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This article is about the United Kingdom variant of Spike. For Spike in the United States, see Spike (TV network). For the Dutch version of the channel, see Spike (Netherlands & Flanders).

5Spike
CountryUnited Kingdom
Programming
Language(s)English
Ownership
OwnerChannel 5 Broadcasting Ltd
(Viacom International Media Networks Europe)

5Spike is a British digital television channel owned by Viacom International Media Networks Europe. Launching on 15 April 2015 on Freeview, it is a localised version of the American channel of the same name, and primarily airs entertainment programming geared towards a male audience, including Channel 5 programming, police documentaries, import dramas, programming from its U.S. counterpart, and mixed martial arts.

History

Following Viacom's acquisition of Channel 5, it was reported that a local version of the male skewing U.S. channel Spike would be launching in the United Kingdom. These reports were confirmed in late 2014, with the channel proposed to replace Viva on Freeview.[1] The channel is operated under the auspices of Channel 5's programming director Ben Frow; of Spike's lineup, he described the service as a "driven, high-energy channel offering a point of view and programme mix I think is different from anything else on British TV right now."[1]

5Spike launched as Spike on 15 April 2015 on Freeview channel 31, displacing 5 USA; although it was originally announced that Spike would replace Viva entirely on Freeview, Viva was instead moved to a different channel and reduced to two hours per-day to conserve bandwidth for Spike, with 5 USA taking on its previous channel allotment.[2][3][4][5][6] Among its first programs, the premiere of Police Interceptors Unleashed was seen by 137,000 viewers.[7]

On Tuesday 31 October 2017, Spike was rebranded as 5Spike to better identify the station as part of the Channel 5 family, with an amended logo incorporating the C5 brand identity alongside that of Spike.[8]

Programming

The channel's lineup draws primarily from the original programmes produced by its U.S. counterpart, including Bar Rescue, Catch a Contractor, and Lip Sync Battle among others, along with imported U.S. dramas such as Breaking Bad (notably marking the first time the entire series would be broadcast by British television; only the first two seasons were shown by Fox and 5 USA, with the remainder available via Netflix), Sons of Anarchy, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and The Walking Dead. Spike also carries original British productions, such as Police Interceptors Unleashed—a spin-off of the Channel 5 series hosted by footballer Vinnie Jones, [7] and repeats of some of Channel 5's factual programmes.[9][10]

As in the U.S.,[11] mixed-martial arts also comprises a portion of Spike's lineup, with British TV rights to Bellator MMA, and under a new long-term deal, exclusive rights to BAMMA events beginning with BAMMA 20 on 25 April 2015.[12], it also airs classics shows such as The A-Team

Original

  • 5 Star Wrestling
  • BAMMA
  • Car Crash TV
  • Police Interceptors Unleashed
  • Tattoo Disasters UK

From Spike U.S.

From Channel 5

Imported

Most watched programmes

The following is a list of the ten most watched shows on Spike, based on Live +7 data supplied by BARB up to 10 September 2017.[13] The number of viewers does not include repeats.

Rank Show Episode Number of Viewers Date
1 The Expendables 2 N/A 359,000 27 March 2016
2 Centurion N/A 328,000 12 February 2017
3 The Expendables 3 N/A 327,000 26 March 2017
4 Transporter: The Series 2.07 - Sex, Lies and Video Tapes 303,000 19 February 2016
5 Enter the Dragon N/A 281,000 16 July 2017
Hercules N/A 281,000 26 July 2017
7 The Expendables 2 N/A 274,000 19 March 2017
8 From Dusk till Dawn: The Series 1.01 - Pilot 272,000 4 January 2016
9 Can't Pay? We'll Take It Away! tbc 271,000 10 January 2017
10 From Dusk till Dawn: The Series 1.02 - Blood Runs Thick 267,000 4 January 2016

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Viacom to launch Spike TV in UK". Broadcast. 8 October 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  2. ^ "Freeview Channel Updates: April 2015". a516digital. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  3. ^ "Spike launches 15 April and some channels are moving". Freeview. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  4. ^ "Spike TV to launch with Breaking Bad". Broadcast. 20 March 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  5. ^ Munn, Patrick (26 March 2015). "VIMN To Launch Spike UK on April 15th; Picks Up UK Rights to Olympus, Justified, Sons & Anarchy and More". TVWise. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  6. ^ "Dire UTV Ireland could learn a thing or two from Spike". Herald.ie. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  7. ^ a b "Breaking Bad helps Spike to solid launch night". Broadcast Now. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  8. ^ [Per TV listings magazine entries for the channel 2017-10-31 onwards]
  9. ^ "Spike to Launch in U.K. with 'Breaking Bad,' 'Walking Dead,' 'Sons of Anarchy'". Variety. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  10. ^ "Spike TV: the best and worst of the new channel's brogramming". The Guardian. 15 April 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  11. ^ "Mr. Friday Night Lights Out? Joe Schilling eyes PBC Boxing in addition to Bellator and GLORY". MMAMania (SBNation). Vox Media. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  12. ^ "BAMMA makes deal with Spike TV in the UK". Bloody Elbow (SBNation). Vox Media. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  13. ^ BARB, via [1]


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