Line-up and formats for new digital channel announced

Channel 4 has revealed the comedians and formats to feature on its new digital channel dedicated to comedy.

Stand-ups Vittorio Angelone, Finlay Christie, Olga Koch, Gbemi Oladipo, Micky Overman, Mike Rice and Dan Tiernan will be the ensemble taking part in the first shows commissioned for A Comedy Thing, which launches on Monday 

The formats are:

The Split: The comedians pair up to use their wit and prejudice to decipher what side of a binary line public participants will fall into.

The Front Row: Each of the comics is tasked with working with a studio audience to find out who they are through a simple Q&A game.

Joke Swap: The ensemble cast of comics must write jokes for ordinary punters to deliver, testing the age-old adage that comedy is all in the delivery. Will a punchline written by a professional make a crowd howl, even if it is a pensioner with no stand-up experience sharing a gag about modern dating? 

The Lying Game: The comics must each tell an anecdote about the same randomly selected topic. However, while five of them are telling a true story, two of them are lying through their teeth. Their fellow comedians must suss out the liars from the true stories.

 As announced last week, A Comedy Thing will publish weekly long-form programming running 15 to 20 minutes on YouTube, with edited clips going on TikTok and Instagram.

Charlie Hyland, Channel 4’s digital commissioner, said: ‘CChannel 4 has always been at the forefront of fresh new comedy. This new comedy channel is built on a deep understanding of what people love to watch online and where we want to be creatively. 

‘We’re working with incredible talent, both on and off screen, to create a bold, diverse, and brilliantly funny channel and our first shows are an eclectic array of comedy formats. 

‘From smart, quickfire jokes that grab attention, to longer-form, podcast-style shows where audiences feel part of the conversation and classic panel shows that continue to resonate, we’re genuinely excited about the range and quality of comedy this new channel will offer.’

All the shows are being made by Strong Watch Studios:

The company’s co-founder Thom Gulseven said: ‘We couldn’t be happier to be working with Channel 4 and this group of super-talented comedians on this channel, it is a genuinely fresh, exciting approach to how content like this is made. 

‘We love where digital comedy is at the moment in the UK, and what we’re doing is trying to reflect that brilliant place through a bunch of games that tap into the things that people love on different platforms. 

'Part of the joy of the new way we make things is the freedom to respond to the audience, and how ideas evolve, change and grow over time; we’re looking forward to seeing where this channel takes us!’

A Comedy Thing by Channel 4 launches on Monday on YouTube.

Published: 17 Jul 2025