‘Panic’ at Channel 4 as viewing figures plummet to a historic low

Channel 4’s ratings plummeted to an all-time low in May as the channel struggled with a financial crisis.

The free-to-air channel pulled in a measly 4.48 percent audience share last month — the worst four-week mark in its 40-year history, deadline reports.

The shocking figure is said to have sparked “panic” behind the scenes, one source claimed, yet another stated that bosses were focusing on the positive boost in their online viewership – which saw streaming figures jump 20 percent compared to last year.

Still, digital success alone is unlikely to be enough to keep the business afloat, as linear advertising accounts for more than 70 per cent of its £1bn revenue.

News of the ratings slump comes as Channel 4 staff have spoken out from a behind-the-scenes ‘carnage’ in which popular shows have been canceled or postponed.

The Mail on Sunday recently revealed that staff are “shocked” by recent events that have seen shows such as the celebrity flop, Scared Of The Dark, and the groundbreaking medical documentary Rescue: Extreme Medics, cancelled.

The highly publicized return of the reality series Four Weddings has also been scrapped, although a team from an independent production company was commissioned to make it.

Staff on permanent contracts to work on the program were immediately fired, and some are now worried about how they will pay their rent.

The cancellation of popular shows is due to Channel 4 running out of money to fund them – despite boss Alex Mahon making £1.2million last year.

Friday night favorite The Last Leg, one of the channel’s most popular shows hosted by Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker, will cut the length of the next series to save money.

The 28th series returns this month for a nine-week run, but production bosses have been told the channel can afford to have it on the air for just seven weeks.

Channel 4 has instructed lawyers to make deals with heads of production companies to secure contracts for shows worth millions of pounds, meaning it has been left with expensive legal bills and exit fees.

Difficult: The Mail on Sunday revealed that the channel’s staff are calling it a ‘carnage’ as shows including the big-money celebrity flop Scared Of The Dark (pictured) have all been canned

The crisis comes after Ms Mahon and her colleague Ian Katz rejected a government plan to privatize the company, citing as one of their arguments that it finances independent manufacturing companies across the country.

A source told The Mail on Sunday that the channel believes it is better to cut losses. But staff blame Mr Katz for wasting money on expensive but little-watched shows like the reality series Rise And Fall, which reportedly cost the channel £14 million – money that couldn’t be justified due to low ratings.

An insider said: ‘Everyone is calling it a Channel 4 massacre.

‘At first everyone was in shock when Four Weddings was cancelled.

“It’s almost unheard of for a show that’s going really well to be shut down, but as word started to spread, other shows dropped out as well.

“They were told that Ian Katz had watched the channel’s entire output and they were sorry, but it had to be done because there was no money.

“The casting team was already there to start Naked Attraction and were all told they were no longer needed as they were not making another series.

“They tried to soften the blow to the show’s freelance crew by saying they hope to do another series in December, but that’s no use to them right now.”

Despite reports that Naked Attraction had been cancelled, a Channel 4 representative denied this, saying ‘Naked Attraction has not been discontinued and a new series will return to Channel 4 next year.

Scared of the Dark enjoyed a celebrated first season with excellent linear and streaming performance.

“Channel 4 is in good health, but like all commercial broadcasters, we are taking some precautions – such as reformulating some content and production – in response to a downturn in the advertising market.

“The vast majority of our shows have not been affected.”

Mahon and Katz announced last week that they have postponed receiving bonuses worth hundreds of thousands of pounds and scrapped a planned pay rise in the midst of the crisis.

Disclaimer: Despite reports that Naked Attraction had been cancelled, a Channel 4 representative denied this saying ‘Naked Attraction has not been withdrawn and a new series will return to Channel 4 next year’

However, a Channel 4 staffer said, “Only because I had to.”

A spokesperson for the network said: “Channel 4 cares deeply about the Indie community and our wider supply chain of freelancers. They are the beating heart of our company.

“While we recognize that the actions we are asking of some will cause short-term pain, the plan we have underlines our continued commitment to our financial sustainability and our continued support for the UK’s independent manufacturing sector.

“The executives have already decided to postpone retention payments and declined a salary increase earlier this year as part of a broader response to a very difficult advertising market in the second quarter, which all commercial broadcasters are facing.”