UKTV
Channel Genre Launch date Closure date Closure reason
UK Arena Arts and Culture 1 November 1997 30 March 2000 Insufficient ratings , relaunched as UK Drama ( Alibi )
Play UK ( formerly UK Play ) Music and Comedy 10 October 1998 30 September 2002 Low ratings due to the closure of ITV Digital , replaced by UK History ( Yesterday )
UK Gold 2 ( formerly UK Gold Classics ) Male 10 October 1998 11 November 2003 To create UKG2 ( UKTV G2 then Dave )
UK Horizons Documentaries 1 November 1997 7 March 2004 Replaced by UKTV People ( Blighty ) and UKTV Documentary ( Eden )
UKTV People +1 Timeshift Service 8 March 2004 18 April 2006 To create UKTV Drama +1 ( Alibi +1 )
UKTV Bright Ideas ( formerly UK Bright Ideas ) Style , Cookery and Gardening 15 January 2003 15 October 2007 Low ratings . The slot on Freeview was then used for UKTV G2 ' s relaunch to Dave
UKTV Style 2 Timeshift Service 15 October 2007 15 September 2008 To make way for Watch
UKTV Gardens ( formerly UKTV Style Gardens ) Gardening 23 February 2005 18 May 2009 Closed to create Really
Blighty ( formerly UKTV People ) Britain & Britons 8 March 2004 5 July 2013 Closed to create Drama
Good Food ( formerly UKTV Food ) Food 5 November 2001 12 September 2019 Sold to Discovery , Inc. and later merged with Food Network
Home ( formerly UKTV Style ) Home & Gardens 1 November 1997 21 January 2020 Sold to Discovery , Inc. and later rebranded to HGTV
Really Lifestyle 19 May 2009 Sold to Discovery , Inc
Channels -- Former
UKTV is a British multi-channel broadcaster, wholly owned by BBC Studios (formerly BBC Worldwide). It was formed on 1 November 1992 through a joint venture between the BBC and Thames Television. It is one of the United Kingdom's largest television companies. UKTV's channels are available via a digital satellite or cable subscription in the UK and Ireland. The Dave, Drama and Yesterday channels are also available in the UK on Freeview and Freesat, two free-to-air television services in the UK. Most programmes on the channels are repeat broadcasts of productions from the BBC archives, although the entertainment channels also feature some programmes produced by other companies and UKTV have commissioned a small number of programmes. The channels are played out by Red Bee Media. The UKTV channels have broadcast in since 31 January 2008, although some programmes originally made in format are screened in the compromise semi-letterbox format.