Lygo Strips Channel Five Of All Adult Content
Kevin Lygo, Five’s outgoing director of programmes, has made his final move to distance the channel from its downmarket image and is to drop all remaining softcore pornographic content from the schedules before he steps down at the end of the month.
Lygo, who is set replace Tim Gardam as director of television at Channel 4 (see Channel 4’s Director Of Television To Step Down), has sought to reposition Five over the last two years by reducing the channel’s reliance on erotic drama and low budget films.
Reports suggest that his decision to scrap the remaining adult movies and establish Five as the home of classic US dramas and arts documentaries, was inspired pop singer, Adam Faith, who criticised the channel’s “tacky” output before his death earlier this year.
Lygo’s attempts to distance Five from the mainstays of “football, films and fornication” identified by Dawn Airey, have seen him commission a number of US dramas such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Law And Order, as well as putting arts programmes in peak time slots.
He also oversaw the rebranding of the channel as Five last year, which saw the introduction of a new logo and a revamped on-screen identity in an attempt to highlight its new creative strategy (see Channel 5 Relaunched As Five).
Lygo announced last week that he is step down at the end of the month to replace Tim Gardam as director of television at Channel 4. Five’s chief executive, Jane Lighting, will assume his responsibilities until a permanent replacement is found (see Lygo Set To Return To Channel 4).
Analysis of the latest audience figures from BARB show that Channel Five has seen its overall share of viewing increase steadily over the last five years, from 2.7% just after its launch in 1997 to 6.7% in May 2003. In contrast, Five’s main commercial rivals, ITV and Channel 4, have seen their audience share falter at the hands of the advertising downturn and the increasing popularity of non-terrestrial broadcasters (see Multi-Channel TV Gains Ground In Battle For Viewers).
Five: 020 7550 5555 www.five.tv
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