Channel 4

From the Audiovisual Identity Database, the motion graphics museum


Channel 4 primarily refers to the British free-to-air public broadcast television channel known for its innovative and diverse programming. It is publicly owned but commercially funded through advertising, unlike the BBC which is funded by a license fee.

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Main Idents

1st ID (November 2, 1982-October 10, 1996)

 
Bo Gehring reel variant

Visuals:

  • Station ID: Eight blocks of different sizes but comprising of its matching coloUrs: blue, purple, yellow and green, with a single red bar, form the number "4" on a black background. There are several animations on how this happens:
    • Round and Back: The logo, already formed, spins around, the blocks, in turn, spinning before setting back into place.
    • Interlock: Hundreds of little blocks fly in from the top right of the screen. The camera pans across as they go off the bottom left and sets in the middle, where the blocks form the logo.
    • Implosion/Explosion: The blocks spin onto the screen from various places, setting and forming the logo in the center. The latter name refers to a reversed version of it, mainly used for closedowns.
    • Space Trip: The logo, already formed, breaks apart into hundreds of blocks that fly off the bottom left screen. They reappear from the top right and set back to reform the logo.
    • Space Squad: Hundreds of multicolored blocks fly in from the right side of the screen, flying past the camera in some cases. The camera shifts around to reveal the blocks forming the logo.
    • A still image of the formed logo (retired in November 1992).
  • Accompanying clock ident:
    • The hours are represented by white bars for each hour, with the second, minute, and hour hands being yellow, red, and blue respectively. A flat 2D version of the Channel 4 logo can be seen in the top right corner of the screen.
    • Starting in July 1994, the clock was given a hazy gray ring around the hour hands, and the logo is also pushed further into the corner as well.
    • In the Christmas of 1983 and 1985, the clock is superimposed on the backgrounds of the programming menus.

Trivia:

  • During the 1980s, back when there were no rules about advertising tobacco products on TV in the UK, a commercial for Hamlet's cigars aired that was a parody of the 4 ident, though it was still produced and animated by the same company behind the standard logo.
  • This ident was also reused on December 28, 2020, as a tribute to Martin Lambie-Nairn, who had died on Christmas Day.
  • Similar to the above, the ident was also reused (specifically the "Round and Back" variant, though it slowly zooms in as well) throughout the day on January 22, 2021, alongside other '80s era presentation animations, to promote the show It's a Sin. The on-screen bug and break bumpers seen during shows were also modified to show the colors of this logo.

Variants: There are various versions of this logo. Below are some examples:

  • These logos had unique variations for certain shows, such as American football (the blocks forming an American football player wearing a helmet) and Football Italia (a football strikes the formed logo, turning it into the colours of the Italian flag).
  • A Christmas tape from 1985 had it stylized after an old B&W film print, complete with a deteriorated version of Fourscore as well.
  • Christmas idents:
    • Christmas 1982: The animation of the logo is superimposed on a background of a shiny Christmas bauble with several glowing lines. A 2D still variant with snow piled on the logo was also used as well.
    • Christmas 1983: Like in 1982, the animation is superimposed on a background, although this time consists of a starry sky.
    • Christmas 1984: On a dark blue background with a snow floor, there is a snowman in the shape of the Channel 4 logo. Snow constantly falls.
    • Christmas 1985-1986?: The animation goes as usual. However, the logo eventually gradually turns from multicoloured to frozen at the end.
    • Christmas 1987: Essentially, the same ident, with just a Christmas version of the Fourscore theme.
    • Christmas 1988: There is a metallic version of the Channel 4 logo, while the screen constantly shows different glowing curves and lines appearing. Some glow appears in sync with the Fourscore theme.
    • Christmas 1989: On a murky dark red/black background, a blue cup is seen on the bottom, glowing furiously and giving off mist. This mist shows the Channel 4 logo in a ghastly shade of blue, with most of it disappearing from the lack of it.
    • Christmas 1990: A clear prism version of the logo is seen on a whiteboard, where the light shines and shifts through it. The Fourscore theme is also given a new arrangement with a female chorus and twinkles, giving it a heavenly-sounding video.
    • Christmas 1991: The screen fades through three different close-up shots of the logo, where various colourful imagery of patterns flashes on it. The logo then fades to the logo tilting into position, with the main centerpiece of this year's theme (a 4-pointed star with a test card-like pattern on the back, also covered in various colourful images) faded into the background.
    • Christmas 1992: The logo is rendered in a stained glass-like look, with a colourful pattern of squares surrounding it and the black square, and it features it zooming out and shining. The theme is also a medieval-styled version of the 1992 theme.
    • Christmas 1993: Going with the "Christmas in New York" theme, the logo starts with a different shot of NYC around Christmas time. The shot then defocuses, revealing the Channel 4 logo in white. The sounds of the city, as well as a reverse cymbal crash and ding when the logo forms, are heard.
    • Christmas 1994: Like a revised version of the 1985 variant, the logo freezes over in a thin layer of frost, with rotating sparkles on the inside. Freezing sounds and sparkles are also heard.
    • Christmas 1995: A metallic version of the logo, along with a star on top, is seen before the logo slides in on itself. The star grows as well and flashes with the colours of the logo, radiating off its lights of it as well. A modified version of the logo, mirrored on both sides to resemble a Christmas tree, slides out of itself and starts rotating. A mysterious-sounding synth tune plays throughout.
  • Between June and August 1996, the text reading "Subtitles on Teletext page 888" either appears or fades in below the logo, which was used for a short time.

Technique: CGI animation. The logo was designed by Robinson/Lambie-Nairn and animated by the defunct Los Angeles-based CGI company Bo Gehring and Associates, as there was no computer at the time that was able to animate the logo in the UK.

Audio:

  • November 2, 1982-November 1, 1992: A bombastic four-note fanfare called "Fourscore" composed by David Dundas, who also composed the regional ident music for ITV. Various versions of the jingle were used. The still version was silent aside from the continuity announcer.
  • November 2, 1992-October 10, 1996: A new fanfare was introduced, based on the original one. It would feature various reprises of the same basic tune, usually accompanied by four chimes, and also features a loud gong at the end. This version was brought in to replace the original jingle, as it was costing the channel too much to keep in use. David Dundas was paid GBP£3.50 every time the original jingle was used, amounting to him earning around GBP£1000 a week.

Audio Trivia: At the time, "Fourscore" was the shortest musical piece to be copyrighted, and a full version, originally played on launch day, was released as a single on vinyl records. The album's reverse side also featured a calmer, synthesized version of the jingle (not related in any way to the 1992 version), also composed by David Dundas, called "Fourscore II". This version was used to accompany stills where there was a technical issue and was also used to fill up the time allotted for commercial breaks if a region's ITV franchise had not sold enough commercials to fill the timeslot.

Audio Variants:

  • On Bo Gehring's 1982 animation reel, a different synth tune is heard. This tune is taken from the production libraries of Dallas-based jingle company JAM Creative Productions.
  • When an important person (e.g. a member of Parliament) died, a more somber version of Fourscore was played in memoriam.

2nd ID (October 11, 1996-April 1, 1999)

Visuals: Footage of live-action places which suddenly blur, and four circles are quickly formed on the screen, one of which contains the Channel 4 logo from before. They are arranged in various ways.

Variants:

  • Other idents had a softer transition. The footage blurs as the four circles land on it, with several waves coming from the circles.
  • Christmas Idents:
    • Christmas 1996: The footages centre around Santa, who is treated like a standard English citizen. The animation of the circles is intact.
    • Christmas 1997: On a white background, a lot of baby blue circles (with one containing the Channel 4 logo) are flashing. They sometimes turn purple, or get cut by white lines.

Technique: 2D computer animation superimposed over live-action footage. Produced by Tomato.

Audio: The noises of the live-action footage ending in either a whoosh or a bunch of synth sounds.

3rd ID (April 2, 1999-December 30, 2004)

Visuals: Although varied, most of the idents featured a moving background made from a bunch of rectangles. Then, the "4", now on a white square, is formed in a sort of way on the right. The animation continues while the announcer is present.

Variants:

  • April-December 1999: These idents were created by Spin, and mostly featured the rectangles in the same color tones, while the square with the number "4" was formed by a scanning pulse. Other versions had different fast-paced footage of places showing while the rectangles are moving.
  • December 1999-December 2001: These idents were created by STATIC. The lines now feature more different shades, has the Channel 4 logo shown in different ways rather than just being "scanned". Like before, fast-paced footage can be seen, although this time in the same shades as the rectangles.
  • January 2002-December 30, 2004: Another ident set created by Spin. This time the animation was focused on different ambiances, rather than just the rectangles. The Channel 4 logo still has different ways to appear. Starting in May 2002, the Channel 4 URL "channel4.com" is added below the logo.
  • Christmas Idents:
    • Christmas 2000-2003: While the bars are barely seen, a lot of snow is falling to the right. The same square appears but shows a tree at first, then shows the Channel 4 logo. Red and light blue versions are known to be used.
  • South Park Idents:
    • Eric Cartman: On an orange version of the lines background, Eric Cartman stands to the right, facing the camera while holding a box of Cheesy Poofs in front of a brick wall and some snow-covered mountains. Cartman looks to the left before looking shocked and facing the camera fearfully as a dark orange line races towards him and falls over on him on contact, which angers him. He tries to push away the line only for more and more lines to race forth and fall over on him, causing him to throw a screeching tantrum and shake his Cheesy Poofs box in rage, causing it to emit a cloud of cheesy dust each time. The last line passes through and wipes the scene away to reveal the Channel 4 logo.
    • Kyle Broflovski: On an indigo version of the lines background, Kyle Broflovski stands to the right, holding a tan box in front of and in-between Main Street's long red and small olive green buildings. The lid of the box begins to shake, which Kyle notices, and Mr. Hankey flies out and waves his right arm. He then jumps onto and all around the indigo background, leaving fecal smears as he does so and causing Kyle to stare at the camera in concern. He then jumps back over to Kyle to leave a smear on the olive green building before going back into the box and the indigo background wipes away the scene to reveal the Channel 4 logo.
    • There are two idents featuring Kenny McCormick:
      • On a similar background as the Kyle ident, to the right is Kenny McCormick standing at the Bus Stop. He looks to the left and up for a moment before looking back at the camera and tightening his hood out of fear as a dark blue line races towards him. The line briefly stops, squishing his head as it does so, before proceeding to move and crushing his head, leaving a thin bloody line. The Channel 4 logo wipes in.
      • Another ident plays out similarly to the above, but this time, the line decapitates Kenny, and his head shakes and falls to the ground before his neck spurts blood once.
    • Stan Marsh: On a teal version of the lines background, Stan Marsh is to the right, at the Bus Stop. He then hears Wendy Testaburger greet him, which makes him vomit green barf in front of him and to both his sides in bursts. He then continues vomiting in bursts, which eventually fills his area with vomit nearly to the top of the screen, and the Channel 4 logo wipes in as he does so.
    • Chef: On a blue version of the lines background, Chef is to the right, in a grey room in front of a door that has a yellow "IN" sign above it. A dark blue line races towards Chef, exciting him, and when it reaches him, he hugs it and rubs his hands up and down it before tilting it to the left and smiling. He then tilts it to the right and begins kissing it before straightening it and rubbing his hands on and kissing it again before the blue background gradually wipes away the scene and the Channel 4 logo wipes in.

Technique: 2D computer animation done by British design agency Spin.

Audio: It depends on the variant shown.

  • April-December 1999: The music theme was a remix of the track Upstream by d*note. A loud sound is heard when the Channel 4 logo is formed.
  • December 1999-December 2001: Different kind of tunes focused around a calm theme.
  • January 2002-December 30, 2004: Different sort of synth tunes.

4th ID (December 31, 2004-September 28, 2015)

Visuals: There is an area or a part of the environment. Around the middle of the ident, the Channel 4 logo will form for a split second, made up of various objects depending on the variant.

Trivia:

  • The Simpsons Homer ident was a unique animation commissioned by 4Creative, and was produced by Gracie Films and animated by Film Roman and Rough Draft Korea. The animation from this ident was worked into the couch gag for the season 25 episode "Specs and the City" with some alterations (rather than the original hammock scene, Homer is watching the Super Bowl and discovers that Bart threw the pack of Duff onto the power lines outside, leading into the animation from the ident), and whilst the lighting effects during the power outage scene were altered to remove the giant 4 logo, it can still be clearly seen in the street outlines if one looks closely enough.
  • The Rollercoaster variant was entirely filmed at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California.
  • The Abbey ident was filmed at Bayham Old Abbey.
  • During April Fool's Day 2011, all idents used on-screen were edited to remove the Channel 4 logo completely.
  • Many of these idents can also be seen briefly in the 2013-2016 Channel 4 DVD logo.

Variants: There are many idents:

Original 2004 set:

  • Bowls: There is a group of people playing lawn bowls outside as hedges in the shape of the Channel 4 logo parts fly around. Most of them don't notice, but one elderly lady on a bench turns around to see the sights in front of her. The Channel 4 logo is briefly made out of the shadows of the levitating hedges. This ident was often used to introduce live cricket coverage live tests and highlights. There is also a shorter version of this ident, which was only shown before a Deal or No Deal episode, which aired on September 21, 2009.
  • Diner: The Channel 4 logo is briefly formed during the panning of an American diner/motel. This ident was often used to introduce the news.
  • Flats: The screen pans through the balcony of a dark and dreary apartment complex (usually referred to as 'flats' in the UK), with the Channel 4 logo briefly forming from parts of the surrounding buildings. This ident was often used to introduce The Land Before Time (1988 film).
  • Dubai: The camera sweeps across the Dubai landscape, showing lots of buildings under construction, and the Channel 4 logo forms from the various buildings.
  • Hay Bales: The screen pans across a landscape of fields with hay bales dotted around, with the Channel 4 logo forming from levitating hay bales, one of which is on fire.
  • Pigeon: There are some pigeons flying onto Trafalgar Square in London, the capital of the U.K., and walking on a large Channel 4 logo on a plinth. The logo then squeezes itself and retracts, causing some of the pigeons to either fly away or die (not visibly).
  • Market: The camera walks through a busy street market, with the Channel 4 logo briefly coming into view overhead formed from various market stands and carts.
  • Pylons: The camera is situated in a car driving down a country road surrounded by large electricity pylons when it pans to the back of the car to reveal the Channel 4 logo briefly appearing from pieces of the pylons.
  • Taxi: There are various taxi cabs in an American city, swerving around the road whilst the camera focuses on levitating blocks overhead. The blocks briefly appear to form the Channel 4 logo.
  • Roadworks: The sequence starts inside a car driving down a motorway, with visible floating roadworks signs in the distance. A car in front swerves to the left and the Channel 4 logo appears formed from roadworks signs.
  • Alien: A woman and a man donning a cowboy hat are stuck worried in a car as mysterious metal objects fly around them and form the Channel 4 logo twice.

In 2006 and 2007, extra idents were added to the set:

  • Containers: The camera pans through a shipping port with various containers and other mechanical devices. The Channel 4 logo briefly appears formed from containers and distant structures.
  • Tokyo: The camera walks through a busy street in Tokyo, before turning around to reveal the Channel 4 logo briefly forming from neon signs and building parts.
  • Stage: The camera starts at the top of a music stage and slowly pans down into the field below, with the Channel 4 logo appearing from various speakers, lights, and a cart.
  • Rollercoaster: The Channel 4 logo is briefly formed during a first-person rollercoaster ride. There is also a shorter version of this ident, which was only shown before The Rugrats Movie.
  • Rocks: The back of a large rock peeks out of the ocean, and the camera pans around it to briefly reveal the Channel 4 logo made up of lots of rocks.
  • Homer: Homer Simpson puts a pack of Duff beer on his hammock, but the force created by him lying on it causes the cans to fly up onto the electrical lines. He screams and falls off the hammock, and climbs up a tree to try and retrieve the cans. However, every time he tries to grab them he gets electrocuted. Night falls, and he tries one last time to get the cans. The shock causes one of them to open, and he tries drinking the can and gets electrocuted at the same time. The screen pans out from the Simpsons' backyard to reveal that every time he drinks, a power outage briefly flashes and forms the Channel 4 logo.

In 2010, more idents were added to the set. Some idents, such as Roadworks and Alien, were removed from the lineup.

  • Junkyard: The screen pans across a junkyard to see a forklift grabbing some broken cars. A stack of junk and the forklift itself briefly form the Channel 4 logo. This ident originally aired as part of Channel 4's '3D Week' in 2009, before joining the main lineup in 2010.
  • Blackpool: The sequence starts on the sidewalk as various people are walking down the street. The camera pans up and around to reveal the Channel 4 logo, formed from buildings, signs, and part of the Blackpool Tower.
  • Airplanes: The camera pans through a largely deserted area full of old aircraft, before panning up into the sky to briefly reveal the Channel 4 logo formed from said aircraft.
  • Abbey: The screen pans through the old ruins of an abbey, with bunnies running away from the camera, as it pans out to reveal the Channel 4 logo.

Technique: CGI animation incorporated into live-action footage, produced by The Moving Picture Company.

Audio: Depending on the logo variant shown.

5th ID (September 29, 2015-October 30, 2017)


Visuals: One of four different surreal footages (which are shown in different lengths). The Channel 4 logo is not directly seen; instead, its parts are seen scattered across the idents.

Technique: Live-action. These idents were filmed by renowned music video and commercial director Jonathan Glazer.

Audio: An ambient tune composed by Mica Levi for each ident.

6th ID (September 29, 2015-April 29, 2023)

Visuals:

  • Station ID: Several blocks bash about on a coloured background, each block being part of the Channel 4 logo.
  • Accompanying clock ident: The clock makes a return for the first time in 20 years, being a large pile of blocks. The blocks are seen around 2 invisible clock hands, which bounce in real-time with the ticking. There are also several different colour variations.

Variants:

  • A Simpsons variant is aired before episodes of The Simpsons, although not all the time. In this one, the blocks, which are all in a yellow color, keep moving toward different parts of the blue background, along with a pair of circular shapes resembling eyes with small black pupils. Although new bumpers were introduced on June 19, 2017, this one is still used in one way or another, either still being used before an episode, or as a bumper between episodes.
  • Another ident is used for the coverage of Formula 1 motor racing, with red blocks on a blue background.
  • Beginning on June 19, 2017, all new break bumpers were made, this time actually showing the logo being formed in some matter before being thrown about.
  • In the event of a death in the Royal Family or other emergency matters, a more somber, all-gray bumper will be used instead. The background has a unique shimmer to it as the blocks silently move slightly in the lower-right corner.

Technique: CGI animation. These idents were animated by DBLG.

Audio: None usually. The Simpsons variant uses several loud saxophone notes (obviously alluding to Lisa Simpson's love of the saxophone on the show) that play in time to the blocks on screen moving.

7th ID (October 31, 2017-June 14, 2023)

Visuals: As with the previous idents, there are numerous different versions that run in different lengths. All idents feature a large metal construct that resembles a man, built out of the various parts of the Channel 4 logo.

  • One ident features the construct running alongside a group of Paralympic cyclists. It's eventually unable to keep up with them and stops by the side of the road, tiredly wheezing out the Fourscore tune, and collapses into pieces.
  • Another ident features the construct walking up a mountain path that overlooks a distant town. It stands out on one of the peaks, facing the town, and blares Fourscore, the sound and force of it causing havoc in the town, knocking a cyclist off their bike, causing animals to cry out, making a couple put on protective headsets, a person closing their window, and a man along with a group of schoolchildren trying to stand against the force of the blast. The construct eventually stops, chuckles, and it cuts back to the kids toppling over in unison.
  • Another ident features the construct playing in the middle of a street with a group of kids, kicking a football around. After a while, the construct kicks the ball wide, which ends up breaking the window of a nearby house. The angry occupant shouts at the group, giving chase as they all run away, the construct quickly playing the Fourscore tune.
  • The fourth ident features a kaiju-sized construct submerged in the ocean, barring the top of its head, upon which a group of people (who appear to be immigrants) are sitting. It emerges from the water as it approaches the white cliffs of Dover, allowing the people to dismount from it atop the cliffs. Once they are off, it walks back towards the sea, turning around to wave at the group as it blares Fourscore.

Trivia: These idents were filmed in Liverpool, the Peak District, and the White Cliffs of Dover.

Technique: Live-action with CGI animation. As with the 2004 idents, these were also produced by The Moving Picture Company.

Audio: The background music for each ident is a simple guitar track that borrows thematically from the channel's famous "Fourscore" tune from the first logo. The construct itself blares out the jingle at the end of every idents, sounding akin to a foghorn.

8th ID (November 2, 2022-)

Visuals: On a green/blue cube background, the blocks of the Channel 4 logo grow and spin, forming the logo. The background moves and changes colour throughout the ident, while the 4 changes positions to match with the background.

Trivia:

  • These are the first idents since 2004 to feature the full "4" logo for longer than a split second.
  • The 2023 Channel 4 rebrand, including this logo, won two Bronze Clios at the 2023 Clio Entertainment Awards.

Variants:

  • On May 3, 2023[1], to help promote the Channel 4 corporate rebrand, the ident was updated to feature a more dramatic jingle, different soundscape, and replaced the white Channel 4 logo with a neon green logo.
  • On May 7, 2023[2], a new ident was created to promote the Channel 4 streaming service. This ident opens with a living room containing a television displaying a home screen reminiscent of the Apple TV home screen. After the Channel 4 app is opened, a collage of shows available on the streaming service is panned around the screen.

Technique: CGI animation by 4Creative and Pentagram.

Audio: A calm 4-note jingle (not a rendition of Fourscore in any way for the first time since 2017), followed by ambient synth notes mixed in with whooshes. Composed by Anthony Moore at Factory Studios.

9th ID (June 14, 2023-)


Visuals: The camera pans around various scenes depending on the variant with the Channel 4 logo from before in white with a cube-shaped portal to the next scene.

Variants: There were 25 individual scenes commissioned for these idents, with each ident containing five scenes. A short film containing the scenes, complete with a voiceover, was also uploaded to Channel 4's YouTube channel. Listed below are the scenes in the order of which they appear in the film.

  • The Channel 4 logo (in its original colour scheme) is formed from a display of various snacks on a shelf in a convenience store, in an animation style reminiscent of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. A man walks by the display of snacks as the camera pans into a purple box labelled "McCourt's Pickled Pigeon."
  • The Channel 4 logo behind two men hugging each other in a dark room.
  • The Channel 4 logo in a black room, as food and kitchenware are thrown onto it in slow motion.
  • The Channel 4 logo in the middle of a Zoroastrian prayer ceremony being held in a living room as people chant.
  • The Channel 4 logo made up of people being tracked with boxed outlines in timelapsed drone footage. After a few seconds, the people being tracked move in different directions, deforming the logo as the camera pans into a doorway.
  • The Channel 4 logo glowing in the middle of a forest, being observed by three elderly people.
  • The Channel 4 logo is surrounded by crashing ocean waves in stormy weather as the camera becomes submerged.
  • A girl watching an inflatable globe being held up by a fan heater as the camera pans into the exhaust pipe. There is no Channel 4 logo to be seen here.
  • The Channel 4 logo in night vision footage, as a fox sniffs around the logo.
  • The Channel 4 logo at a beach with a father and his son sitting beside it, the latter reaching for the camera. The entire scene is in a VHS filter, with a timestamp of November 2nd, 1982, in the bottom left corner (referring to the channel's launch date).
  • The Channel 4 logo (in its original colour scheme) towering above a model railway being observed by men in suits.
  • The Channel 4 logo in a pink bedroom as a teenage girl walks around and checks her phone.
  • The Channel 4 logo made of cardboard boxes being carried around by robots in a warehouse. The camera is in a bird's eye view as it pans into one of the boxes.
  • An elephant walking across a boardroom table as the camera pans into a model house. The Channel 4 logo is absent here.
  • The Channel 4 logo at the entrance of an old manor house as a period film is being shot.
  • The Channel 4 logo in a white room with a man in a motion-capture suit. All of a sudden, the room turns dark, and the logo turns fluorescent green, surrounded by smoke.
  • The Channel 4 logo engulfed in flames in a city street with many people running away.
  • The Channel 4 logo in another street at night surrounded by revellers, with the entire scene being frozen in a "bullet-time" effect.
  • The Channel 4 logo in an electron microscope surrounded by blood vessels.
  • The Channel 4 logo above a couple lying in bed.
  • The Channel 4 logo outside of a house as two women kiss in the rain beside it.
  • The Channel 4 logo outside a school as schoolchildren draw on the logo.
  • The Channel 4 logo is surrounded by flowers at a gravesite.
  • The Channel 4 logo in a glass cube with moths flying around as children watch.
  • Segueing from the previous scene, a moth lands onto the ceiling of a red room, causing it to fall and shatter onto the Channel 4 logo.

Trivia:

  • Like with the previous ident, these are also the first idents since 2004 to feature the full "4" logo for longer than a split second.
  • The 2023 Channel 4 rebrand, including these idents, won two Bronze Clios at the 2023 Clio Entertainment Awards.
    • These idents also won four Clios (one Silver, two Gold, and a Clio Grand) at the 2024 Clio Entertainment Awards.

Technique: Live-action mixed with 2D and CGI animation, made by 4Creative, Optical Arts, Art Practice, and Love Song.

Audio: Ambient sounds with whatever is happening in every set of idents.

Unused Ident

ID (1991)


Visuals: On a black background, there are three CGI rectangles, which are in their respective colors: blue, red, and yellow, stretching and rotating in various directions, eventually forming a simplified "4". It stays still for a few seconds before rotating and stopping again.

Technique: CGI animation by award-winning designer/director Matt Forrest of Snapper Films.

Audio: A dramatic drumbeat with an ethical flute sound and a crowd shouting "FOUR!". The music ends with a powerful hit, and it's followed by an announcer spiel.

Edit Section


1st Logo (November 2, 1982-1999)

Visuals: A shortened version of the 1982 Channel 4 ID from the era.

Variants:

  • An in-credit notice exists, where the 1982 Channel 4 logo is over "CHANNEL FOUR TELEVISION".
  • A still 2D version of the 1982 logo exists on a black background with a copyright notice underneath.
  • On The Mind of David Berglas, the logo appears alongside the on-screen 1979 Tyne Tees Television logo. A light blue slash also separates the two company's logos.
  • On Gazella Football Italia, the logo is included within the in-credit notice but in blue.
  • On Garden Club, the logo appears within the HTV logo.
  • On Cymru Newydd, the logo shares the screen with the 1993 HTV, 1987 BBC Cymru and 1987 S4C logos.
  • On The Marriage of Figaro, the logo is within a white box with the company name underneath it.
  • On Montreux Jazz '88, the logo is seen on a water textured background and also shares the screen with the 1988 Hadrian Television logo. The text also reads "HADRIAN TELEVISION PRODUCTION FOR CHANNEL 4" which appears below.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: The ending theme of the programme or none.

Availability:

  • The normal version was spotted on Hullabaloo, in which VHS releases of said show also preserve this logo, whereas the variant was seen on The Mind of David Berglas where it is paired with the aforementioned 1979 Tyne Tees logo.
  • The early still variant was only known to have been seen on very early Channel 4 co-produced programmes such as The Body Show.
  • The normal animated logo is seen on series 1 of Bob & Margaret.

2nd Logo (January 11, 2000-December 30, 2004; April 11, 2006; June 7, 2010)

Visuals: The Channel 4 logo is now inside a white box and is aligned to the right side of the screen. A copyright notice for the channel is positioned underneath the co-producer's logo, which is on the left.

Variants:

  • Sometimes, the logo may be superimposed into the end credits.
    • Occasionally, it can also appear within the background designated to another logo.
      • On Pump Up the Volume, the Channel 4 logo, despite being set on the black side of the screen, is a cut out revealing small portions of Flame TV's background.
  • The Hoobs lack a copyright notice for either the Channel 4, Jim Henson Television, or Decode Entertainment logo.
  • Some logos would have one side of the screen white and Channel 4's section the same as in most of the other variants.
  • On Queer as Folk, the logo appears as an on-screen logo, consisting of just the Channel 4 logo with no box or any other co-producer.
  • Early Series 1 episodes of The Hoobs has the Channel 4 notice lacking a box.
  • On The First World War, the logo is next to the Southern Star logo while underneath an IAW notice. "Channel Four" is also underneath its respective logo.
  • On The Armando Iannucci Shows, "for" is next to the Channel 4 logo.
  • On some Ideal World Productions co-produced programmes, Channel 4's half is purple.
  • A split-screen variant exists.
  • On Life and Death and Damien Hirst, the logo is placed below the 1996 LWT logo.

Technique: A still graphic.

Audio: The ending theme of the programme or none.

Availability:

  • Some examples include Blood on the Altar Secrets of the Dead, Scandal in the Bins, The Hoobs, among others.
  • The superimposed variant was seen on Da Ali G Show, 100 Greatest Kids TV Shows, and As If.
  • This logo was also seen at the end of ITV Studios-era prints of The Hoobs.
    • However, it re-appeared on the first episode of Girls Aloud: Off the Record and the Dispatches documentary "Undercover Social Worker".

3rd Logo (December 31, 2004-2015)

Visuals: On the right hand side of the screen, a 3D cutout of the Channel 4 logo zooms out, leaving a white background. The logo very slightly backs off and becomes loose before stopping.

Variants:

  • The logo may appear in different textures, either a cloudy layout, a blue background with studs popping out, or a shot of a crowd walking.
  • Sometimes, the logo has an alternate animation where as the logo zooms out, it also rotates and shows the blocks forming the Channel 4 logo.
  • A small version exists.
  • On Channel 4 News, the logo is a solid color. From 2005 to 2006, it was white and since June 19, 2006, it became black.
  • On reruns of The Hoobs, the variant from the previous logo is used, but it covers up the 1999 Channel 4 "Square" logo.
  • On a December 27, 2005 rerun of the February 13, 2004 episode of Countdown, this logo appears with the 2001 Yorkshire Television logo, plastering the 1999 Channel 4 "Square" logo on the right of the screen.

Technique: Motion-controlled animation.

Audio: A dry whoosh sound. Otherwise, the ending theme of the programme or none.

Availability:

  • The logo first appeared on series 3 of Celebrity Big Brother and was later seen on episodes from said series until series 7.
    • On the aforementioned show, it is replaced by the E4 logo on airings on said channel.
  • Another programme containing this logo is the documentary Supermarket Secrets.
  • The last programme to use this logo was Channel 4 News, which used it as later as 2014.
  • It also plasters over the previous logo on reruns of some shows from that era, via covering up the previous logo.

4th Logo (2005)

Visuals: This is just an in-credit version of the 2004 logo, consisting of a 3D version of the "4" logo facing the bottom right.

Technique: A still graphic.

Audio: The ending theme of the programme.

Availability: It was only seen on The Real Sex Traffic.

5th Logo (December 24, 2015-2018)

Visuals: The Channel 4 logo is 3D and laying down with several pieces of it popping out (otherwise the All 4 logo used from 2015-2019). There is a top notice above the Channel 4 logo that reads:

for
Channel 4 Television

Variants:

  • Sometimes, several shows may use a split-screen variant of this logo as well as its co-producers. Here, both logos are positioned to the left side of the screen with promos for new shows to be placed on the right.
  • The logo alongside other co-producers may be superimposed into the end credits.
  • A map of the British Isles can be seen alongside the Channel 4 logo where the map has either a region being filled or a dot placed onto a certain city, indicating the filming location of the show. The animation for regions would have the location be filled in magenta, only for it to fade out and repeat its sequence. Cities would have the dot (in the same color as the region variants) in a pulse animation. There is bottom text underneath, reading:
Filmed across (location)
For Channel 4 Television

A line also divides Channel 4's logo with another co-producer or seal in either the top or bottom portion. The map was exclusive to split-screen variants.

    • Another variant follows the same format as said version but without the map of the British Isles. This is because the show was filmed in a foreign country. However, if the programme was also filmed in the UK, then the map of said country is intact.
  • On Flowers, the top notice now reads: "For Channel 4 in association with Seeso".
  • Sometimes, "For" is replaced with an IAW phrase while keeping the Channel 4 name in.
    • On Gap Year, the IAW notice adds "TELEVISION" next to the Channel 4 name.
      • Beatrix Potter with Patricia Routledge would have this variant in a stacked format.
  • On The Bisexual, the screen simply consists of the Channel 4 logo with no notice or co-producers.
  • On Escape to the Chateau, there is no in-credit notice for the Channel 4 logo and the logo itself is aligned to the right.
  • On Travel Man 48 Hours in..., the Channel 4 logo is larger.
  • On Made in Chelsea series 15, the split-screen variant is on a red background.
  • On Trigger Happy, the notice is stacked with "TELEVISION" appearing on the bottom. Not only that, but both the Spirit Media and Channel 4 logos are off-center.
  • On Kiri, support information details are placed underneath the Channel 4 logo, reading:
Support information for the
issues raised can be found online at
www.channel4.com/support

Technique: A still graphic.

Audio: The ending theme of the programme or none.

Availability:

  • There are many shows that uses the normal variant, which includes Ackley Bridge, Gap Year, Trigger Happy, among others.
  • The regular split-screen variant can be seen on National Treasure, Kiri, and Man Down, among others.
    • Made in Chelsea also uses it in its 15th series.
  • The variant that includes the British Isles was seen on The Secret Life of 4, 5 and 6 Year Olds and Extreme Everest.
  • The superimposed variant is known to have been seen on a few shows such as Jamie's Night Before Christmas for the normal variant and Best Laid Plans for the split-screen variant.

6th Logo (September 17, 2017-September 14, 2018)

Visuals: On a white background, several pieces with their lateral faces filled pops out of the ground and bounces down, forming the logo from before. The grey text "Channel 4 Television" (set in the C4 Headline font) simultaneously emerges from the bottom of the screen.

Variant: There exists a split-screen version where the logo is inside a box.

Technique: CGI by weareseventeen.

Audio: A high key piano note that starts with a whoosh and ends with a deep bass note.

Audio Variant: On The First, the theme is in a lower pitch.

Availability: Only two shows used this logo: Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams and The First.

7th Logo (January 7, 2019-)

Visuals: Same as the 3rd logo, except the Channel 4 logo now matches the one used by the main channel since 2015. This logo is similar to most other Channel 4 logos except the blocks are thinner.

Variants:

  • The split-screen and map variants return from the previous logo. However, the map may also appear in the normal variants. The bottom text alignment may vary, either to the center or towards the left.
    • Frank of Ireland lacks a thin line between the Amazon Studios and Channel 4 logos, but rather a top in-credit notice that reads
A Merman Production for Amazon
in association with Channel 4

Since the Channel 4 name was already mentioned above, the bottom notice excludes said name and simply states the filming locations. Despite Northern Ireland and Ireland being a region and a country, dots were used for these locations rather than the fill animation.

    • On series 2 of This Way Up, USA was added to the filming locations section despite it not being shown on the screen.
  • On the British version of The Bridge, the top notice is not only in one row, but the Channel 4 logo is also aligned to the left.
  • On Bin Laden The Road to 9.11, the split-screen variant has the bottom notice read:
Format Created by Voltage TV Productions Ltd
For Channel 4 Television
  • On Brexit, the top notice has "Produced for" rather than simply "For". The text is also on the same row.
  • On It's a Sin, the top notice has an IAW phrases with no Channel 4 indication.
  • On Channel 4 News, the logo, alongside the 2006 ITN logo, appears via a sliding animation. The Channel 4 logo is also in black since the background is set to white.
    • Starting on November 30, 2022, the background is inverted, the Channel 4 logo is now in white and the ITN logo is also changed to reflect the current ITN logo.
  • Similar with the Made in Chelsea variants from last time, the logo may be seen on a red, pink, or blue background.
  • On Leaving Neverland, the logo is to the right of the Amos Pictures logo and is textless.
  • On Today in Tokyo, the logo appears above the on-screen Whisper logo.

Technique: A still graphic.

Audio: The ending theme of the programme or none.

Availability:

  • The normal variant is seen on Traitors, Brexit, and It's a Sin.
  • The regular split-screen variant is known to have been used on The Bridge and Bin Laden: The Road to 9/11.
  • The London variant is used on Made in Chelsea (this show would begin using this logo in its 17th series), Stath Lets Flats and Big Fat Quiz of the Year, among others.
    • Shows that contain the Isles within the regular variants include This Way Up and Frank of Ireland.
  • The superimposed variant is seen on game shows such as Big Fat Quiz of the Year, more recent series of Countdown, and Taskmaster starting with series 10.

8th Logo (2019-)

Visuals: In a dark room, there are several dim white blocks floating around. The camera then starts to pan around, as several of the blocks light up and move around. Panning across the blocks, they look like their forming a brief frame-by-frame version of the 1982 logo's "Implosion" variant, in which the final result is the previous logo fully lighting up. The background and blocks dim to near-invisible levels, and "Channel 4 Television" fades in below.

Variant: A slightly shorter version exists.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A soft violin note is heard in the background, as a much mellower piano version of "Fourscore" plays in the background, in sync with the lighting.

Availability: Seen on streaming prints of their shows such as the 1st season of Home and Friday Night Dinner, among many others.

References