Sky makes changes to entertainment portfolio unveiling Sky Showcase and Sky Max

To help customers easily find programmes that they love and to discover new shows, we’re making some changes to our portfolio of TV channels and on demand destinations. From September, we’re saying goodbye to the Sky One brand and we’ll be replacing it with a new flagship brand Sky Showcase, as well as launching a further new service, Sky Max. The changes include:

• Launching the newly branded Sky Showcase channel, a linear only main event channel that will curate a selection of the top shows from across Sky’s portfolio of entertainment brands. So when you’re not sure what you’re in the mood for, Sky Showcase is the place to go to find something new to watch
• Launching a brand-new destination Sky Max, a linear channel and on demand service, that is the new home for Sky’s blockbuster entertainment, including some of your Sky favourites such as original dramas A Discovery of Witches and COBRA and original comedy entertainment including panel shows like A League of Their Own and the return of Never Mind The Buzzcocks. Sky Max is where you’ll now find all the addictive blockbuster entertainment you know and love.
• Updating Sky Comedy so it now becomes the home of Sky Original Comedy including shows such as Code 404 and Hitmen Reloaded, that were previously on Sky One, alongside the Best of US comedy such as The Office US, PEN15 and Miracle Workers. So if you’re after a laugh, Sky Comedy is the place to go.

Sky Showcase will be Sky’s flagship channel, replacing the Sky One brand at 106 on the electronic programme guide, and it will feature a selection of programmes from across Sky’s portfolio of channels – airing content from Sky Witness, Sky Documentaries, Sky Crime, Sky Nature, Sky Arts, Sky Max, Sky Comedy, Sky History, Sky Kids, SyFy and E!. It will also air selected highlights from Sky Cinema and Sky Sports. At launch Sky Showcase will hero all new Sky Original drama Wolfe, documentaries such as Hawking and The Bambers: Murder at the Farm; high profile original nature series such as Shark with Steve Backshall, as well as the best of the US including Young Rock and SWAT.

Sky Max’s launch schedule will include blockbuster entertainment such as the return of Never Mind the Buzzcocks, The Russell Howard Hour and DC Super Heroes.

Sky Atlantic will remain the exclusive home of high-concept original dramas such as Landscapers, I Hate Suzie, Gangs of London and Chernobyl, as well as being the home of drama from HBO and Showtime.

The changes will come into effect from 1 September.

Commenting on the channel shake-up, MD of Content Sky UK & ROI, Zai Bennett said:

“In this golden age of television, the sheer volume of incredible programming can be overwhelming. Over the last 12 months we’ve been making it easier for people to find what they want to watch. From September those looking for the very best of Sky will find it at the top of their programme guide on Sky Showcase, while Sky Max will become the new home of blockbuster entertainment joining the host of genre-led channels launched in the past year – so whether you’re in the mood for true crime, a documentary or just a laugh there’s always a channel to suit. And if you’re not sure what to watch Sky Showcase will curate some of the highlights from our line-up so you can find something new to watch.”

The channels will be available to Sky customers at no extra charge. They will also launch on streaming service NOW and on Virgin and BT.

Notes to editors

Sky’s linear and on-demand entertainment channels, including their EPG slots from 1 Sept, are:

• Sky Showcase – 106
• Sky Max - 113
• Sky Witness – 107
• Sky Atlantic – 108
• Sky Comedy - 114
• Sky Documentaries - 121
• Sky Crime - 122
• Sky History - 123
• Sky Nature - 124
• Sky Arts - 130
• Sky Kids (on-Demand)
• E! – 151
• SyFy - 152

About Sky

 Sky is Europe’s leading media and entertainment company and is proud to be part of the Comcast group. Across six countries, we connect our 23.4 million customers to the best entertainment, sports, news and arts including our own award-winning original content.

 Our technology, including the market leading Sky Q, connects people to everything they love – with entertainment from Sky TV, Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and BBC iPlayer, and apps like Spotify, YouTube, BBC Sounds, Highbrow, Peloton, Fiit, and more, in one place, easy. Our streaming service NOW brings viewers all the enjoyment of Sky with the flexibility of a contract-free service. Through our new B2B broadband provider, Sky Connect, we offer superfast broadband with business-grade 4G back-up to small businesses in the UK.

Building on the success of Sky Originals like Chernobyl, Gangs of London and Brassic, we are doubling our investment in original content by 2024 through Sky Studios. Sky News provides impartial and trustworthy journalism for free, Sky Arts is the UK’s only dedicated free-to-air arts channel making the arts accessible for everyone and Sky Sports, our leading sports broadcasting service, brings customers some of the biggest and best global sporting events from the Premier League to Formula 1 and everything in-between. Our new TV and movie studio, Sky Studios Elstree, which will open in 2022, is expected to create over 2,000 new jobs and generate an additional £3 billion of production investment in the UK over the first five years.

 We believe that we can be a force for good in the communities in which we operate. We’re committed to being Europe’s first net zero carbon entertainment company by 2030 and we’re proud to be a Principal Partner and Media Partner of COP26. We take pride in our approach to diversity and inclusion: we’ve been recognised by The Times and Stonewall for our commitment to diversity and we’ve set ambitious 2025 targets to continue to increase diversity and representation.  We’re also committed to investing £30million across our markets over three years to improve our approach to diversity and inclusion, and to tackle racial injustice.