Horror Channel

Horror Channel
Launched 3 May 2004
Owned by CBS Studios International/
AMC Networks International Zone
Picture format 576i 16:9 (SDTV)
Audience share UK:
0.33%
0.03% (+1) (September 2016 (2016-09), BARB)
Broadcast area United Kingdom
Ireland
Italy
Formerly called UK & Ireland
The Horror Channel (until June 2006)
Zone Horror (until 5 April 2010)
Italy
Zone Fantasy (until 6 September 2011)
Sister channel(s) AMC
CBS Action
CBS Drama
CBS Europa
CBS Reality
Extreme Sports Channel
Timeshift service Horror Channel +1
Website www.horrorchannel.co.uk
Availability
Terrestrial
Freeview UK Channel 70
Satellite
Freesat UK Channel 138
Channel 139 (+1)
Sky UK & Ireland Channel 319
Channel 320 (+1)
Eutelsat 28A 11261 H 27500 2/3
11222 H 27500 2/3 (+1)
Sky Italy Channel 134
Cable
Virgin Media UK Channel 149
Channel 202 (+1)
WightFibre UK Channel 114
Streaming media
Virgin TV Anywhere Watch live (UK only)
FilmOn Watch live

The Horror Channel (formerly Zone Horror) is a British television channel showing Horror films and television series and some science fiction. It is broadcast in the UK, Ireland and Italy.

Specialized programming includes cult films, classic horror, comedy, B movies, modern thrillers, series, home-produced specials, biographies and documentaries.

The Horror Channel is available as a free-to-air service on Eutelsat 28A and, since Friday the 13th of March 2015, on Freeview channel 70. The launch on the Freeview platform increased its viewership by some 300%.[1]

Horror Channel was available until 2 June 2015 on the YouView platform.

History

The Horror Channel was created by Tony Hazell, who had worked for the God Channel. The Horror Channel went into administration on 21 September 2004.[2][3] The original management team formed a second company (Amore TV Ltd.) and purchased the channel on 22 September 2004, writing off the £200,000 investment made in the channel by venture capital firm, Northern Enterprise.

Zone Vision Networks Ltd. agreed to acquire the Horror Channel for an undisclosed sum on 17 June 2005.[4] In June 2006, the Horror Channel was renamed "Zone Horror" after Zone Vision Networks was renamed Zonemedia. It became a part of the Chellomedia content division of Liberty Global in 2005.[5]

Zone Horror +1 was launched on Sky on 1 July 2008 replaced Zone Reality Extra.

On 30 October 2006, Zonemedia launched Zone Horror in the Netherlands.[6] On 1 July 2009, the channel was dropped from cable in the Netherlands.[7]

On 14 September 2009, it was revealed that the international arm of CBS, CBS Studios International, struck a joint venture deal with Chellomedia to launch six CBS-branded channels in the UK during 2009. The new channels would replace Zone Romantica, Zone Thriller, Zone Horror and Zone Reality, and timeshift services Zone Horror +1 and Zone Reality +1.[8][9]

On 5 April 2010, Zone Horror was renamed "Horror Channel", following the renaming of the portfolio’s other three channels in November 2009.[10] On-air the channel name appears as Horror. The rebrand was produced by Chello Zone’s in-house creative services team.

As of May 2014 the channel's pre-show idents incorporated a prominent CBS eye even though CBS does not appear in the channel's name.

Zone Fantasy rebranded by Horror Channel in Italy on 6 September 2011.[11]

On 21 August 2012, a pre-watershed simulcast of the Horror Channel began broadcasting in Sky's Entertainment genre on channel 198,[12] followed by three hours of Psychic Today after 9.00 pm. This version of the channel was replaced by Reality TV, a simulcast of CBS Reality with a Psychic Today block, on 20 May 2013.

On 9 March 2015, the Horror Channel appeared on Freeview channel 70 as a placeholder channel, and on 13 March 2015 Horror Channel started broadcasting fully and is the third of the CBS family to move to Freeview in under a year.

The channel restructured on Freeview from 10 December 2015, requiring all Freeview viewers to retune their set-top boxes, although the channel number did not change.

Films

Horror Channel airs a wide range of films, mainly horror, although it does air many which contain horror themes, such as action, comedy and thriller films, many of which are premièred as part of a specific season of films. Originally, the channel began airing many classic films of mixed genres including The Killer Shrews, Lady of Burlesque, Carnival of Souls and The City of the Dead. It is known for its showing of B movie classics, Troll 2, Brian Damage, Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, Frogs, and Slugs. It also premiered many Jean Rollin movies, which were shown as part of a Jean Rollin season and European cinema classics such as The Devil's Nightmare, Nude for Satan and Black Magic Rites. Troma films Mother's Day and The Toxic Avenger movies where shown during the early years of Horror Channel. Many of these films were unknown to UK and Irish viewers at the time, but well known classics, such as the first three Hellraiser films where part of the channel. When the channel was renamed Zone Horror in 2006, many of the older films were shown only at random times and very were rarely premièred, as many new low-budget and independent films began showing, more usually than before the renaming. In 2010 it was renamed again as Horror Channel, and it returned to its roots, with many new horror classic airing, including, The Evil Dead, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Happy Birthday to Me and The Incredible Melting Man. In 2011, the channel premièred films from directors Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento. Many films were also airing that had been recently released by Home Entertainment company Arrow Films. 2011's highlights also included the "Horror Horreur" season for September, and the "Hammer Horror" season for October, and a "Season of the Banned" for November.

Programmes

List of past and current TV series, mini-series & television films that have aired on Horror Channel:

Television
Title Seasons Airing Start date End date
The 4400 Season 1 & 2 No 20 February 2011
Angel Season 1 Yes 6 December 2010
BeastMaster All seasons No
Blood Ties Seasons 1 & 2 No
Brimstone Season 1 (all seasons) No
The Chronicle Season 1 (all seasons) No
The Collector All seasons No
Dark Angel Yes
The Dead Zone Seasons 1-6 Yes
Doctor Who (Classic Series) Various episodes not all. Yes 21 April 2014[13]
Firefly Season 1 (all seasons) No
Freddy's Nightmares All seasons Yes
Friday the 13th: The Series All seasons Yes
Ghost Stories Season 1 (all seasons) Cancelled 2004
Hammer House of Horror Season 1 Yes 1 October 2011
Haunted Season 1 (all seasons) No
Highlander: The Series Season 1 No
The Incredible Hulk Seasons 1 & 3 No 1 September 2014
Intruders Mini-series No
Jericho Season 1 Yes
The Lost World Seasons 1-3 Yes
Millennium All seasons No
Mortal Kombat: Conquest Season 1 (all seasons) No
Mutant X All seasons Yes
The New Twilight Zone Seasons 1, 2 & 3 Yes
The Ray Bradbury Theatre All seasons Cancelled
Sheena Season 1 No 17 January 2011
Special Unit 2 Yes
Tales from the Crypt (TV series) All seasons Cancelled
Tales of Mystery and Imagination All seasons Cancelled
The New Adventures of Superman season 1-2 Yes 23 October 2015
Twin Peaks No
Urban Gothic All seasons No
Valemont Mini-series No
Vampire High All seasons Cancelled
The Visitor Season 1 (all seasons) No
The War of the Worlds Season 1 Yes
Witchblade Season 1 No
Xena: Warrior Princess Season 15 Yes 25 April 2011

Logos

Logos of Horror Channel
Original logo from 2004-2006 
Rebranded Zone Horror from 2006 to 2009 

References

  1. "BARB". BARB. Feb 2015.
  2. "A horror show for venture capitalists". The Journal. 30 November 2004.
  3. "Stay Screaming". RMT. Retrieved 5 April 2010.
  4. "Zone Vision buys Horror Channel". C21Media. 17 June 2005.
  5. "Zone develops new vision of itself". C21Media. 13 June 2006.
  6. "Zonemedia Launches Horror Channel In The Netherlands". 4 Regional Film & Video. 30 October 2006.
  7. https://service.upc.nl/index.php?CampaignID=48&PageID=1415&cid=257&aid=1055
  8. "CBS FINALChello Zone partnership press release" (DOC). Chello Zone. 14 September 2009.
  9. "CBS to launch UK channels with Chellomedia". Broadcastnow. 14 September 2009.
  10. "Zone Horror rebrands as Horror Channel". Broadband TV News. 31 March 2010.
  11. MvdbMedia (6 September 2011). "Fantasy wordt Horror". DutchDreambox.nl. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  12. "Horror Channel Now Also On Sky 198 from 9am till 9pm!". Horror Channel. 20 August 2012.
  13. Whittington, James (13 March 2014). "Time To Get Back Behind The Sofa! Doctor Who Materialises On Horror Channel". Horror Channel. Retrieved 14 March 2014.

External links

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