Trouble (TV channel)
| Ownership | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Virgin Media Television |
Trouble was a television station in the UK and Republic of Ireland, owned by Virgin Media Television. It fully replaced The Children's Channel from 4 April 1998, prior to the start of Sky Digital.
Trouble had a key demographic of young adults and teenagers, aged between 15-24. The channel showed a lot of American and Australian imports, with only a small margin of programmes being British, although a website was launched called Trouble Homegrown that showcased British programmes. The channel has had success in recent times, with acquisitions such as My Wife and Kids, One On One, Grounded for Life, Summerland, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, That '70s Show and How I Met Your Mother to name a few. It also showed some dramas such as Life As We Know It, Cutting It and The Secret Life of Us. It also showed some comedies including Teachers and No Angels.
The channel underwent a very huge major rebrand in mid-2006, with the number placement of the channel changing on Sky Digital from Sky channel 607 in the kids section to Sky channel 201 in the entertainment section as a move to make it seem more teenage orientated, but keeping the same programming. Later, the channel moved on Sky again, this time to Sky channel 172.
Trouble's one hour timeshift channel named Trouble +1 (formerly Trouble Reload (a 30 minute timeshift channel)) closed on 5 February 2009 to make way for the launch of Living2 +1.[1]
History
The idea of Trouble was originally influenced by the now defunct The Children's Channel's late afternoon scheduling for teen audiences; branded TCC, the channel's 5 PM to 7 PM slot targeted teenagers. When Bravo was revamped in 1997 to become a channel targeting a male audience (marketed as "an altered species of television"), it broadcast only during the evenings and nights, with Trouble occupying its transponder space during the day. The Children's Channel was closed in 1998, leaving Trouble to target teens and young adults. Its schedule consisted of popular sitcoms, rather than the cartoons The Children's Channel showed.
List of programmes broadcast
Heartbreak High, Madison, Ready Or Not, Byker Grove, Home & Away, California Dreams, Sweet Valley High, Weird Science, Maybe It's Me, Odd Man Out, Brotherly Love, Clueless, USA High, Saved By The Bell, Saved By The Bell: The New Class, Saved By The Bell: The College Years, Hang Time, City Guys, The Wayans Bros, One World, The Hughleys, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, In the House, Blossom, Zoe, Duncan, Jack & Jane, Moesha, Eve, Sister Sister, Half & Half, The Parkers, Dawson's Creek, Party of Five, My So-Called Life, Young Americans, Kyle XY, One on One, My Wife and Kids, Desmonds, Two Guys and a Girl, How I Met Your Mother, Gary the Rat, Malibu CA, That 70's Show, Diff'rent Strokes
Closure
On 17 March 2009, Virgin Media Television indicated it would close Trouble and replace with a version of Living[2].
It was then revealed on 23 March 2009 that Trouble would close on 1 April 2009 and would be replaced by Living +2(now called Living Loves. Trouble ceased broadcasting on 1 April 2009 at 1.00am with the two hour timeshift version of Living launching at 7am on the same day.
References
External links
- Trouble.co.uk - defunct, now just a holding page advertising other Living TV Group channels.
- Trouble at TV Ark
