[Tregard]

Originally Posted by Sam <3

I can't name any BBC4 shows and I don't think any of there shows have ever turned into a big show

Well of course there's Only Connect, the most critically acclaimed quiz show of the last few years, which has done so successfully it is being moved to BBC2 for it's tenth series.

BBC Four is also very much responsible for the UK's love of Scandinavian dramas, with the likes of Borgen, The Bridge, The Killing and Wallander. The effect of this is very much visible in current culture, especially since their popularity on the channel has caused UK remakes of some of these shows.

Then there's BBC Four's comedy output. Charlie Brooker, one of the most well known satirists currently doing the rounds in the UK got his start on the channel, with Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe had five series on the channel, which lead to him doing shows such as You Have Been Watching, How TV Ruined Your Life, Newswipe and writing Black Mirror.

They were also the first UK Channel to broadcast shows like Mad Men, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Flight of the Conchords, Parks & Recreation and even The Thick of It.

One of my personal favourite shows of the last decade, Dirk Gently, only ran for four episodes, but that show never would've even been broadcast on any other channel. BBC Four isn't a channel made for huge viewing figures, far from it. Any show that does successfully gets moved to channels more in the spotlight, such as BBC Two, because BBC Four is a testing ground for shows that would not get produced on any other channel because there "isn't an audience for them". BBC Four allows for programs about things more niche, more specific, and generally caters to an audience which are not getting what they want from other channels. It is due to this that it is imperative BBC Four is saved, even at the loss of BBC Three.