.tv (formerly The Computer Channel, pronounced as Dot TV and referred to on-screen as .tv - the technology channel) was a
British television channel dedicated to technology. .tv was owned and operated by
British Sky Broadcasting. The channel first broadcast on 1 September 1996 and broadcast between 18:00 and 20:00, timesharing with
Granada Good Life when it launched a month later. The broadcasting hours were increased to midday-midnight when the channel started broadcasting on British Sky Broadcasting's digital satellite platform,
Sky Digital in 1998. In 1999 the channel interviewed then
Microsoft CEO
Bill Gates.
Towards the end of its run, .tv implemented several new shows heavily sponsored by online technology store
dabs.com, promoting products which were available at that site. .tv was closed on 2 September 2001 because of low audience ratings. Most of the programmes were produced by
Hewland International.
Chips with Everything - 20-minute weekday show presented by
Kate Russell with guests trying to answer computer-related questions that were sent in by viewers. Guests included: Roger Gann, James Morris, Simon Smart, Nigel Whitfield, Guy Clapperton, and Charles Bocock.
Ex Machina - 30-minute weekly show that went behind the scenes of digitally produced entertainment (video games, films and television programmes).
Game Over (originally Games World) - variable-format video game magazine show. The show was presented by
Andy Collins[1] and co-presented by
Matt Berry, Richard Pitt, Helen Hartley & Kellie Priestley.[2] In November 2000, Matt Cuttle took over as the sole presenter.[3]
404 Not Found - An offbeat news and reviews show with regular viewer letters and emails, written and hosted by
Dave Green and
Danny O’Brien, with additional script-writing by
James Wallis.
Global Village - 30-minute weekly show that looked at how technology was revolutionising our homes from an international perspective. Presented by Will Hanrahan [4]
Masterclass - 20-minute weekday show that gave tutorials on how to use features from programs like
Microsoft Word,
Adobe Photoshop and
Nero Burning ROM. For the majority of the run, the show was presented by
Richard Topping, affectionately known as "Toppers." He left the show to pursue a successful career in writing. His replacement was comedian
Marc Haynes, who fronted the show until the channel closed.