14.00 GMT, but on 12 August 2005 the widely-advertised E4 Music airs from 06.00 until 10.00 GMT, with various music shows and videos being showcased. This however is rested during ''Big Brother''. Transmission of E4 Music has since declined and has been replaced with repeats of popular E4 shows. It has been declared that E4 Music has been moved permanently to the new 4Music channel. Since 2008, live coverage of Big Brother has been shortened during the day, until coming to a close in 2010.

E4 is widely available in Ireland in close to 70% of homes. It is carried on the NTL / Chorus cable networks and also on Sky. The channel operates a separate advertising opt-out in Ireland allowing advertisers to directly target Irish audiences. This has been a highly successful commercial operation and all airtime sales are handled on the channels behalf by Medialink in Dublin.

More4

More4 is a channel aimed at those aged 35–60. Launched on 10 October 2005, it channel carries news and nightly discussion programmes, such as ''More4 News'', an extension of ''Channel 4 News'' that attempts to look "beyond the headlines", giving in-depth analysis. Advertising before the launch of the channel flaunted such HBO shows as ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' and ''The Sopranos'', as well as NBC's ''The West Wing''. Its conception has met conflicting responses; many people believe the programmes shown to be of great quality, while others see it as an excuse to free up more room for a deluge of property programmes or less respectable programmes (see ''Fat Pets'') in all other free slots on Channel 4.

4Music

Over recent years 4Music has risen, showing new single releases, as well as other music shows frequently broadcast across T4, Channel 4 and E4. 2007 saw its own logo being devised and since then has had many themed weekends dedicated to a current band or performer.

On Sundays, Channel 4's 4Music strand aired between 17:00 and midnight on The Hits. The first 'episode' was presented by the most successful female act of the century Sugababes, however 4Music Sundays were meant to feature live acts and also The Shockwaves Album Chart Show.

On 20 February 2008, it was announced that The Hits was to be rebranded as 4Music later in the year, and on 15 August 2008, Channel 4 replaced The Hits with 4Music. 4Music is available on Sky 360, Virgin 330 and Freeview 18. (See ''Box Television'')

4Music also has its own monthly music magazine show, The Crush. Which is hosted by Rick Edwards.

'+1' Channels

Channel 4 runs timeshift variants of all its services (excluding 4Music and Channel 4 HD), including Channel 4 +1 since 20 August 2007. across all digital platforms. Channel 4 was the first terrestrial broadcaster in the United Kingdom to offer a time-shift variant of its main channel. In common with many other broadcasters, these channels output exactly the same programmes and continuity as was broadcast an hour previously, and are titled with the station name followed by a "+1" suffix.

Channel 4 +1, E4 +1 and More4 +1 all carry a "+1" indication onscreen. There was some concern about how it would be indicated on Channel 4 +1 as Channel 4 does not carry its own on-screen graphic. Eventually, a "+1" symbol that is derived from the Channel 4 logo was unveiled. Neither Film4 nor Film4 +1 carry on-screen graphics.

Box Television

In July 2007 Channel 4 bought 50% of Box Television Ltd for £28 m from Emap plc. It has since emerged that, as a result of Emap's decision to sell off its divisions in a break-up sale of the group, Channel 4 may be interested in acquiring the remaining half of the business. Box TV operates seven music TV stations (4Music, The Box, Smash Hits, Kerrang!, Q, Kiss and Magic). Emap's stake in Box Television Limited was transferred to new owners, Bauer Consumer Media, following Bauer's acquisition of Emap's publishing and radio businesses.

Channel 4 HD

On 10 December 2007, Channel 4 launched a high definition television simulcast of Channel 4 on Sky+ HD, after British Sky Broadcasting agreed to contribute toward the channel’s satellite distribution costs. On 31 July 2009, Virgin Media added Channel 4 HD on channel 146 as a part of the M pack. On 25 March 2010 Channel 4 HD appeared on Freeview channel 52 with a placeholding caption, ahead of a commercial launch on 30 March 2010, coinciding with the commercial launch of Freeview HD. On 19 April 2011, Channel 4 HD was added to Freesat on channel 126. As a consequence, the channel moved from being free-to-view to free-to-air on satellite during March 2011.

The channel carries the same schedule as Channel 4, broadcasting programmes in HD when available. Initially this has been mostly American imports (such as ''Ugly Betty'' for example) and movies, however, original programming such as ''Hollyoaks'' and ''Skins'' have been broadcast in HD. Although the intention is to increase the amount of "home grown" material being broadcast in HD. It has been announced as the UK's first full-time high definition channel from a terrestrial broadcaster.

Previously, in the summer of 2006, Channel 4 ran a six month closed trial of HDTV, as part of the wider Freeview HD experiment via the Crystal Palace transmitter to London and parts of the home counties, including the use of ''Lost'' and ''Desperate Housewives'' as part of the experiment, as US broadcasters such as ABC already have an HDTV back catalogue.

Previous channels

At the Races

In 2000, Channel 4 launched a dedicated horse racing channel, At the Races, in conjunction with British Sky Broadcasting and Arena Leisure plc, owner of 28 of Britain's racecourses. The channel ceased broadcasting in 2003 owing to financial problems, but was subsequently restructured and re-launched (without Channel 4's involvement) in June 2004 and it is branded with almost identical livery as Sky Sports. Channel 4's racing coverage, re-named to incorporate "At The Races" in the title, returned to its original name of Channel 4 Racing when the channel left involvement with At The Races. Channel 4 racing programmes now feature close co-operation with rival digital racing channel Racing UK, who sub-licence the live rights and share the same production company. Channel 4 cross-promote Racing UK's coverage of the day's racing during its broadcasts.

Radio

4 Digital Group

Channel 4 was the leading member of the 4 Digital Group consortium, which includes EMAP, UTV and STV Group plc as partners (although STV's involvement will cease when Virgin Radio is floated as a separate company). In July 2007 The group was awarded the 12 year licence to operate the second national DAB radio licence after having defeated its only rival, National Grid Wireless, in the three-month bidding process.

The service would have operated ten radio stations, including Channel 4 Radio, E4 Radio, Sky News Radio (operated by BSkyB and Global Radio) and Radio Disney (in association with Disney). Many of the services, especially Channel 4 Radio and E4 Radio would have competed directly with national BBC Radio stations. Podcast and text services were also to have been provided. In October 2008 Channel 4 announced that it was abandoning its plans for digital radio stations.

4radio

In June 2006 Channel 4 tried to launch 4radio, offering audio programmes in the shape of podcasts aimed at introducing new public service radio services informed by C4's values of creativity and innovation. Coupled with its strategy of becoming a truly multimedia company, 4radio hosts shows that tie in with its flagship TV hits including ''Big Brother'', ''Lost'', and ''Channel 4 News''.

The successful multiplex consortium was expected to launch in 2008 with a taste of Channel 4 Radio's audio output made available earlier, including a revival of the channel's The Tube music programme, and a very small amount of 4radio-branded content was heard on Oneword until its closure in January 2008.

Channel 4, as part of its review of public serving spending in 2008 decided to focus its expenditure on TV content and decided to stop its radio plans, resulting in the closure of 4 Digital Group.

Oneword

Oneword was a digital radio station featuring the spoken word. In early 2005 Channel 4 purchased a minority stake in it, later that year buying a majority one worth £1,000,000. On 4 January 2007 it was announced that had Channel 4 sold its 51% stake back to UBC Media for £1. Its normal programming was suspended while a strategic review took place on the station. The station ceased broadcasting on 11 January 2008.

Internet

====Channel4.com==== The station's website is channel4.com. The site offers detailed programme information, highlights, and chats with actors and presenters of all Channel 4 channels. It also has in-depth sections including news, film, homes, sport, and more. Its learning sections are often used by many for educational needs.

4mations

In January 2008, Channel 4 joined with Aardman Animations and Lupus Films to create 4mations, a user-generated content animation portal, similar to aniBOOM or MyToons.

4oD / Catch-up

4oD is a video on demand service from Channel 4. Launched in November 2006, 4oD stands for "4 on Demand". The service offers a variety of programmes recently shown on Channel 4, E4, More4 or from their archives. However some programmes and movies are not available due to rights issues.

Teletext

4-Tel/FourText

Channel 4 originally licensed an ancillary teletext service to provide schedules, programme information and features. The original service was called 4-Tel and was provided in collaboration with Oracle. In 1993, with Oracle losing its franchise to Teletext Ltd, the running of 4-Tel was taken over by Intelfax, and in 2002 was renamed FourText.

Teletext on 4

In 2003, Channel 4 awarded Teletext Ltd a ten year contract to run the channel's ancillary teletext service, named Teletext on 4. The service is provided on both Channel 4 analogue and digital television services, Channel 4, E4 and More4. This has now been ceased and Teletext is no longer available on Channel 4, ITV and Channel 5.

Corporate structure

Management

Channel 4 is run by a chief executive, whose role can be compared to that of the Director-General of the BBC. The chief executive is appointed by the chairman, which is a part-time position appointed by Ofcom.

Chairmen

Edmund Dell (1982–1987)

Richard Attenborough (1987–1992)

Michael Bishop (1993–1997)

Vanni Treves (1998–2003)

Luke Johnson (2004–2010)

Terry Burns (2010–Present)

Deputy Chairmen

Richard Attenborough (1982–1987)

David Puttnam

Chief Executives

Jeremy Isaacs (1981–1987)

Michael Grade (1988–1997)

Michael Jackson (1997–2002)

Mark Thompson (Mar 2002 – Jun 2004)

Andy Duncan (Jul 2004 - Nov 2009)

Anne Bulford (Interim) (Nov 2009 - Jan 2010)

David Abraham (Jan 2010 – Present)

Financial information

Channel 4's total revenue for the year to 31 December 2005 was £894.3 million, of which £735.2 million was generated by its main channel, and the remainder by its subsidiaries channels, sales of programming rights to other broadcasters, Film Four and "new media". Operating profits for the year to 31 December 2006 fell 70% to £14.5 million from £56.9 million in 2005.

Headquarters

Channel 4 was originally based at 60 Charlotte Street in the West End of London. Since 1994 the channel has occupied distinctive, purpose-built headquarters at 124 Horseferry Road, Westminster. Designed by Richard Rogers Partnership with structural engineering by Ove Arup & Partners, its 15,000sq metres architecture follows on from - but is more restrained than - the Lloyd's building in the City of London, and was constructed between 1990 and 1994. Twin four-storey office blocks arranged in an L shape are connected by a curved front with a dramatic concave glazed wall.

Despite nearly all Channel 4 programmes being commissioned from independent production companies, the Channel 4 headquarters originally contained a studio and post-production facility, marketed as 124 Facilities. The studio was used for Channel 4 programmes (such as T4 continuity), and other channels' programmes such as Channel 5's football coverage. The studio was closed at the end of October 2007 and only the post-production operation remains, though it is now managed by Red Bee Media.

Regions

Channel 4 has, since its inception, broadcast identical programmes and continuity throughout the United Kingdom (excluding Wales where it did not operate on analogue transmitters). At launch this made it unique, as both the BBC and ITV had long established traditions of providing regional variations in their programming and announcements between transmitters in different areas of the country (although in the case of BBC2, variations have by and large tended to be limited to national idents as opposed to regional ones). In ITV's case, this was a consequence of its inherent federal structure (see ITV companies). Since the launch of subsequent British television channels, Channel 4 has become typical in its lack of variations of this nature.

A few exceptions exist to this rule for programming and continuity: Ireland has a dedicated variant broadcast on Sky Ireland which omits programmes for which broadcast rights are not held in Ireland. For example, the series Glee is not available on Channel 4 on Sky in Ireland.

Some of Channel 4's schools' programming (1980s/early '90s) were regionalised due to differences in curricula between different regions.

Part of Channel 4's remit covers the commissioning of programmes from outside London. Channel 4 has a dedicated director of nations and regions, Stuart Cosgrove, who is based in a regional office in Glasgow. As his job title suggests, it is his responsibility to foster relations with independent producers based in areas of the United Kingdom (including Wales) outside of London.

Advertising on Channel 4 does contain regular variation: prior to 1993, when ITV was responsible for selling Channel 4's advertising, each regional ITV company would provide the content of advertising breaks, covering the same transmitter area as themselves, and these breaks were often unique to that area. After Channel 4 became responsible for its own advertising, it continued to offer advertisers the ability to target particular audiences and divided its coverage area into six parts coining the term 'LEMNUS' standing for "London, The East [and South] of England, The Midlands, The North of England, Ulster and Scotland.

At present, Wales does not have its own advertising region, instead its viewers receive the southern region on digital platforms intentionally broadcast to the area, or the neighbouring region where analogue transmissions spill over into Wales. Ireland (the Republic) shares its advertising region with Northern Ireland (referred to by Channel 4 as the 'Ulster Macro') with many advertisers selling products for Ireland here. E4 has an advertising variant for Ireland, although Northern Ireland receives the UK version of E4. The six regions are also carried on satellite, cable and Digital Terrestrial.

Channel 5 and GMTV use a similar model to Channel 4 for providing their own advertising regions, despite also having a single national output of programming.

Future possibility of regional news

With ITV plc pushing for much looser requirements on the amount of regional news and other programming it is obliged to broadcast in its ITV regions, the idea of Channel 4 taking on a regional news commitment has been considered, with the corporation in talks with Ofcom and ITV over the matter. Channel 4 believe that a scaling-back of such operations on ITV's part would be detrimental to Channel 4's national news operation, which shares much of its resources with ITV through their shared news contractor ITN. At the same time, Channel 4 also believe that such an additional public service commitment would bode well in on-going negotiations with Ofcom in securing additional funding for its other public service commitments.

Annual Reports and Financial Statements

Annual Reports and Financial Statements 1983-Present

See also

Annan Committee

Ban This Filth

Channel 4 News

Channel 4 programming

Channel 4 Sheffield Pitch competition

List of British television channels

3 Minute Wonder

Wank Week

References

External links

''Media Guardian'' special report on Channel 4

Channel 4 on TV Ark

Category:Peabody Award winners Category:Media companies based in London Category:Statutory corporations of the United Kingdom government Category:1982 establishments in the United Kingdom Category:Television channels and stations established in 1982

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The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful or The Mighty Coterie (, ''Moguchaya kuchka''), refers to a circle of composers who met in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in the years 1856–1870: Mily Balakirev (the leader), César Cui, Modest Mussorgsky, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Alexander Borodin. The group had the aim of producing a specifically Russian kind of art music, rather than one that imitated older European music or relied on European-style conservatory training. In a sense, they were a branch of the Romantic Nationalist movement in Russia, sharing similar artistic goals with the Abramtsevo Colony and Russian Revival.

History

Name

In May 1867 the critic Vladimir Stasov wrote an article, ''Mr. Balakirev's Slavic Concert'', on a concert given for visiting Slav delegations to the "All-Russian Ethnographical Exhibition" in Moscow. The four Russian composers whose works were played at the concert were Mikhail Glinka, Alexander Dargomyzhsky, Mily Balakirev, and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. The article ended with the following statement:

The expression "mighty handful" (, ''Moguchaya kuchka'', "Mighty Bunch" or "Group"), was mocked by enemies of Balakirev and Stasov: Aleksandr Serov, academic circles of the conservatory, the Russian Musical Society, and their press supporters. The group responded by defiantly adopting the name. (although today the Russian equivalent "Пятерка" ("Pyatyorka") is occasionally used to refer to this group.). In his memoirs, Rimsky-Korsakov routinely refers to the group as "Balakirev's circle", and occasionally uses "The Mighty Handful", usually with an ironic tone. He also makes the following reference to "The Five":

The Russian word ''kuchka'' also spawned the terms "kuchkism" and "kuchkist", which may be applied to artistic aims or works in tune with the sensibilities of The Mighty Handful.

The name of Les Six, an even looser collection of French-speaking composers, emulates that of "The Five".

Formation

The formation of the group began in 1856, with the first meeting of Balakirev and César Cui. Modest Mussorgsky joined them in 1857, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1861, and Alexander Borodin in 1862. All the composers in The Five were young men in 1862. Balakirev was 25, Cui 27, Mussorgsky 23, Borodin the eldest at 28, and Rimsky-Korsakov just 18. They were all self-trained amateurs. Borodin combined composing with a career in chemistry. Rimsky-Korsakov was a naval officer (he wrote his First Symphony on a three-year naval voyage circumnavigating the globe). Mussorgsky had been in the Guards, then in the civil service before taking up music; even at the height of his career in the 1870s he was forced by the expense of his drinking habit to hold down a full-time job in the State Forestry Department.

In contrast to the élite status and court connections of Conservatory composers such as Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, The Five were mainly from the minor gentry of the provinces. To some degree their ''esprit de corps'' depended on the myth, which they themselves created, of a movement that was more "authentically Russian," in the sense that it was closer to the native soil, than the classic academy.

Before them, Mikhail Glinka and Alexander Dargomyzhsky had gone some way towards producing a distinctly Russian kind of music, writing operas on Russian subjects, but The Mighty Handful represented the first concentrated attempt to develop such a music, with Stasov as their artistic adviser and Dargomyzhsky as an elder statesman to the group, so to speak. The circle began to fall apart during the 1870s, no doubt partially due to the fact that Balakirev withdrew from musical life early in the decade for a period of time. All of "The Five" are buried in Tikhvin Cemetery in Saint Petersburg.

Musical language

Stylization

The musical language The Five developed set them far apart from the Conservatoire. This self-conscious Russian styling was based on two elements:

They tried to incorporate in their music what they heard in village songs, in Cossack and Caucasian dances, in church chants and the tolling of church bells (to the point where the bell tolling became a cliché). The Five's music became filled with imitative sounds of Russian life. They also tried to reproduce the long-drawn, lyrical and melismatic peasant song, what Glinka had once called "the soul of Russian music." Balakirev made this possible by his study of songs from the Volga in the 1860s. More than any previous anthology, his transcriptions artfully preserved the distinctive aspects of Russian folk music:

*Tonal mutability

:A tune seems to shift naturally from one tonal center to another, often ending up in a different key than the one in which the song began. This can produce a feeling of elusiveness, a lack of definition or of logical progression in the harmony. Even when stylized by The Five, this quality can make Russian music sound very different from the tonal structures of the West.

*Heterophony

:A melody is simultaneously rendered by two or more performers in different variations. This is improvised by the singers until the end, when the song reverts to a single melodic line.

*Parallel fifths, fourths and thirds

:The effect lends Russian music a raw sonority missing entirely from the comparatively polished harmonies of Western music.

The Five also adopted a series of harmonic devices to create a distinct "Russian" style and color different from Western music. This "exotic" styling of "Russia" was not just self-conscious but entirely invented. None of these devices was actually used in Russian folk or church music:

*Whole tone scale

:Although Glinka did not invent this scale, his application of it in the opera ''Ruslan and Lyudmila'' (1842) — most recognizable at the end of the festive overture — provided a characteristic harmonic and melodic device. This scale in "Russian" works often suggests evil or ominous personages or situations. It was used by all the major composers from Tchaikovsky (the appearance of the Countess's ghost in ''The Queen of Spades'') to Rimsky-Korsakov (in all his magic-story operas—''Sadko'', ''Kashchey the Deathless'' and ''The Invisible City of Kitezh''). Claude Debussy also uses this scale in his music, taking this, among many things, from the Russians. Later it became a standard device in horror-movie scores.

The Russian submediant

:Also linked to Glinka's ''Ruslan'', this is a harmonic pattern (in major mode) in which one upper part proceeds from the dominant pitch chromatically to the submediant while the other harmony parts remain constant. The most basic form of this pattern can be shown as follows (beginning with typical tonic): root-position tonic triad --> root-position augmented tonic triad -> 1st inversion submediant minor triad. A famous example of the Russian submediant occurs in the very opening bars of the third movement of Rimsky-Korsakov's ''Scheherezade''.

*Diminished or octatonic scale

:Rimsky-Korsakov first used this in his symphonic poem ''Sadko'' in 1867. This scale became a sort of Russian calling-card — a ''leitmotif'' of magic and menace used not just by Rimsky-Korsakov but all of his followers, above all Alexander Scriabin, Maurice Ravel, Igor Stravinsky and Olivier Messiaen (mode 2).

*Modular rotation in sequences of thirds

:The Five made this device of Franz Liszt their own to base a loose symphonic-poem type of structure. This way, they could avoid the rigid Western laws of modulation in sonata form, allowing the form of a musical composition to be shaped entirely by the "content" of the music (its programmatic statements and visual descriptions) rather than by formal laws of symmetry. This loose structure became especially important for Mussorgsky's ''Pictures at an Exhibition'', a work that may have done more than any other to define the Russian style.

*Pentatonic scale

:This stylistic aspect became used by every Russian nationalist composer. Its distinctive feature is to have only five notes in the octave, rather than the seven of the heptatonic scales (e.g., major and minor). The pentatonic scale is one of the ways of suggesting a "primitive" folk-melodic style as well as the "Eastern" element (Middle East, Asia). A melodic example of the "major-mode" pentatonic scale (C-D-E-G-A) can be heard at the entrance of the chorus at the beginning of Borodin's ''Prince Igor''.

Orientalism

One hallmark of "The Five" was its reliance on orientalism. Many quintessentially "Russian" works were composed in orientalist style, such as Balakirev's ''Islamey'', Borodin's ''Prince Igor'' and Rimsky-Korsakov's ''Scheherazade''. Orientalism, in fact, became widely considered in the West both one of the best-known aspects of Russian music and a trait of Russian national character. As leader of "The Five," Balakirev encouraged the use of eastern themes and harmonies to set their "Russian" music apart from the German symphonism of Anton Rubinstein and other Western-oriented composers. Because Rimsky-Korsakov used Russian folk and oriental melodies in his First Symphony, Stasov and the other nationalists dubbed it the "First Russian Symphony," even though Rubinstein had written his ''Ocean'' Symphony a dozen years before it. These were themes Balakirev had transcribed in the Caucasus. "The symphony is good," Cui wrote to Rimsky-Korsakov in 1863, while the latter was out on naval deployment. "We played it a few days ago at Balakirev's—to the great pleasure of Stassov. It is really Russian. Only a Russian could have composed it, because it lacks the slightest trace of any stagnant Germanness."

Orientalism was not confined to using authentic Eastern melodies. What became more important than the melodies themselves were the musical conventions added to them. These conventions allowed orientalism to become an avenue for writing music on subjects considered unmentionable otherwise, such as political themes and erotic fantasies. It also became a means of expressing Russian supremacy as the empire expanded under Alexander II. This was often reinforced through misogynist symbolism—the rational, active and moral Western man versus the irrational, passive and immoral Eastern woman.

Two major works entirely dominated by orientalism are Rimsky-Korsakov's symphonic suite ''Antar'' and Balakirev's symphonic poem ''Tamara''. ''Antar'', set in Arabia, uses two different styles of music, Western (Russian) and Eastern (Arabian). The first theme, Antar's, is masculine and Russian in character. The second theme, feminine and oriental in melodic contour, belongs to the queen, Gul Nazar. Rimsky-Korsakov was able to soften the implicit misogyny to some extent. However, female sensuality does exert a paralyzing, ultimately destructive influence. With Gul Nazar extinguishing Antar's life in a final embrace, the woman overcomes the man.

Balakirev gives a more overtly misogynistic view of oriental women in ''Tamara''. He had originally planned to write a Caucasan dance called a ''lezginka'', modeled on Glinka, for this work. However, he discovered a poem by Mikhail Lermontov about the beautiful Tamara, who lived in a tower alongside the gorge of Daryal. She lured travelers and allowed them to enjoy a night of sensual delights, only to kill them and throw their bodies into the River Terek. Balakirev uses two specific codes endemic to orientalism in writing ''Tamara''. The first code, based on obsessive rhythms, note repetitions, climactic effects and accelerated tempi, represents Dionysian intoxication. The second code, consisting of unpredictable rhythms, irregular phrasing and based on long passages with many repeat notes, augmented and diminished intervals and extended melismas, depict sensual longing. Not only did Balakirev use these codes extensively, but he also attempted to supercharge them further when he revised the orchestration of ''Tamara'' in 1898.

A direct result of such orientalism was the big influence that this circle left on the formation of classical traditions in other nations of the east and south of Russia. For instance, one of Rimsky-Korsakov's famous students, Alexander Spendiaryan went on to become the founder of Armenian classical music, carrying on the traditions and aesthetics of the Mighty Handful to the Caucasus.

Quotations

Rimsky-Korsakov provides the following picture of "The Mighty Handful" in his memoirs, ''Chronicle of My Musical Life'' (translated by J. A. Joffe):

Tastes

Balakirev

Abilities

Influence

Except perhaps for Cui, the members of this group influenced or taught many of the great Russian composers who were to follow, including Alexander Glazunov, Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov, Sergei Prokofiev, Igor Stravinsky, and Dmitri Shostakovich.

Timeline

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See also

Music of Russia

List of Russian composers

Tchaikovsky and the Five

Les Six, French composers

Armenian Mighty Handful

The Turkish Five

Group of Eight (music), Spanish composers

References

External links

Encyclopædia Britannica article about "The Five"

The Article about The Five in "1000 years of Russian Music"

Turgenev and Russian Music: The Mighty Handful (with music samples)

Russian musical influences of The Five on works of Claude Debussy

Category:Articles about multiple people 5 Category:Russian composers *

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We Five was a 1960s folk rock musical group based in San Francisco, California. Their best-known hit was their 1965 remake of Ian and Sylvia's "You Were on My Mind", which reached #1 on the Cashbox chart, #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The original group split after recording their second album in 1967, but a re-formed band produced three more albums between 1968 and 1977. The original group is probably best remembered for the vocal qualities of its lead singer Beverly Bivens .

Biography

Formation and organization

Michael Stewart formed We Five after graduating from Pomona Catholic High School and attending Mt. San Antonio College. He was the brother of John Stewart of the Kingston Trio and came from Claremont, California. When Michael was a student at the University of San Francisco in 1964, he formed We Five as a quartet, although it soon added another member. The group played adult rock 'n roll, pop jazz, Broadway show tunes, and Disney tunes. Stewart did all the arrangements, which ranged from ''These Are My Favorite Things'', in a style which reflected Bach, to ''Very Merrily Un-birthday''. He put in several additional hours working on arrangements after the five band members worked together for five or six hours each day.

The ensemble played acoustic guitars, electric guitar and bass and multi-part sang harmonies. The original quintet line-up, which grew out of a band called the Ridgerunners, included:

Michael Stewart (Baritone-Bass, 5-String Banjo, 6-String Acoustic Guitar, 9-String Amplified Guitar)

Beverly Bivens (Low Tenor to High Soprano, Rhythm Guitar)

Jerry Burgan (Tenor, 6-String Acoustic Guitar)

Peter Fullerton (Tenor, Acoustic & Fender Bass)

Bob Jones (Baritone-Tenor, 6-String Electric Jazz Guitar, 12-String Electric Guitar).

1965-1970

The Herb Alpert owned label, A&M; Records, responded to the new popularity of folk and rock music by adding new artists starting in 1965 to its existing line-up of middle-of-the road material turned out by Alpert's Tijuana Brass, the Baja Marimba Band, and Brasil '66. In addition to We Five, Alpert's label released albums by Boyce and Hart, the Garden Club, Chris Montez, and the The Merry-Go-Round.

We Five's first album produced a major hit with the title tune, Stewart's re-arrangement of the Ian and Sylvia song "You Were on My Mind". Stewart made several changes to the original Sylvia Tyson composition, and the song went directly to the Billboard Top Five in 1965. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. In February 1966 We Five was nominated for a Grammy for Best Performance By A Vocal Group (for "You Were on My Mind"), against the Beatles among others, but they lost the award to the Anita Kerr Quartet. They were also the first commercial folk-rock artist to record music for Coca-Cola. The group added a touring drummer named John Chambers so that it could tour behind its hit.

After completing their second album, ''Make Someone Happy'', later in 1966, lead singer Beverly Bivens decided to leave the group. The group nevertheless had a hit from this album in 1967 with its arrangement of the popular Kingston Trio folk tune "Let's Get Together," which reached #31 on the Billboard Hot 100 (and was later a Top Five hit and a million-seller for The Youngbloods as "Get Together"). To continue, We Five replaced Bivens with Debbie Graf Burgan (wife of guitarist Jerry Burgan) and added a full-time drummer in Mick Gillespie for live performances.

We Five was among the artists included in a preliminary injunction issued by the Los Angeles Superior Court in April 1968. The edict prohibited pirating of A&M; artists, including the Tijuana Brass and The Sandpipers. The action was directed against Superba Tapes, Inc., of Lancaster, California. The company had copied tapes of the recordings and sold them to the public without paying royalties to the artists.

The group would record two albums with Debbie Burgan singing lead, 1969's ''Return of the We Five'' for A&M; and 1970's ''Catch the Wind'' for Vault. Neither album came close to the success of the earlier Bivens material. In 1970, Stewart, Jones and Fullerton all quit We Five, breaking up the original band.

Subsequent events

After We Five split up, Debbie Graf and Jerry Burgan kept a version of the group going through 1977. This group recorded another album in 1977, ''Take Each Day as It Comes'' for AVI Records before also disbanding.

Various versions of the band featuring the Burgans have remained together for the next 30 years. The Burgans in March 2009 contributed an original song, "For Old Times," to an online-novel-with-music-tracks entitled "Alt. Country," scheduled to appear on the website of author Alan Rifkin.

Bob Jones is also a member of the current version of the band, which is now officially known as "We Five Folk Rock Revival." Later editions of the band also included Frank Denson, who went on to write music for television shows, including ''Magnum, P.I.'', ''Tales of the Gold Monkey'', and ''Blossom''; plus between 1968 and 1970 the drummer Mick Gillespie.

Peter Fullerton left the music business in 1970 to minister to the homeless and needy: he is the founder of the California-based organization "Truck of Love."

Michael Stewart appeared in occasional reunions with We Five from 1978 to 1989. He became a record producer (most notably for Billy Joel) and a pioneering developer of MIDI music software. He died on November 13, 2002 at age 57 as a result of "a long illness." An unsubstantiated internet blog rumor suggests that Stewart in fact committed suicide.

In 2009, after many years of seclusion, Beverly Bivens sang at the opening of an exhibition, mounted by the Performing Arts Library & Museum in San Francisco, of the rock scene in the Bay area in the mid sixties to early seventies.

"There Stands the Door - The Best of We Five" was released by Big Beat Records (CDWIKD 286) in 2009. The compilation included selections from both albums plus several unreleased recordings by the original group.

Discography

''You Were On My Mind'' (1965) A&M; LP-111/SP-4111

''Make Someone Happy'' (1967) A&M; LP-138/SP-4138

''The Return of We Five'' (1969) A&M; SP-4168

''Catch the Wind'' (1970) Vault 136

''Take Each Day as It Comes'' (1977) AVI 6016

''There Stands the Door - The Best of We Five'' (2009) Big Beat CWIDK 286

See also

List of bands from the San Francisco Bay Area

References

External links

Official Site

We Five on A&M; Records

Category:Rock music groups from California Category:Musical groups from San Francisco, California Category:Musical groups established in 1964