UKTV

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This article is about the UKTV network of channels in the UK and Ireland. For the television channel in Australia and New Zealand, see UK.TV. For the Middle Eastern channel owned by ITV plc, see Granada UKTV.

UKTV

UKTV is a joint venture between the BBC's commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, and the NTL owned Flextech. UKTV is one of the United Kingdom's largest television companies.

UKTV's channels are available via satellite and cable in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. In the UK, on digital terrestrial television, UKTV History and UKTV Bright Ideas are available on the Freeview platform, and selected parts of UKTV Gold, UKTV Style and UKTV Food are available through Top Up TV.

Most programmes on UKTV's channels are repeat broadcasts of BBC productions (although the entertainment channels also feature programmes made by other companies) and the channels themselves are played out by Red Bee Media (formerly BBC Broadcast) from their 'Broadcast Centre' in West London.

None of the UKTV channels operates in widescreen — programmes made in widescreen are always horizontally cropped into 14:9, though during coverage of the 2006 World Cup pictures were transmitted in the 16:9 aspect ratio. Factual programmes are almost always cut for commercial timing although dramas and comedies are not.

[edit] Channels

[edit] Closed Channels

UK Horizons - closed to create UKTV People and UKTV Documentary
UK Arena - focused on arts programming. Closed due to insufficient ratings, relaunched — originally with the same graphics — as UK Drama, see above
Play UK (formerly UK Play) — closed due to insufficient ratings

UK Horizons and UK Arena were named after the BBC's flagship science and arts documentaries, Horizon and Arena.

Note that there was a channel called UK Living that was originally affiliated with UK Gold but did not become part of the UKTV network, it changed its name to LIVINGtv before the UKTV network launched.