Editing Channel 4 (section)

=== Comedy ===
During the station's early days, the screenings of innovative short one-off [[comedy films]] produced by a rotating line-up of alternative comedians went under the title of ''[[The Comic Strip Presents]]''. ''[[The Optimist (TV series)|The Optimist]]'' was the world's first dialogue-free television comedy, and one of the channel's earliest commissioned programs. ''[[The Tube (1982 TV series)|The Tube]]'' and ''[[Saturday Live (British TV programme)|Saturday Live/Friday Night Live]]'' also launched the careers of a number of comedians and writers. Channel 4 broadcast a number of popular American imports, including ''[[Cheers]]'', ''[[The Cosby Show]]'', ''[[Roseanne]]'', ''[[Home Improvement (TV series)|Home Improvement]]'', ''[[Friends]]'', ''[[Sex and the City]]'', ''[[Everybody Loves Raymond]]'', ''[[South Park]]'', ''[[Family Guy]]'', ''[[Futurama]]'', ''[[Frasier]]'', ''[[Scrubs (TV series)|Scrubs]]'', and ''[[Will & Grace]]''. Other significant US acquisitions include ''[[The Simpsons]]'', for which the station was reported to have paid £700,000 per episode for the terrestrial television rights back in 2004, and continues to air on the channel daily.

In April 2010, Channel 4 became the first UK broadcaster to adapt the American comedy institution of [[Roast (comedy)|roasting]] to British television, with ''[[A Comedy Roast]]''.<ref name="Guardian5Apr2010">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/apr/05/comedy-roasts-channel-4 |title=Channel 4 launches comedy roast shows |newspaper=The Guardian |date=5 April 2010 |access-date=8 April 2010 |location=London |first=Stephen |last=Armstrong |archive-date=9 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409092243/http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/apr/05/comedy-roasts-channel-4 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Channel4AComedyRoastEpisodeGuide">{{cite web |url=http://www.channel4.com/programmes/a-comedy-roast/episode-guide |title=A Comedy Roast – Series & Episodes |publisher=Channel 4 |website=www.channel4.com/programmes/a-comedy-roast/episode-guide |date=n.d. |access-date=8 April 2010 |archive-date=16 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100416012250/http://www.channel4.com/programmes/a-comedy-roast/episode-guide |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2010, Channel 4 organised ''[[Channel 4's Comedy Gala]]'', a comedy [[benefit show]] in aid of [[Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital]]. With over 25 comedians appearing, it billed it as "the biggest live stand up show in United Kingdom history". Filmed live on 30 March in front of 14,000 at [[The O2 Arena]] in London, it was broadcast on 5 April.<ref name="Channel4Sales11Feb2010">{{cite web |url=http://channel4sales.com/news/11/02/2010/comedy+royalty+unite+for+channel+4s+comedy+gala |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100926195042/http://channel4sales.com/news/11/02/2010/comedy%2Broyalty%2Bunite%2Bfor%2Bchannel%2B4s%2Bcomedy%2Bgala |archive-date=26 September 2010 |title=Comedy Royalty unite for Channel 4's Comedy Gala |publisher=Channel 4 |website=www.channel4sales.com/news |date=11 February 2010 |access-date=30 March 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> This has continued to 2016.

In 2021, Channel 4 decided to revive [[The British Comedy Awards]] as part of its Stand Up To Cancer programming. The ceremony, billed as The National Comedy Awards was due to be held in the spring of 2021 but was delayed twice due to the Coronavirus pandemic and eventually held a year later.<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/news/6644/national-comedy-awards-postponed/|title = C4's new National Comedy Awards postponed – News| website=[[British Comedy Guide]] |date = 7 December 2021|access-date = 23 December 2021|archive-date = 14 December 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211214185959/https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/news/6644/national-comedy-awards-postponed/|url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.thenationalcomedyawards.com/about|title= About the show|access-date= 23 December 2021|archive-date= 28 October 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211028232806/https://www.thenationalcomedyawards.com/about|url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tvzoneuk.com/post/c4comedyawards-postponed|title=C4 Postpones National Comedy Awards Ceremony|date=8 December 2021|access-date=23 December 2021|archive-date=8 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211208193950/https://www.tvzoneuk.com/post/c4comedyawards-postponed|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2021/12/07/49792/omicron_halts_national_comedy_awards|title=Omicron halts National Comedy Awards : News 2021 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide|access-date=23 December 2021|archive-date=8 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211208194657/https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2021/12/07/49792/omicron_halts_national_comedy_awards|url-status=live}}</ref>