Together TV

For other television-related uses, see Together § Television.

Together TV

Programming
Picture format	576i (16:9 SDTV)
Ownership
Owner	The Community Channel
History
Launched	18 September 2000 (2000-09-18)
Links
Website	togethertv.com
Availability
Terrestrial
Freeview	Channel 83 (6:00PM-12:00AM only), IP simulcast (12:00AM-6:00PM) Channel 90 IP simulcast (24 hours)
Sky UK	Channel 170
Virgin Media	Channel 136
freesat	Channel 162

Together TV (formerly The Community Channel) is a British free-to-air television channel owned by The Community Channel, a community benefit society. The channel targets a women's audience aged 40 to 60, with programming related to health and wellness, hobbies, and creativity.

The channel was initially launched on 18 September 2000 as The Community Channel, with programming centered around promoting volunteerism and charitable organizations. It was initially backed by other British broadcasters who provided resources and other programming to the service. After selling its previous Freeview slot to A&E Networks in 2017, the channel re-launched on Freeview in January 2018 under its current name.

History

1999–2000

In 1999, an initiative by Caroline Diehl MBE to create Community Channel was supported by Elisabeth Murdoch of BSkyB, deputy home secretary Paul Boateng and cabinet office minister Lord Charles Falconer.

Community Channel launched on 18 September 2000 as a national two-hour "ethical shopping channel." This platform provided charities an opportunity to showcase their merchandise, raised awareness of the works of national charities, and contributed to increasing the number of volunteers across the UK.

2002–03

By 2002, Community Channel had increased its broadcast hours from three hours a day to 12 hours a day (8 am – 8 pm). It was chosen as one of the initial 30 free-to-view channels on the digital terrestrial platform Freeview. The BBC also agreed to supply relevant programming from the BBC archive to Community Channel.

In conjunction with continued broadcasts of charity focused programming, Community Channel began a co-production with ITV's campaigning series That's Esther to promote volunteering.

2002 also saw Jane Mote, Editor BBC London – TV, Radio and Online – join Community Channel as channel controller.

In 2003 the channel produced First Up, a "cruelty-free" talent show. Milton Keynes ska-punk-funk-metal band Six.Point.Five were awarded first prize by viewers and an expert panel. The prize (in association with Channel 4) was five days' recording in Abbey Road with a producer of their choice (Dave Chang).

2004–05

2004 saw the launch of flagship drama series Kismet Road. Commissioned by the Department of Health, Kismet Road used drama to promote good health. Using a number of Asian actors, writers, trainees and integrating Urdu and Punjabi in the dialogue, Kismet Road was a breakthrough series in showcasing a multicultural Britain.

Community Channel also introduced an interactive TV donation service in 2004. This service offered a round-the-clock on-air presence for selected charities, encouraging donations from viewers. Developed by Sky Interactive, the red button feature also allowed participating charities to promote their fundraising campaigns, including existing programs, films, or advertisements, at no additional cost to the charities.

In 2004, Community Channel moved from an overnight slot on Freeview to a daytime slot.

2005 saw Nick Ware, former Creative Director for BBC Learning, take on the role of channel controller and Community Channel became available on NTL for 24 hours a day.

The documentary Abnormally Funny People broadcast in partnership with Sky and won several awards. It featured a group of gifted stand-up comedians: Tanyalee Davis, Steve Best, Liz Carr, Steve Day, Chris McCausland and Simon Minty. All but one of them is disabled and all are very funny. Abnormally Funny People celebrates its 10th anniversary at Edinburgh in summer 2015.

In support of The Year of The Volunteer campaign, Community Channel broadcast a range of programmes which highlighted the work of people who donated their time to good causes. Programmes included Beach Lovers and Charity Chic – a magazine show chronicling the lives of those involved in charity shop work.

Programming in July 2005 included Restoration and Soaplife, which featured Fiona Phillips as presenter.

In September, Community Channel and the Royal Horticulture Society produced "Britain in Bloom", a partnership that ran for three years of the RHS Awards, focusing on the Neighbourhood Award scheme, also working with the BBC.

Partnering with Channel Five, Mad 4 Arts was shown in October. Also in October, pairing with BBC, Community Channel aired the National Lottery Awards.

2006

On Thursday 6 July 2006, the Broadcasters Joint Declaration was renewed with new signatories and at an event was held at Channel 4. The signatories were BBC, ITV, Channel Four, Five, Sky, Turner, Flextech Television, Disney, MTV, Discovery, GMTV, ITN and PACT.

Community Channel became available for two more hours on Freeview.

Community Channel was also at the forefront of the interactive TV campaign to raise money for the Indian Tsunami.

Launched to coincide with National Giving Week, Community Channel launched an online social networking area called YourCharitySpace for visitors to blog about charity issues. The site also offers visitors the chance to donate by linking to a specially designed page on the Charities Aid Foundation's website.

2006 saw the launch of Give More, Get More, Volunteer – a campaign to make volunteering more accessible for marginalised groups including people with no formal qualifications, people with disabilities and ethnic minorities.

In January, The Skoll Foundation’s series The New Heroes aired, telling the dramatic stories of 14 daring people from all over the world who are helping bring social reform to poor and marginalized people around the globe.

In August, partnering with BBC Two, Community Channel broadcast Restoration Village, followed by North By North East in September.

In October, the channel broadcast the Screen Nation Film and Television Awards, recognising talented black and ethnic minority actors. Teaming up with Channel Five, Mad For Poetry was also broadcast in October, along with Saving a Stranger by Anthony Nolan.

In November, Ballet Saved My Life was broadcast as a partnership with Channel 4.

In December, teaming up with Channel 4, the Community Channel aired the Beacon Awards/Secret Millionaire and Oxfam.

2007–08

Logo used until 15 December 2009

Community Channel launched an interactive initiative for young film-makers called Charge TV and described as "YouTube with a conscience". Charge TV ran for five series broadcasting on Community Channel and on the website.

Daren Forsyth of BBC Future Media, became the channel’s Director of Innovation & New Media. Forsyth led a programme of digital media initiatives across Media Trust's media training, news distribution, film and TV productions and Community Channel, the TV and online service for charities.

In 2007, Community Channel joined forces with The Scout Association to deliver the live broadcast from Brownsea Island of the Sunrise Ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the movement.

In February, the channel aired James McAvoy: On the Tiger’s Trail, which featured the Scottish actor and explains the work of RETRAK's flagship project in Uganda.

In June 2007, the Giving Nation Challenge documentary aired which was filmed in schools across the UK showcasing young entrepreneurs participating in the Giving Nation Challenge, including their progress, and pitches to experts.

July 2007 saw ‘'Cutie HQ'’, produced by Hamma & Glamma that had replaced the axed ‘'CharliiTV'’ strand that ran from February 2006-June 2007, which was produced by RDF Television (the rights are now owned by Shout Factory in the US). It was narrated by Hannah Sandling with the tutions provided by Lily Vincent, Toni Micklebrough, Samanie Warren, Danielle Chapman, Desiree Skylark, Luciana Caporaso & Jessica Reid. ‘'Cutie HQ'’ ended in December 2008.

Community Channel also broadcast Summit About A Boy, following 22-year-old Lee McConville's extraordinary journey from the violent gang-ridden streets of Lozells in Birmingham to the exclusive briefings at the G8 summit in Germany, under the wing of veteran Times political editor Philip Webster.

In 2008, Community Channel’s Awareness Campaign featured focused programming for a variety of campaigns including Disability Week, World Mental Health Day, Black History Month, Aids and Human Rights Day.

2009–10

Community Channel launched its new BSL Zone (British Sign Language Zone) on 21 January 2009. This initiative offers an extended service in signing supported programmes.

Following on from their 2007 success, Community Channel joined forces with The Scout Association once again to showcase their six-part series Scout TV.

Spotting Cancer Early, a four-part series produced with Cancer Research UK, broadcast with Dr. Sarah Jarvis and Dr. Chris Steele presenting.

In 2010, Community Channel partnered with BT Vision and was available on Freeview for 24 hours a day from the month of May to June, leading to a notable spike in viewing figures.

In September 2010, Community Channel celebrated a decade of broadcasting. For the anniversary month in September, programmes including Inspiring Stories, How the Other Half Live, Living With Size Zero and other Sky health series were broadcast. Other seasons in 2010 included Alzheimers Awareness, Black History Month, Disability Week in December and programming for World AIDS Day.

Community Channel also launched Community Champions in partnership with Heavenly. This campaign aimed to recognise the individual champions in communities across the UK. The public were encouraged to nominate and vote for their own community champions. In addition, a dedicated telephone line enabled entry forms to be requested. The top 20 people with the highest number of registered votes were shortlisted and an independent judging panel then decided on the winning five. The five winners were recognised through a documentary that highlighted the impact that they make in their community.

Community Channel also partnered with Looking Local for interactive services on Sky.

October 2010 saw the celebration of Black History Month on Community Channel. Programmes included Black History and Me, Girl Guiding Anniversary, Future Shorts, Penny Revolution and Evicted.

In November 2010, Community Channel took a deeper look at deprivation during Poverty Month, with programmes including The Street: Film with the Homeless and SPIT: Squeegee Punks in Traffic. The Nick Broomfield Season, the Strictly Politics documentary, and Unicef and Children in Need weeks were also popular with audiences during this month too.

2011

Community Channel opened 2011 with a campaign to increase cancer awareness and promote healthy living. Your Sport returned for a fourth series following its broadcast as shorts on Channel 5 from October 2010. An environmental season in March included Nature Inc, Planet India, Explore and The Environmental Atlas of Europe. International Women’s Day was highlighted through the series Make Women Matter and other programming.

Other notable spring and summer premieres included the Oscar-winning Blood of Yinzhou District, MediaBox, Talent Studio, Untold Stories, The Team (produced by Search For Common Ground), ViewChange, Charity Champions (from BBC Children in Need) and That Paralympic Show (from Channel Four).

London360 launched in June 2011, a series celebrating the capital’s communities through features produced by young reporters trained in journalism, production and digital skills. The "Riot Special" following the 2011 England riots received critical praise for its unique look into the London riots. London360 has broadcast five series and featured hundreds of communities to date with media partners including BBC Radio London, The Voice, MTV, Sky, Time Out, Huffington Post and Westside Radio. Many of London360's alumni have gone on to work for major broadcasters including BBC, ITV, MTV and London Live.

In August and September, the channel ran a season of pioneering British films under the This Britain banner. These films were funded by the BFI Production Board and charted changing Britain from the 1970s to the millennium. The season ran for 10 weeks, launching with Horace Ové's Pressure (1975), and included Karl Francis's Above Them The Earth (1977), Peter K. Smith’s A Private Enterprise (1974), Ron Peck’s Nighthawks (1978), Sally Potter’s The Gold Diggers (1983), Menelik Shabazz's Burning an Illusion (1981) Patrick Keiller's Robinson in Space (1997), Margaret Tait’s Blue Black Permanent (1992), and John Akomfrah's Speak Like A Child (1998).

In September, the channel launched a simulcast programming block on Channel M, a local TV channel in Manchester, broadcasting four hours a day. This continued until Channel M’s closure in April 2012. The channel also launched feature documentary strand Beyond Borders, which has broadcast more than 50 films to date.

In October, the channel ran a season marking Black History Month and in November it ran a season of programmes on addiction, including HBO’s High on Crack Street, its premiere coinciding with Sky’s premiere of The Fighter, which features the documentary.

In November, the channel launched UK360, a celebrity-presented series that featured stories from communities and local reporters across the UK. It ran for 50 episodes until August 2013 and presenters included Benjamin Zephaniah, Terry Wogan, Rachel Riley, Matt Allwright, Charlie Dimmock, Adam Deacon and many more. The channel also ran a short event supporting the Film Africa film festival and lifelong learning content.

In December, the channel broadcast eight Worldview-supported international documentaries as new films commissioned by Worldview, Community Channel and YourWorldview shorts. Other new programmes included An Inconvenient Truth 2 and Dream Islands.

2012

In March, Community Channel and The Sunday Times launched "The Change Makers", a competition calling on the public to nominate inspirational people that had made positive impact on the community. Six features appeared in newspaper including interviews with celebrity supporters James Middleton and Karren Brady. Over 20 social enterprises were showcased in the campaign and the winning group Street Soccer in Scotland received exposure for their work across The Sunday Times and Community Channel, a £500 prize and a raft of professional media support from The Sunday Times to help further promote their work.

Community Channel was broadcast partner for The Space, a new digital arts service from Arts Council England and the BBC. From July to 16 October, specially produced programmes were aired and featured content from companies and artists, from films on John Peel, Tracey Emin and Ridley Scott alongside full performances of The Two Worlds of Charlie F (performed by Afghan war veterans) and two Globe To Globe Shakespeare’s (performed by companies from Zimbabwe and Bangladesh). A specially commissioned Community Channel series Arts360 brought mainstream and community arts to life from a younger perspective.

Sleep Out Live was Community Channel’s first live broadcast event. Partnering with Centrepoint and six other youth homeless charities, it contained interviews, performances, guest appearances, link-ups across the UK and films about youth homelessness. The promo featuring presenter Richard Madeley was broadcast to shopping centres across the UK with footfall of 60m people and was secured Sky cross-promotion on Sky News and PickTV, who broadcast it 46 times. The event raised £350,000, up £100,000 on the previous year’s total.

During the London Olympics, Community Channel documented the lives and passions of disparate groups and communities that can be viewed as being outside the social norm in the Outsiders season. Programming included A Very British Games, Gypsy Gentleman, For the Love of Odd, Thank You Skinhead Girl and UK360: Momentum.

In November, Community Channel launched as a third-party linking partner on BBC iPlayer. This enables BBC iPlayer’s 8,000,000 weekly users to find information and over 1000 on-demand programmes from Community Channel on the UK’s leading broadcaster VOD service.

2013

In February, the channel’s Freeview hours were extended by three hours from 5 am – 8 am to 2 am – 8 am.

In April, Community Channel showcased an Against All Odds season to celebrate those who have overcome mental or physical setbacks. This coincided with National Autism Month and Cystic Fibrosis Week (29th – 5th).

May and June saw Community Channel introduce the popular Gypsy Roma Traveller season in which Gypsy Roma Traveller (GRT) cultures and histories throughout the UK were celebrated with online features and links to groups. Steering Group of 20 GRT activists, academics and artists identified issues to profile, e.g. housing, health, education, women, art and prejudice.

The channel secured over 20 new films and documentaries for the season, working with NGOs, broadcasters, distributors and filmmakers around the world. A UK360 special featuring GRT360 news bulletins, talking head promos and agony aunt spots added context to the season.

Community Channel received extensive online support with a dedicated microsite for highlights, news, topics and ways to take action. Newsletters were sent to over 20k subscribers to increase awareness.

The season gained coverage in several newspapers, magazines and websites including The Independent, Huffington Post and New Statesman.

In September, a new series of Brilliant Britain began piloting. Brilliant Britain is an entertainment magazine show that is produced by Community Channel and celebrates brilliant community stories from across the UK, featuring regular segments and local stories.

Community Channel became available on Freesat channel 651 in 2013, and on TVCatchup.

2014

In 2014, Community Channel moved its Freeview EPG slot from news (channel 87) to general entertainment (channel 63).

Community Channel and Media Trust gained funding from the Big Lottery Fund to launch the flagship campaign "Do Something Brilliant". This campaign sets out to celebrate all that is brilliant about the incredible, diverse and talented people who make England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland a better place for us all.

Do Something Brilliant launched on 25 February 2014. In conjunction with this, Brilliant Britain and My Brilliant Moment will showcase communities and charities around the UK.

Community Channel launched on Freeview HD on 18 March and was to be found on channel 109.

The Easy Riders launched on 19 March 2014. The Easy Riders is a new 10-part series starring Red Dwarf star Danny John-Jules and Steve Keys. Sharing a passion for motorcycles and adventure, we follow our intrepid explorers as they embark on an epic 1,250 mile journey from the UK to Valencia in aid of Riders for Health; a charity working to ensure health workers in Africa can access reliable transportation to reach isolated people with regular healthcare.

On 29 April 2014, Community Channel had its broadcast hours extended on Freeview SD from 3 am – 8 am to 3 am – 12 am. April also saw the channel introduce its Secrets of Sex strand. Covering issues surrounding gay rights, sex and disability, body image, AIDS and the fight against female genital mutilation, this strand aims to lift the lid on aspects of sex and sexuality rarely covered in the media. Shows including Naked on the Inside, Protection, The Last Taboo and the Meryl Streep-narrated Cutting Tradition have featured in this strand. Secrets of Sex has grown to become a channel staple and has seen audience figures in the hundreds of thousands.

Community Channel’s young reporter series London360 ran for 13 episodes on new local TV channel London Live.

In August, Community Channel’s Do Something Brilliant campaign teamed up with The Sunday Times to launch The Change Makers, a search for the UK’s social innovator of the year. Run in association with SparkNews Impact Journalism Day, this competition aimed to inspire people across the country to do something brilliant and to spark social change. Out of more than one hundred nominations, Joe Dickinson won the competition making him the social innovator of the year. Joe’s Call and Check service ensures that postmen and women check in on vulnerable people in Jersey.

On 16 September 2014, Community Channel’s Freeview hours extended once again to 17 hours on air including 3 am – 3 pm and 7 pm – midnight. As well as achieving a month’s viewing figures over 2 million, September also saw the highest rated week in channel history with more than a million viewers.

2015

On 22 February 2015, Community Channel premiered its first ever drama series PREMature. The series was acquired in 2014 and was originally funded through Kickstarter along with co-production funding from Community Channel. Cast and crew screenings of all six episodes were held in Brentford on the eve of its television premiere. Easy Riders returned for a third series with The Five Peaks challenge. Planet Norfolk returned for series 2, with the filmmaker Nik Coleman holding a premiere screening in Great Yarmouth and a promotion being shown at Norwich FC's grounds. London360 returned for series 7, with its reporters interviewing party leaders ahead of the election for Sky's Stand Up and Be Counted.

In March 2015, The Community Channel moved to a Freeview HD multiplex on channel 109 in order to facilitate the launch of Horror Channel.

In April the channel launched Make #Something Brilliant competition with Wendy Turner Webster and Julie Peasgood, with support from Hobbycraft and Craft Beautiful magazine. This was alongside a craft and passions season on the channel which included series Crafty Beggars and She's Crafty.

Do Something Brilliant Week launched in late May, with a new TV ad broadcasting across Sky, MTV, Turner and BT Sport alongside Community Channel. The Share #Something Brilliant competition was supported by METRO and other media and charity partners supported the campaign through online and social media. New programming for Do Something Brilliant Week included the five-part series This Is Brilliant and hour-long Do Something Brilliant, alongside regular series My Brilliant Moment and Brilliant Northern Ireland. Other series included Supersize vs. Superskinny, The Undateables and The Day Before Tomorrow from The Drum.

The Do Something Brilliant project found that 89% of viewers said they learned more from watching the channel, 80% talked to others about what they watched, 70% said it changed their views, 48% said it inspired them to do more for their community, and 22% got directly involved with a topic they saw on the channel (around half through volunteering).

The same research found that charities showcased on the channel reported benefits including increased visibility (74%), new connections (67%) and increased donations or volunteering support (30%).

2016

In January, the channel was the first broadcaster to show the series Walks Around Britain, which was commissioned from the Yorkshire-based Nova Productions. Community Channel premiered both season one and two, and screened season three after it was first broadcast on the Made TV network of local channels.

From the autumn new Crafty Beggars, alongside independent and charity films such as Recovery Street (a Brighton addiction charity), Shadowlight Artists (about disabled artists) and Power of People (about NHS nurses), plus acquired series from Channel 4 and Discovery. New charity awareness films included a Hestia campaign against violence against women and films supporting Coops UK, the Leeds Bread Cooperative, the Big Issue and autism awareness.

In 2016, the channel launched a crowdfunding campaign to help raise £300,000 to keep the channel broadcasting. The channel offered ownership shares for £50 or more. The campaign raised £393,000 in 47 days – over £93,000 more than their original target.

In September 2016 the Community Channel became a Community Benefit Society (FCA: RS007400), and issued shares to its 200+ new owners, and then ran director elections to elect three members to its board. The new CBS board met for the first time in November, and included the elected directors alongside media industry and charity directors. The Community Channel's charitable status was recognised by HMRC in November 2016.

As part of Community Shares campaign rewards, short My Brilliant Moments films were produced, the first for Funpact, a teen citizenship programme in west London, with two further films following; the channel also supported the Mirror's Orwell Revisited project in Wigan, Stoke-on-Trent, Manchester, Barnsley and Sheffield.

In October 2016 the channel moved from Freeview standard definition to Freeview HD, as SD capacity was no longer available; this initially reduced viewing, as SD sets still had a larger household base than HD. The channel also moved on Freesat from channel 651 to channel 164, and from the Specialist to the Entertainment category.

Streaming continued via TV Player and a renewed video-on-demand partnership with BT TV; a new partnership with DailyMotion, and BBC iPlayer partnership ended as the BBC closed its third-party partner programme.

2017

The channel broadcast around 430 hours of new programming, including original series such as Gypsy Lives in Leeds, Crafty Beggars 3, Discovering London, BSL Zone, London Undercover and Bloody History, acquired titles including Educating Cardiff, The Autistic Gardener and Gok's Fill Your House for Free, and independent films including David Attenborough's Richmond Park and 50 Shades of Melanin. Monthly themed seasons covered subjects including local history, food, and Voices: British Black Experience for Black History Month in October 2017.

In mid-2017, the channel's Freeview broadcast licence was transferred to TCC Broadcasting Limited. In August, the channel ceased broadcasting on Freeview, and TCC Broadcasting Limited was sold to A&E Networks UK, with the transaction used to allow a relocation of A&E's Blaze to channel 63. The sale provided capital for The Community Channel to continue operating and to fund the rebrand.

Brand strategy work had already begun in late 2016 with agency The Council. A viewer and member survey of around 500 respondents, together with focus groups in Somerset, Derbyshire and London, selected "Together" as the new name. Creative agencies Trigger Studios and HeyBigMan! developed the new visual identity, brand toolkit, motion graphics and launch campaign.

The channel relaunched under the Together brand on 16 January 2018, having moved from Freeview channel 63 to channel 93 in the process.

Little Dot Studios was appointed to manage social video from December 2017. The channel's Facebook reach grew to around 1 million people a month . A new website was built by Maxx Design and new Twitter and Instagram accounts were launched alongside the rebrand.

2018

In January 2018, it was announced that Community Channel would relaunch as Together on 16 January 2018 on Freeview channel 93, with Together TV+1 taking this channel number in July 2019 when the main channel moved to Freeview 89 after a slight re-brand and change in multiplex, making it available in most UK homes.

Under the Together brand, the channel narrowed its schedule to UK-only programming, broadcasting around 82 hours of new content that January to March, including Wild Wild Web, Broke In Britain, The Great British Garden Revival and documentaries from independent filmmakers and charities, plus BBC Lifeline and short films for partners including Solar Aid and the Carnegie Trust.

Monthly themed seasons included Hospice and Local History Month in May 2018, built around the Together TV-commissioned observational series The Hospice, filmed at Ellenor hospice in Gravesend in partnership with Hospice UK and Together For Short Lives. The Hospice was highlighted as an impact case study - across broadcast, social media, press and marketing, the series was reported to have reached more than 50 million people, and was showcased at an event at the House of Lords hosted by Lord Gordon of Strathblane.

The British Asian Experience in August 2018, run alongside the BBC's Big British Asian Summer with British Asian Trust and Neighbourly. Black History Month in October 2018, including the Danny John-Jules series Two Wheels One Love in partnership with Prostate Cancer UK; and the documentary premiere Street Piano: Instrument of Change in December 2018, tied to a Campaign to End Loneliness partnership.

The channel moved up the Sky electronic programme guide twice during the year, from channel 193 to channel 159 in May 2018 (the month it was reported to be the top-performing factual channel on Sky by share increase, up 355%), then to channel 173 in July 2018. In July 2018 the channel launched on My5, Channel 5's on-demand service.

On Facebook, the channel's content reached 45 million people globally in 2018 with more than 16 million video views. YouTube viewing grew organically to around 590,000 views in 2018, having been slowed earlier in the year by the removal of around three thousand older videos ahead of the rebrand.

Over the year the channel worked with more than a dozen charities and campaigns on TV, digital, PR and marketing , including the British Asian Trust, Campaign To End Loneliness, the Disasters Emergency Committee, the Epilepsy Society, FoodCycle, Get Creative, Grow Wild, Hospice UK, the Jo Cox Foundation, Neighbourly, Prostate Cancer UK, Semble, Sky Ocean Rescue, Together For Short Lives and the Woodland Trust.

2019

Content across the year included Mandela, My Dad and Me; Legends in the Making (British sporting greats); Secret Gardens; Reggie Yates Extreme UK; Trashed with Jeremy Irons and other environmental programming tied to a Be a Climate Hero campaign with Friends of the Earth; food-focused series Win It Cook It, Food Unwrapped and Clean Eating's Dirty Secrets with FoodCycle; Secret Life of the Hospital Bed; Earth Cycle; and Blue Passion, a documentary about a paraplegic scuba diver in Sunderland.

A Black History Month season in October 2019, produced with the BBC and Uplands TV, included Cut from a Different Cloth (with Idris Elba), Black and British, Young, Gifted and Classical, The Story of Lovers Rock and Incredible Spice Men; the BBC also gave Together TV the TV premiere of the digital commission ALT History: The Black British History You're Not Taught in Schools, presented by David Olusoga, and the channel broadcast the BBC's Prejudice and Pride: The People's History of LGBTQ Britain in November 2019.

Other titles included After '82, a World AIDS Day documentary narrated by Dominic West; Fay Presto, on the UK's first professional transgender magician; Drugs: Time to Test; Romanian Dog Rescue, promoted with support from Ricky Gervais; Britain's Homeless Mums; Surviving the Holocaust, for Holocaust Memorial Day 2020; Ashley Banjo's Big Town Dance; Kings and Queens of Speech; and D-Day: The Shortest Day.

YouTube views rose 155% year-on-year to around 2.7 million, with hours watched up 211% to around 123k. On Facebook, content reached 39 million people globally with more than 14 million video views, and the page's followers grew to 530,000.

Together TV made a short documentary for the RSA's Food, Farming and Countryside Commission, God's Lone Country, about rural inequality in Derbyshire. It was viewed more than 800,000 times on Facebook and covered by Daily Mail Weekend, BBC Radio 5 Live and HuffPost.

The channel moved up Freeview from channel 93 to channel 89 in February then to 88 in November 2019 (and subsequently to 82). It moved to channel 194 on Sky in March 2019. Together TV+1 took Freeview 89, later moving to channel 82. Together TV+1 ended transmissions via Freeview on 15 February 2021.

On 8 July 2019 the channel formally added "TV" to its name across all platforms, rolling out new on-screen graphics and branding.

This was supported by Together For Good, a brand awareness campaign in July–August 2019, comprising two animated TV adverts plus cinema, outdoor, print, web and social media creative. The campaign reached half of all UK adults, each seeing an average of 3.4 ads, and drove a 24% uplift in viewing. A thank-you event for campaign partners was held at the BBC Radio Theatre on 20 September 2019, featuring a short film about three viewers, We Are Together TV.

On 22 July 2019, the channel launched on the widest Freeview multiplex capacity (T1), reaching around 12 million homes. Quarterly TV reach grew from under 4 million to over 7 million adults across the year, monthly audience grew from around 1.5 million to around 4 million. In December 2019 the channel secured an improved position on Sky, moving from channel 193 to channel 170, with Sky viewing doubling that Christmas.

Nationally representative surveys found brand awareness of the channel at 27–29% andthat Together TV viewers were more likely than viewers of comparable channels to say the channel motivated them to do more in their community.

Calls to action on TV and digital platform for charity partners included Grow Wild, Friends of the Earth, FoodCycle, Neighbourly, Make Music Day and Semble. The channel supported the Disasters Emergency Committee's Cyclone Idai appeal in 2019 with repeated broadcasts of the DEC's appeal film and a paid Facebook campaign. In December 2019 it worked with the Terence Higgins Trust to mark World AIDS Day.

2020

Content secured ahead of the first lockdown carried the channel through spring 2020, including a VE Day 75th anniversary season in May 2020 (eight documentary premieres, run in partnership with the Building Heroes charity). Following the murder of George Floyd, the channel marked Black Out Tuesday by rebroadcasting David Olusoga's Black & British and Lost Legends: A History of Black History Month, and fast-tracked the short documentary The Felling of Colston onto air within days of it being made.

Other 2020 premieres included Resilience (on childhood stress), Hairy Bikers: Meals on Wheels for National Volunteering Week, and a season of countryside and heritage programming (My Dream Farm, Country House Rescue, Britain's Most Historic Towns).

In March 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic began, the channel launched the You Are Not Alone, a campaign with Mutual Aid UK and Public Health England that turned its office landline into a helpline matching self-isolating people with local mutual aid groups, alongside "Catch It, Clean It" and "Stay at Home, Save Lives" public health content; the campaign's landing page received more than 20,000 unique visitors

Black History Month 2020 ran through October with a "Justice" theme, produced with MuseumAnd (the National Caribbean Museum), including new UK and international documentaries and eight short films made with MuseumAnd contributors. The festive season featured a Christmas Together special and six short films thanking mutual aid groups.

Daily reach increased 150% and overall reach up 56%, alongside a 64% rise in monthly average audience. Growth was concentrated among women aged 40–60 and across Freeview and Sky, and was attributed to improved programming, scheduling and marketing.

Website traffic rose sharply over the year, doubling in the final quarter of 2020 driven by the Christmas Together campaign. Facebook video content generated around 10 million views and reached an estimated 7 million people globally over the year. YouTube viewing nearly doubled year-on-year.

The Christmas Together campaign to reduce festive isolation, run with the Jo Cox Foundation's Winter Get Together initiative, included a Christmas in a Box hamper giveaway and a one-hour TV special featuring the channel's presenters and mutual aid group profiles; the campaign reached an estimated 3 million people on Facebook alone.

2021

Together TV began developing its own-brand streaming and catch-up service during the year and in October 2021 the channel launched on Sky Glass as an internet-delivered HD channel.

The year's content included The Instant Gardener (hosted by Danny Clarke), five BBC mental-health documentaries for Mental Health Week, The Mayor's Race (on Bristol mayor Marvin Rees), My Big MS Adventure and The Movement: Refugee Rescue, plus 13 new Gamechangers premieres. Around Black History Month the channel aired five Black British & Breaking Boundaries films and six Black Excellence shorts; the winter schedule featured Liz Bonnin's Drowning in Plastic and Meat: A Threat to Our Planet, a Christmas in a Box hamper competition, and DEC Afghanistan and Covid booster-jab campaigns.

The Diverse Film Fund launched in March 2021 with backing from 29 media and charity partners, drawing 170 applications for five £10,000 short-film commissions: Superheroes Wear Hoodies (Jason Osborne), Our Land (Alexandra Genova), The Black Equestrian (Sheila Kayuma), Barry the Beekeeper (Ikram Ahmed) and The Beyonce Experience (Blaise Singh). Filmmakers received production mentoring alongside their funding. The films premiered online and broadcast in October 2021, later distributed via ITV Hub, Sky and Virgin Media on-demand. Our Land went on to win the BAFTA for Best Short Form Programme in May 2022, after the year-end.

Viewers remained skewed toward those aged 55 and over, about two-thirds in C2DE socioeconomic groups, with a slight majority of women. Website traffic roughly doubled year-on-year. Facebook generated over 12 million minutes watched and nearly 4 million video views.

The inaugural Sunflower Challenge, a gardening-based mental health campaign fronted by Danny Clarke, launched in spring 2021 with a target of 10,000 participants. More than 20,000 registered before launch, prompting the campaign to expand to 50,000 places, which were filled within three weeks. Over 130 community groups took part, including mutual aid groups, Age UK branches, scout groups, schools, and a group of young offenders at Feltham Prison. Participants received posted sunflower-seed kits and were supported with weekly emails, videos, SMS/WhatsApp reminders and an online community. 35,000 people completed the 12-week challenge. Wellbeing check-ins from over 13,000 respondents recorded an average 10% improvement in wellbeing alongside reduced social isolation; by the final wave 25% of respondents had given sunflowers to family or friends and 8% had joined a local gardening group. The campaign was shortlisted for a Big Impact Award at the Third Sector Awards and was later featured as a case study in Ofcom's June 2022 Making Sense of Media report.

A Sunflower Challenge marketing campaign ran across more than 450 outdoor advertising sites in the UK, alongside print ads in national newspapers and digital campaigns on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Google Ads, reaching an estimated 30 million outdoor impacts and 2.1 million newspaper circulation. In autumn 2021 the channel also launched a "Channel Your Inner Good" brand campaign broadcast on Channel 4, Channel 5, MTV, Comedy Central and Together TV.

A companion food-sustainability campaign, the Green Challenge, launched via a feature in the Mirror's Vanishing Britain special edition, with support from Nadiya Hussain, Danny Clarke and chef Rustie Lee. Around 35,000 people took part, receiving basil-growing kits and recipe cards, with content localised through partnerships with FoodCycle (England) and FareShare (Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland); more than 300 charities and community groups were involved.

2022

Early 2022 programming turned to mental health and the outdoors, with series including Highlands: Scotland's Wild Heart and Britain's Coastal Railways, Holocaust Memorial Day documentaries, the NHS's Help campaign film, and The Last Miners and Grandad, Dementia and Me, alongside new BSL Zone and BBC Lifeline content.

In March 2022 the channel launched the second year of its Diverse Film Fund - "Queer Lives Today" with support from 30 partner organisations and a launch event at the BFI Flare festival. An LGBTQ+ judging panel selected filmmakers from 90 applicants, who were paired with mentors and given post-production support by Goldcrest. The resulting films — Love Dad and Daddy, Mermaids Really Do Exist, Come Out Fighting and Always, Asifa — premiered at the BFI London Film Festival in November 2022 and drew press coverage including BBC Asian Network and DIVA magazine, before being picked up by ITVX, Virgin Media and Sky. Always, Asifa - about disabled trans activist and drag performer Asifa Lahore - was nominated for the BAFTA Television Award for Best Short Form Programme in May 2023, and Love, Dad and Daddy by Ross Adams won Best Short Film at the North East International Film Festival. The films were subsequently picked up by Sky, Virgin Media and ITVX.

The channel's successful Sunflower Challenge behaviour change campaign returned for a second year, with over fifty thousand people and 100+ community groups receiving sunflower seed kits and support over a 12-week growing journey to improve mental health and community participation. Over 130,000 people and 500 community groups had taken part in similar Challenges since spring 2021.

A new DIY Challenge launched in November 2022, fronted by presenter Dave Wellman and run in partnership with the UK's 1,100 Men's Sheds, encouraging participants to take on simple home-based woodworking and gardening projects to support mental health and community connection.

A new streaming service offering free live and on-demand viewing via web and mobile apps launched in May 2022. On 29 June 2022, the channel changed to being broadcast on Freeview as a HbbTV service as the multiplex it was on (COM7) was closed down. For viewers whose television sets supported the technology, by having Freeview Play for example, it means they could watch the channel 24 hours a day. For viewers whose television sets did not support any HbbTV services, the channel continued to be broadcast for four hours on Freeview as a standard channel, between the hours of 3am and 7am. Total audience reach fell 19% year-on-year, with average audience down 39% and audience share down 32%.

In September 2022, Lisa Opie succeeded Caroline Diehl as Executive Chair, having supported the channel since its earliest days; Alexander Kann continued as Chief Executive.

On 26 October 2022, this 24 hour HbbTV channel became Together+1 on Freeview channel 92 (COM5) as The Community Channel society managed to get a COM4 slot for a temporary period for their Together TV service, starting 26 October 2022 on channel 83 and running from 5am to 3am each day.

2023

Freeview access remained inconsistent - the channel had a full slot from April to June 2023, then reverted mainly to its IP-based simulcast for the rest of the year (with a short period of full hours from December 2023 to March 2024). A Freeview catch-up app, developed since 2022, finally launched in January 2024. Separately, Together TV improved its position on Virgin Media's channel guide, moving from slot 269 to 136 in July 2023.

New series included the sixth series of Garden Rescue, Edwardian Farm, Great British Gardens, 50 Shades of Gay and Sex Actually with Alice Levine, alongside dramas, Accused (by Jimmy McGovern) and Eric, Ernie & Me. A season marking the 75th anniversary of the Windrush generation featured SuperSam, Two and a Half Questions and The Train at Platform 5. Black History Month programming included We Are Black & British and Battle Honours. Other new acquisitions included the Irish farming series Rare Breed, Tudor Monastery Farm, Victorian Pharmacy, and Scottish and Welsh travelogues Escape to the Wilderness and Wondrous Wales.

The Sunflower Challenge returned for 2023 with a new team-based format, tying in with the Big Help Out and the BBC's Let It Grow campaign; around 10,000 people pre-registered and 6,500 teams signed up, in turn inviting a further 4,000 friends to take part.

4.7 million people watched the broadcast channel in the first three months of 2024, with the audience skewing toward viewers aged 55 and over (82%). Independent tracking research found brand awareness of Together TV at 44% and found viewers of the channel consistently reported higher average wellbeing than non-viewers. In the same research wave, 87% of viewers said they had done something new in their lives over the past year that they credited to watching Together TV, such as spending more time outdoors, visiting heritage sites or changing their diet.

In July 2023 the channel launched a new brand campaign, "Life Starts Here" with TV spots airing on ITVX and the Channel 4, Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery networks, print advertising in The Guardian, outdoor advertising, and a new audio signature created with the agency SIREN. The channel marked its 25th anniversary in September 2023 with an event at the House of Lords.

2024

Together TV's Freeview broadcast hours remained limited to 6pm–midnight daily (a reduction dating from March 2024), after unsuccessful bids for full-time multiplex slots. To offset this, the channel invested in a new IP-based simulcast, which grew substantially over the year and became the main way many viewers watched outside broadcast hours. The channel's streaming apps were retired in favour of a browser-based livestream.

On 24 January 2024, this channel was joined by a HD version broadcasting as a streaming service on channel 285 under the name Together TV IP. As channel 285 had been the channel where Together TV+1 was found at the end of 2023, the timeshift channel moved to channel 92, with the Freeview hours set to 5:00AM to 8:00AM, which was the broadcast hours used by the main channel before Christmas. Later on 20 March 2024, the regular broadcast hours on Freeview were changed to broadcast from 6:00PM until 12:00AM and started timesharing it’s Freeview slot with Shop on TV on channel 89, which runs from 12:00AM until 6:00PM. The timeshift channel Together TV+1 continues to broadcast 5:00AM until 8:00AM and outside of these three hours, the channel streams on channel 90 for those with a TV connected to the internet.

New content included the documentary strand Diverse Film Fund, factual/lifestyle series such as Garden Rescue (series 7–8), Farmers' Country Showdown, and My Floating Home, alongside partnerships with the BBC, Channel 4, and BSL broadcaster Lumo TV (formerly the British Sign Language Broadcasting Trust).

The Diverse Film Fund "Life Beyond Labels" slate included three short documentaries by deaf, disabled and neurodivergent filmmakers — ALT Jay, Becoming Jazzy Whipps, and Real Thick Glasses — were made with funding partners including Whisper Films and Lumo TV. Ahead of the launch, Together TV worked with disability charity Triple C DANC . The films screened at the BFI London Film Festival and were broadcast on Channel 4's The Last Leg and during the Paralympics. ALT Jay was selected as one of 29 finalists (from 11,500 entries) for the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards, with director Stefan Pollak attending a workshop at Sony Pictures Studios in Los Angeles.

2025

As of 2025, Together TV can be found on Freeview channel 83, Sky channel 170, Virgin channel 136 and on channel 162 on Freesat. The time-shifted channel is still broadcasting as a hybrid channel on Freeview channel 90, though the streaming channel Together TV IP has moved to Freeview 270. The channel has picked up programmes such as The Great House Giveaway, Bill Bailey's Australian Adventure and Beautiful British Rivers with Richard Hammond from Channel 4, The Hairy Bikers' Comfort Food and Garden Rescue from BBC One and has acquired a number of 1960s and 70s British films such as The Stick Up, Futtocks End, What's Good for the Goose, Permissive and Mary Millington's Confessions from the David Galaxy Affair with many of them showing in a late night slot.

The broadcast channel reached 4.4 million viewers in Q1 2025. Independent research found 89% of viewers reported taking some new action in their lives in the previous three months as a result of watching the channel, and measures of viewer wellbeing, sense of belonging, and social action all increased year-on-year. The channel also partnered with the prison TV service WayOut TV, reaching inmates in 85 of the UK's 142 prisons.

Ammar Mirza CBE and Sinead Rocks joined the board of trustees. The society's finances returned to a modest year-end surplus after two years of losses following the loss of full-time Freeview carriage.

Current programming

• Ade in Britain (formerly on ITV)
• An Outage
• Battersea Junction – Stories from the Winstanley and York Road Estates (a documentary put together by Wandsworth Heritage Service and Year 6 children from Falconbrook Primary School).
• Brewing Stories
• Britain's Scenic Railways (from Channel 4)
• Changing Rooms (Channel 4 series)
• Cruise TV by LoveitBookit
• Doctor Thorne (TV series with Tom Hollander as Doctor Thorne)
• Elizabeth I (2005 TV series with Helen Mirren)
• Episodes (sitcom with Stephen Mangan, Tamsin Greig, and Matt LeBlanc)
• Eric, Ernie and Me (BBC Four television film)
• Garden Rescue (formerly on BBC One)
• Hello Campers (an oral history of Britain's holiday camps)
• Kirstie and Phil Love It or List It (from Channel 4)
• The Last Miners
• My Grandparents' War (documentary series from Channel 4)
• Queer Lives Today
• Rare Breed: A Farming Year (UTV Ireland programme)
• Respectable: The Mary Millington Story (a documentary directed by Simon Sheridan)
• This Farming Life (BBC Scotland series)
• Tudor Farm/Victorian Farm (BBC historic farm series)
• Victorian Pharmacy (another BBC series with Ruth Goodman)
• Wild Coasts of Scotland with Darcey Bussell (from Channel 4)
• Yorkshire's Worst Mining Disaster (the story of the Oaks Colliery Disaster of 1866)

External links

• Official website