Network 7 (TV series)

Network 7
Network 7 logo from Series 2
Created by	Jane Hewland, Janet Street-Porter
Directed by	Matt Forrest, Andrew Gillman
Presented by	Magenta Devine, Sankha Guha, Tracey MacLeod
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	2
No. of episodes	44
Production
Executive producer(s)	Keith MacMillan, Jane Hewland
Producer(s)	Janet Street-Porter
Editor(s)	Charles Parsons
Running time	2 hours
Release
Original network	Channel 4
Original release	3 May 1987 – 23 October 1988

Network 7 was a short-lived but influential youth music and current affairs programme screened on Channel 4 over two series in 1987 and 1988. The series was created by Jane Hewland and Janet Street-Porter, who was also editor of the first series.

Network 7 was broadcast live on Sundays from noon until two o'clock and was conceived of as a 'channel within a channel', something young people could roll out of bed and watch the morning after the night before. Its mission statement was "News is Entertainment. Entertainment is News." It was known for its heavily self-branded, frenetic visual style with wild camera work, rapid cuts, very short items and "blipverts" - a dense combination of innovative graphics, and pop video style visuals explaining everything from Third World debt to bulimia.

Much of Network 7's innovative style can be seen as being inspired by a combination of elements such as the aesthetic of the Max Headroom drama 20 Minutes into the Future and the studio-based anarchy of Tiswas. The show's logo and distinctive brand and graphics (that predicted a desktop computer style) were designed by Malcolm Garrett's design studio Assorted iMaGes.

The show took place in a specially built 'caravan city' in Limehouse Studios, a deserted banana warehouse on the site of what is now One Canada Square. Presenters included Jaswinder Bancil, Magenta Devine, Sankha Guha, Eric Harwood, Murray Boland, Tracey MacLeod, Sebastian Scott, and Trevor Ward. Most presenters had previously worked in either television or journalism in a smaller capacity, but they all got their first major TV exposure on the show. Charlie Parsons was a presenter and also part of the production staff. He later set up the production company Planet 24, which produced The Word and The Big Breakfast with his partner Waheed Alli.