Wow. I was just browsing Xbox Marketplace USA and looking at the Comedy Central channel on that, and I was thinking when that channel would come over here.
In a way it's a shame that the Paramount Comedy brand is being ditched after so many years, but if they can offer anything like what Comedy Central offer in the states then I'll be happy.
It's been coming for a while, I suppose. MTV Networks have been spreading the Comedy Central brand around the globe over the past few years, so the Paramount Comedy branding has become a bit of an anomaly.
Paramount Comedy has a lot of heritage from it's short lifetime, it launched the careers of Matt Lucas, David Walliams, Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright, The Mighty Boosh, Dom Joly, Leigh Francis and others, so I hope the new branding keeps on that spirit. Also the strange thing is that, aside from South Park, two of the biggest shows from Comedy Central (The Daily Show and The Colbert Report) are on other channels here, More 4 and FX.
I'm surprised it lasted so long, it does seem a far more sensible brand
It was originally The Paramount Channel before it concentrated on comedy. I can't remember what it used to show but they had a FAQ on their text service about why don't they show wrestling, the reply being 'what part of 'Paramount Comedy Channel' don't you understand exactly?'
I'm surprised it lasted so long, it does seem a far more sensible brand
Me too, I was only watching yesterday and thinking it was a bit of a s h i t name. Despite launching so many big names the channel doesn't really stand out - it desperately needs some homegrown shows.
IIRC, The Paramount Channel originally had comedy programming during the week, and drama at weekends. I do recall a
special evening of programs I think was on 1st July 1996, with links hosted by Dominic Diamond, who kept referring to it
as "Paramount, the comedy channel", several months before it officially became the Paramount Comedy Channel.
It will be a terrible shame to see this brand disappear from UK screens (I wonder if Paramount Comedy Spain will remain?), however Comedy Central is already a well-known brand/channel in the US, and I hope we get to see much more content from there.
It's disappointing to hear that they'll be focussing around the (IMO) awful "comedy" Two and a Half Men, something which I feel has made the channel worse since it was first introduced.
It might be slagged off a bit by most, but as a satellite/cable only channel that has lasted for almost 14 years is quite incredible in this day and age. I admit that it's one of the few channels on Sky that I watch on a daily basis.
I do wish, though, they'd have just called them Comedy Central 1 and Comedy Central 2. I hate all these "Extra" channels. It doesn't mean anything. If it's going to have it's own programming like Paramount Comedy 2 (which I hope it will), it should be a channel in it's own right. Look at Sky One Mix and Sky Travel Extra - neither of which have lasted.
Hopefully, they'll still keep the weekend schedules such as 'Mixed Doubles' and 'Sunday Stacks', as I do enjoy those. I doubt we'll see any homegrown stuff though. MTVNE isn't big on production, especially for the Paramount channels, and I can't see them pumping any further money into it during a recession.
IIRC, The Paramount Channel originally had comedy programming during the week, and drama at weekends. I do recall a
special evening of programs I think was on 1st July 1996, with links hosted by Dominic Diamond, who kept referring to it
as "Paramount, the comedy channel", several months before it officially became the Paramount Comedy Channel.
That was the day the channel was added to various cable platforms, as it was added to Cable Midlands that day. I'm sure he namechecked it too.