planetf1.com

Probably won't see much of their output because I have Sky, but I hope they do well. They've not skimped on the presenting line-up.

I'll certainly give the Guy Martin/DC programme a watch; GM is always good on TV.

I really hoped we would get away from Eddie Jordan. Oh well, as long as he doesn't do any more of those godawful 'Guiness' ad style soliloquies. Please.

I'll probably check out their first couple of highlight shows, as well as recording and rewatching a live race or two, but I can't imagine I'll be choosing to watch them over SkyF1, especially as I can't really stand Ben Edwards.

ALESI wrote:I really hoped we would get away from Eddie Jordan. Oh well, as long as he doesn't do any more of those godawful 'Guiness' ad style soliloquies. Please.

They are cringey. But if they want a guy who has the ability to tap into the goings-on in the driver market then he is still the man

I'm pretty pleased with Channel 4's lineup, it's good. I reckon Murray Walker will do some features rather do commentary for them.

paulsf1fix wrote:I'm pretty pleased with Channel 4's lineup, it's good. I reckon Murray Walker will do some features rather do commentary for them.

I hope so, he drove me nuts doing commentary for his last 5 years. Please Please Please Please Please Please keep him away from the mike.

No, he won't be doing commentary. He retired from that game years ago. According to autosport he's doing "a series of bespoke chats with key personalities across the season."

I have to say, the livery on the F1 car in the advert for their coverage is more interesting than any F1 car for years!

Looks like 2 and a half hours for the first race...

I'm thrilled Eddie Jordan is now on the show. I am a bit of an EJ myself so I have an affinity with him.

Herb wrote:Looks like 2 and a half hours for the first race...

It is almost like a bit of build up. Bit of post race and a itv esq race with adverts in there.
Channel 4 I believe are only doing no adverts at their live races.

http://www.freeview.co.uk now says all the times fore the F1 special with Guy Martin as well as the qualifying and race times.

These are from the information about each program from http://www.freeview.co.uk/whats-on/tv-guide

Speed with Guy Martin
Thursday 17th March on Channel 4 from 9:00pm to 10:00pm
Channel 4
Series 3, Episode 1
Series in which motorcycle racer and lorry mechanic Guy Martin explores the boundaries of speed. Guy goes head to head with racing legend David Coulthard, pitting bike against car in a test of speed in a series of races. Guy and David compete in physical and mental challenges, testing their fitness and reaction times and exploring the science behind their incredible racing machines.


Formula 1: Fast and Furious
Friday 18th March on Channel 4 from 9:00pm to 9:05pm
Channel 4
A preview of Channel 4's coverage of the 2016 Formula 1 season.


Formula 1: Australian Grand Prix Qualifying Highlights
Saturday 19th March on Channel 4 from 12:30pm to 2:15pm
Channel 4
Steve Jones presents extended highlights of qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix as the drivers get their 2016 title campaign underway in Melbourne. Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton took a convincing pole position at last year's opener and went on to claim a further 10 poles during his championship winning season. His rivals will be looking to close the gap this time around and there is a new team and several new faces on the grid hoping to impress.


Formula 1: Australian Grand Prix Highlights
Sunday 20th March on Channel 4 from 1:30pm to 4:00pm
Channel 4
Steve Jones presents highlights of the season opening Australian Grand Prix from Melbourne.







I think that 2 and a quarter hours for qualifying and 2 and a half hours for the race is reasonable. It will be about the amount of time the BBC covered on their highlights considering that channel 4 will have adverts in these taking up some of the time.

Channel 4 have just announced their live races for this year.

Quoted from Autosport: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/13410 ... e-f1-races

Australian Grand Prix March 23-25 Sky
Bahrain Grand Prix April 6-8 Sky/Channel 4
Chinese Grand Prix April 13-15 Sky
Azerbaijan Grand Prix April 27-29 Sky/Channel 4
Spanish Grand Prix May 11-13 Sky
Monaco Grand Prix May 25-27 Sky/Channel 4
Canadian Grand Prix June 8-10 Sky
French Grand Prix June 22-24 Sky
Austrian Grand Prix June 29-July 1 Sky/Channel 4
British Grand Prix July 6-8 Sky/Channel 4
German Grand Prix July 20-22 Sky
Hungarian Grand Prix July 27-29 Sky
Belgian Grand Prix August 24-26 Sky/Channel 4
Italian Grand Prix August 31-September 2 Sky
Singapore Grand Prix September 14-16 Sky/Channel 4
Russian Grand Prix September 28-30 Sky
Japanese Grand Prix October 5-7 Sky/Channel 4
United States Grand Prix October 19-21 Sky/Channel 4
Mexican Grand Prix October 26-28 Sky
Brazilian Grand Prix November 9-11 Sky
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix November 23-25 Sky/Channel 4



Quite different to last year. One thing I find interesting is that they are showing Japan live. This is out of the peak viewing times in the UK and that is one reason why I didn't expect it to be live. But this makes a nice change. But it will have been nice to see the new French GP on Channel 4 live. Not that it won't be on Sky, but the Channel 4 coverage is so much better. I hope they can get a highlights deal for every race from 2019 onwards. This is their final year of being able to show 10 live races. If people also don't like Sky, then make the most of this year!

No Monza makes me sad.

Has anyone seen one of Channel 4's latest F1 documentaries? Speed with Guy Martin: Classic F1 Special

I think it is new anyway. It was on last night. I missed it so will have to catch up. It is on 4seven at 21:00 to 22:35 UK time. Looks like it is Guy Martin and Jenson Button.
Something was mentioned about it earlier this year, but it is only now that I've noticed it being broadcast: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/13669 ... ms-f1-cars

I will watch it after I've recorded it sometime.





How sad that we only have 4 live Channel 4 weekends for F1 left. Sky are just awful at the moment in terms of the cometary team vs Channel 4. I want Sky to improve but at the same time, i hope Channel 4 or some other freeview channel gets a highlights package and keep the same commentators.

I really like Channel 4's F1 coverage and I am sad that it wont be on there next year, the Guy Martin documentary with Jenson Button was good viewing. I like C4's coverage as it feels quite fresh and less bias towards certain drivers!

Ben Edwards and D.C make good commentators and seem to get along, I don't always think Crofty and Di Resta (when he sits in for Brundle) get along....

Well, next weekend is the last free to air F1 weekend that is live until after 2025. In the Uk that is What a shame. Make sure you watch it if you can! At least Channel 4 have announced they will do highlights of every race which I've very happy about. I will be able to keep recording each race and keep it on my hard drive. I do this so I know where to look if i want evidence of what has happened in each race over the last 4 years. I have every single race recorded that Channel 4 have done. And 2015 with the BBC too. I just hope Channel 4 keep the same team as it is very good. Sky however needs a serious improvement. To watch each practice, qualifying and the race live, you would need to buy around 20 (however many races) week passes from nowTV. If say you did 20x£12.99 which it currently is, that would be over £250. Still seems way too much given how terrible I think their coverage is.

I will be very annoyed if they don't do the offer which they did this year. Which was to have 9 months of sky sports for £150. That wasn't worth me getting this year as half the races were live on Channel 4. But next year, that will be decent value given it will be the only way i can watch it live. If they don't offer this, then I will assume that because they know they are exclusively live, they will charge more. That will be annoying. If Sky keep these prices this high, I may end up giving up watching races live and just watch channel 4 highlights. Sky may get more customers because of what they have done, But they will seriously reduce the number of viewers in the UK of this sport. What they have done is a total shame. And their nowTV service is bad anyway. only 720p and it buffers so badly. Amazing that freeview HD was so much better. Lets just hope that highlights on freeview continue and F1 live eventually gets back to free to air TV.

Really hope Channel 4 will spend some time at the end of their live coverage showing you some of their team you hardly ever see. Would be nice to see who has been behind some of the work given they will no longer be live now.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:Well, next weekend is the last free to air F1 weekend that is live until after 2025. In the Uk that is What a shame. Make sure you watch it if you can! At least Channel 4 have announced they will do highlights of every race which I've very happy about. I will be able to keep recording each race and keep it on my hard drive. I do this so I know where to look if i want evidence of what has happened in each race over the last 4 years. I have every single race recorded that Channel 4 have done. And 2015 with the BBC too. I just hope Channel 4 keep the same team as it is very good. Sky however needs a serious improvement. To watch each practice, qualifying and the race live, you would need to buy around 20 (however many races) week passes from nowTV. If say you did 20x£12.99 which it currently is, that would be over £250. Still seems way too much given how terrible I think their coverage is.

I will be very annoyed if they don't do the offer which they did this year. Which was to have 9 months of sky sports for £150. That wasn't worth me getting this year as half the races were live on Channel 4. But next year, that will be decent value given it will be the only way i can watch it live. If they don't offer this, then I will assume that because they know they are exclusively live, they will charge more. That will be annoying. If Sky keep these prices this high, I may end up giving up watching races live and just watch channel 4 highlights. Sky may get more customers because of what they have done, But they will seriously reduce the number of viewers in the UK of this sport. What they have done is a total shame. And their nowTV service is bad anyway. only 720p and it buffers so badly. Amazing that freeview HD was so much better. Lets just hope that highlights on freeview continue and F1 live eventually gets back to free to air TV.

I may consider the £150 for 9 months if it's an offer again. I wish I could just watch the races live with a cheaper option though. I can cope with not watching practise or qualifying live and I'm not interested in all that goes with the sky coverage.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:Really hope Channel 4 will spend some time at the end of their live coverage showing you some of their team you hardly ever see. Would be nice to see who has been behind some of the work given they will no longer be live now.

This is the company and key people that produce the show for C4. Or do you mean camera operators, runners, etc?


https://www.whisperfilms.co.uk/team

shoot999 wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:Really hope Channel 4 will spend some time at the end of their live coverage showing you some of their team you hardly ever see. Would be nice to see who has been behind some of the work given they will no longer be live now.

This is the company and key people that produce the show for C4. Or do you mean camera operators, runners, etc?


https://www.whisperfilms.co.uk/team

Yea, i remember jake humphrey. He was really good as a presenter. A shame you just don't see him any more. You also vertually never see Ben Edwards. Would be nice to see the main commentator of the races for the last few years.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

shoot999 wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:Really hope Channel 4 will spend some time at the end of their live coverage showing you some of their team you hardly ever see. Would be nice to see who has been behind some of the work given they will no longer be live now.

This is the company and key people that produce the show for C4. Or do you mean camera operators, runners, etc?


https://www.whisperfilms.co.uk/team

Yea, i remember jake humphrey. He was really good as a presenter. A shame you just don't see him any more. You also vertually never see Ben Edwards. Would be nice to see the main commentator of the races for the last few years.

He presents Premier League coverage for BT Sport now but that's fairly new I think, he's been away from F1 for a while.

EDit: it's not that new, he's been doing that since 2013.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:Really hope Channel 4 will spend some time at the end of their live coverage showing you some of their team you hardly ever see. Would be nice to see who has been behind some of the work given they will no longer be live now.

Maybe they read your post?

Channel 4 haven't decided who's going to produce their Highlights show yet.

I really hope they stick with Whisper, with as much of the current presenting team as possible...

Does anyone know if Channel 4 will do 2018 season review show?

Just watched some of the highlights of the channel 4 coverage for yesterday. They may cover less, partly because they are forced to, but it just seems that they are more passionate about the sport. Sky just give me the feeling that the coverage is too staged and too much of what they say is planned. You can often tell this by their pathetic jokes and rather fake sounding laugh as if they knew it was coming. Channel 4 just seems more casual and the pre and post coverage is way better. Just a shame they are forced not to do any on track interviews! I think that the last few weekends, Crofty has been more annoying than I ever can remember. Brundle is just sounding more and more miserable. He just moans too much and has lost his enthusiasm which he seemed to have when he was with DC in 2011.

Not sure if others do, but I really like Bed Edwards. He may make a lot of mistakes, but he doesn't go off topic like Crofty and knows what he is talking about much better. Also doesn't talk about nonsense like the pie he had for supper the other night.... Ben Edwards sounds passionate about the sport when he commentates. I also like DC although I think he used to be a bit better. About the best person on Sky now IMO is who has left Channel 4. Chandhok. He is extremely knowledgeable and is a very good commentator. I actually liked the combination of him and Edwards in the practice sessions which sometimes was the case on Channel 4 more than i like DC and Edwards. Practice sessions on Channel 4 were actually great to watch and listen to. If I had the time, I would always watch every session. But now, even though I pay for Sky, I have pretty much given up altogether with watching practice. Crofty is unbelievably tedious to listen to on these. The majority of what he talks about isn't on topic and if i try and focus on what he says, it is harder to follow the results than if you watch it on mute. It is actually hard to tolerate listening to it.

The only thing I can see being an advantage about Crofty is that he may be good for viewers that are not into the sport much or at least not yet. He gives a very rough idea of what is happening, enough for new people to understand probably. And if they have little interest, the other things he goes on about may keep them interested. But that surely isn't the case for almost all of us. I don't know, but I get the feeling that over 75% of us would much rather have another commentator over him. He just doesn't sound very knowledgeable and doesn't really sound like he has much passion for the sport.

I have paid for Sky with the £195 deal for the year. I only want to watch qualifying and the race (and practice if i could tolerate it). It is just so disappointing that I think Sky is getting a lot worse. I dislike almost every presenter unfortunately. Brundle is good i just wish he would complain less. Anthony Davidson is one of the best. Di Resta is also very good and now Chandhok is there, that makes it better. Then there is Button too who is good. But the main presentation team, I just don't like at all unfortunately.

I agree with this strongly, one of the fascinating bits is Billy Monger's contribution, he interviewed Lando Norris and it was brilliantly refreshing, both drivers super fast yet without all the ego you get with Max.
There is also a great interview, only part seen as yet, with Cyril Abiteboul, Steve Jones does really well with these chats, he is not intimidated and gets some great info out of them.
Whisper films is run by David Coulthard who has a great feel for the sport. If I had a choice it would be C4F1 very time, Sky know they are better at it so have to hold them back.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:Just watched some of the highlights of the channel 4 coverage for yesterday. They may cover less, partly because they are forced to, but it just seems that they are more passionate about the sport. Sky just give me the feeling that the coverage is too staged and too much of what they say is planned. You can often tell this by their pathetic jokes and rather fake sounding laugh as if they knew it was coming. Channel 4 just seems more casual and the pre and post coverage is way better. Just a shame they are forced not to do any on track interviews! I think that the last few weekends, Crofty has been more annoying than I ever can remember. Brundle is just sounding more and more miserable. He just moans too much and has lost his enthusiasm which he seemed to have when he was with DC in 2011.

Not sure if others do, but I really like Bed Edwards. He may make a lot of mistakes, but he doesn't go off topic like Crofty and knows what he is talking about much better. Also doesn't talk about nonsense like the pie he had for supper the other night.... Ben Edwards sounds passionate about the sport when he commentates. I also like DC although I think he used to be a bit better. About the best person on Sky now IMO is who has left Channel 4. Chandhok. He is extremely knowledgeable and is a very good commentator. I actually liked the combination of him and Edwards in the practice sessions which sometimes was the case on Channel 4 more than i like DC and Edwards. Practice sessions on Channel 4 were actually great to watch and listen to. If I had the time, I would always watch every session. But now, even though I pay for Sky, I have pretty much given up altogether with watching practice. Crofty is unbelievably tedious to listen to on these. The majority of what he talks about isn't on topic and if i try and focus on what he says, it is harder to follow the results than if you watch it on mute. It is actually hard to tolerate listening to it.

The only thing I can see being an advantage about Crofty is that he may be good for viewers that are not into the sport much or at least not yet. He gives a very rough idea of what is happening, enough for new people to understand probably. And if they have little interest, the other things he goes on about may keep them interested. But that surely isn't the case for almost all of us. I don't know, but I get the feeling that over 75% of us would much rather have another commentator over him. He just doesn't sound very knowledgeable and doesn't really sound like he has much passion for the sport.

I have paid for Sky with the £195 deal for the year. I only want to watch qualifying and the race (and practice if i could tolerate it). It is just so disappointing that I think Sky is getting a lot worse. I dislike almost every presenter unfortunately. Brundle is good i just wish he would complain less. Anthony Davidson is one of the best. Di Resta is also very good and now Chandhok is there, that makes it better. Then there is Button too who is good. But the main presentation team, I just don't like at all unfortunately.

I think I mostly agree. I've never really warmed to Sky's presenting and punditry team ever since they took over the coverage: Simon Lazenby does not have the charisma to front the show, I find Herbert absolutely awful (a shame as I liked him as a driver) and does nothing but spout utter nonsense, Damon Hill still doesn't look comfortable being on camera and di Resta has such a dour personality. Things have improved with the addition of Rosberg and Button but they are not there all the time. I agree that Ant Davidson is the best one there and I wish he was more prominent on teh coverage, but I guess his racing commitments still take priority.

Croft is a strange one, I actually quite liked him to start with when he did the BBC radio commentary. In the latter days of the BBC coverage I opted to listen to him and Davidson rather than the absolutely dreadful Jonathan Legard as he seemed a real breath of fresh air and the camaraderie between the two of them was superb. I do see a real passion for motor racing in there, but where I think he does perhaps lack interest is in the minutiae of tyre management, car setup and pitstop strategy and in that respect, like you say, I think he does appeal more to the casual fan than the F1 "anorak". I think this is why he seems disinterested in what is happening on the track during practice. I used to think he did the practice commentary very well as he is very good at filling gaps with debate/discussion when nothing is happening, but I agree that more recently the balance has been lost and he seems more interested in having some banter with his mates than actually commentating on the session. It's like he's forgotten he's actually doing a live broadcast. Regarding replacing him, I suspect that Sky would put in the irritating chap from the F2 coverage which would be a step down. I never really watched the C4 coverage so can't comment too much on Ben Edwards, but I've not heard universal acclaim of his commentary. He seems to be of the same mould as Croft, high on energy but makes mistakes and not particularly knowledgeable.

I don't understand why Ted Kravitz seems to have been marginalised by Sky this season, and I think this is a big reason why the coverage has gone downhill. He is very good at getting "insider info" from the paddock and I think it is his input that has been really missing from the practice coverage this year. Whilst I like Chandhok, they seem to be trying to get him to do Ted's job and he is just not as good, and it doesn't really play to his strengths as a pundit. I'd much rather they booted Herbert out and put Chandhok on the punditry team.

j man wrote: He seems to be of the same mould as Croft, high on energy but makes mistakes and not particularly knowledgeable.

Isn't that mould true of all commentators? You are transcribing in words what you are seeing with your eyes, in my view and its not just F1 the best commentators are those with a radio background, (do you have live radio broadcasts in the USA?). Are you not bound to make mistakes in th heat of the moment.

Murray Walker was the classic example of this but in no way did it detract from his commentaries. Its the job of the guy in the seat next to him to add more considered input.

j man wrote: He seems to be of the same mould as Croft, high on energy but makes mistakes and not particularly knowledgeable.

The difference with Edwards and Croft is that Edwards sounds a lot more interested in what is going on as he doens't go off topic. He also doesn't do what Crofty regularly does. He doesn't ask people questions and then but in half way through them answering and not even apologising. He just seems impatient. If they don't answer the way he wants them to, it looks like he looses interest and talks over them with his own rubbish again. When he once did this with Di Resta, you could tell Di Resta did not like being with him. He just seems to full of himself to me as he interrupts all the time to say pointless things. And all to often he, laughs at the things he comes up with. Ben Edwards is miles better, but yes, he makes mistakes. But the thing is, more often than not, he very soon realises and corrects himself and apologises. Same if he gets corrected by DC.

The funny thing is when Sky speak to the team bosses during practice, you can tell none of the team bosses like Speaking to Crofty. Can't remember exactly what Horner said once time but it made by day. Basically he was telling Crofty to stick to his job when he suggested some nonsense to Horner!

When Channel 4 speak to the teams, you can tell that Horner doesn't mind Ben Edwards at all. He doesn't make stupid remarks.

Option or Prime wrote:
......Murray Walker was the classic example of this but in no way did it detract from his commentaries. Its the job of the guy in the seat next to him to add more considered input.

E.G. ;

"What am I saying ! What AM I saying !!! "

Said as a (?) Mini Cooper went spectacularly off track at a rallycross race after he had just praised the driver.

.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

j man wrote: He seems to be of the same mould as Croft, high on energy but makes mistakes and not particularly knowledgeable.

The difference with Edwards and Croft is that Edwards sounds a lot more interested in what is going on as he doens't go off topic. He also doesn't do what Crofty regularly does. He doesn't ask people questions and then but in half way through them answering and not even apologising. He just seems impatient. If they don't answer the way he wants them to, it looks like he looses interest and talks over them with his own rubbish again. When he once did this with Di Resta, you could tell Di Resta did not like being with him. He just seems to full of himself to me as he interrupts all the time to say pointless things. And all to often he, laughs at the things he comes up with. Ben Edwards is miles better, but yes, he makes mistakes. But the thing is, more often than not, he very soon realises and corrects himself and apologises. Same if he gets corrected by DC.

The funny thing is when Sky speak to the team bosses during practice, you can tell none of the team bosses like Speaking to Crofty. Can't remember exactly what Horner said once time but it made by day. Basically he was telling Crofty to stick to his job when he suggested some nonsense to Horner!

When Channel 4 speak to the teams, you can tell that Horner doesn't mind Ben Edwards at all. He doesn't make stupid remarks.

This. I loath the way Croft tries to make out they are all mates together, when its clear they have little time for him. And this year most of the other sky liggers have followed suit, Its like they have decided to follow a script where they are on a bad boys weekend abroad. Oafish, ignorant and with little interest of the subject matter. I think it was P2 where the whole broadcast was peppered with 'oh aren't the French funny people' and some in joke about soup that went on for 10 minutes. And Herbert now seems to relish being a cross between a court jester and village idiot. Which I don't understand at all, When he does the co-commentating on F2 he displays plenty of enthusiasm and knowledge of the subject.

C4 are a completely different broadcaster. Whisper is a Coultard company and if you look at their client list its just about every major player within F1 plus prestige names like para-Olympics and NFL. Not only do they do a lot of PR filming for the teams and suppliers, they also make the commercial in confidence stuff for them. They respect Whisper because they trust them. And obviously given Coultards other PR work around F1, trust him implicitly. Why they never got the pro-tv gig from Liberty I never know.

I think it was Saward who said that Sky have so much clout in F1 now that they can basically do what they like. When they originally denied C4 access to any area in Australia I was quite pleased that Hamilton left the paddock post race to give C4 an interview in basically an empty shed.

Chandhok was annoying sometimes but otherwise I liked everyone C4 team. In sky sports I only like Davidson. FP sessions they do not even talk what is happening on track

Jody Schecker describes Crofty as commentator for the blind

jiminwatford wrote:Jody Schecker describes Crofty as commentator for the blind

That's quite funny

To be fair though, I've heard Jody Scheckter commentate when he guested once many years ago, I think for the BBC - it was dire

I paid £10 a month for sky f1 this year, but if I ever have to pay full price for the rest of my Sky subscription if my ISP changes their deal I will ditch it in a heartbeat. I'll just watch the highlights and do something more meaningful on a Sunday afternoon instead.....

Compared to Channel four it's awful, it really is. The only good thing about it is that it is live at every race. I've said it a number of times now, but even Martin Brundle isn't as good as he used to be.

SteveW wrote:
.......I paid £10 a month for sky f1 this year, but if I ever have to pay full price for the rest of my Sky subscription if my ISP changes their deal I will ditch it in a heartbeat. I'll just watch the highlights and do something more meaningful on a Sunday afternoon instead.....

Compared to Channel four it's awful, it really is. The only good thing about it is that it is live at every race. I've said it a number of times now, but even Martin Brundle isn't as good as he used to be.

How about watching sky with the volume down and listen to Radio 5 live commentary.

.

I like the highlights but the problem is they are on to late most nights and I ca not believe its down to say all just watch it on catch up via there web player.

Its down to sky telling them if you want the rights then we want it as late as possible.

Well, everybody needs to make sure they watch everything on channel 4 next race weekend at the British grand prix. Think they are covering all of it live. If you really dislike sky, it will be great to watch. I think sky have got a lot worse since i have started watching it more... It is there coverage that is making me less and less bothered about watching practice now. I hardly ever bother any more. Sometimes even skip qualifying if i'm a bit busy. I used to prioritise it far more than i do now. And that is because i think to my self if if it is worth it given how much i dislike crofty if i have other things to do. When it was live on channel 4, i virtually always watched every session if it was possible.

Despite paying for sky, i watch the coverage less than i ever have before. My nowtv box is off the whole time other than race weekends and even on race day, i have started to skip virtually all of the pre race coverage and just watch that on the channel 4 highlights as it is far better. I am just so disappointed in the presentation of the coverage on sky. What they say just feels so planned and they is no feeling that they are passionate about it really. Channel 4 seem to feel like the presenters get on better as a team. DC and webber are great. Steve Jones is annoying but he is very enthusiastic. Simon Lazenby just seems like he lacks interest really. He never really looks or sounds excited. Just doesn't seem to suit the job as pretty much the main presenter.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:Well, everybody needs to make sure they watch everything on channel 4 next race weekend at the British grand prix. Think they are covering all of it live. If you really dislike sky, it will be great to watch. I think sky have got a lot worse since i have started watching it more... It is there coverage that is making me less and less bothered about watching practice now. I hardly ever bother any more. Sometimes even skip qualifying if i'm a bit busy. I used to prioritise it far more than i do now. And that is because i think to my self if if it is worth it given how much i dislike crofty if i have other things to do. When it was live on channel 4, i virtually always watched every session if it was possible.

Despite paying for sky, i watch the coverage less than i ever have before. My nowtv box is off the whole time other than race weekends and even on race day, i have started to skip virtually all of the pre race coverage and just watch that on the channel 4 highlights as it is far better. I am just so disappointed in the presentation of the coverage on sky. What they say just feels so planned and they is no feeling that they are passionate about it really. Channel 4 seem to feel like the presenters get on better as a team. DC and webber are great. Steve Jones is annoying but he is very enthusiastic. Simon Lazenby just seems like he lacks interest really. He never really looks or sounds excited. Just doesn't seem to suit the job as pretty much the main presenter.

Yes, C4 for me next weekend. After half a season of Sky it'll feel like I'm being cleansed. My viewing habits seem to mirror yours, although I still stick to practice I use the BBC commentary. I do occasional try the Sky commentary, but it is pretty dire and has very little to do with F1 at all. Interesting you say it feels planned, as I think it is 'directed' in the same way most reality tv is. They seem to follow a script; badly, and pursue their own particular agenda. And I suspect like a lot of viewers I no longer bother to watch the pre or post show. I'd rather wait for the Will Buxton piece on youtube. Plus these days you have Joe Saward, Rosberg, Windsor, Mercedes and a host of others putting out far better content for free.

Speaking of C4 next weekend...

Sunday is also the Cricket World Cup final, which Sky have announced today will be on free to air TV if England make the final. If that's the case and the free to air TV option is C4 (they have cricket highlights), there's a suggestion that the pre/post-race coverage could move to More 4.

https://twitter.com/f1broadcasting/stat ... 28448?s=19

Ps. C4 have a feature of Wolff and Gareth Southgate.