Why do you watch Channel 4? The way I look at it, Channel 4 is there for great alternative comedy, quirky drama and in-depth investigative documentaries. Sadly for Channel 4, it’s main rival, BBC2, is taking it to the cleaners at present, which has seen viewing figures drop for Channel 4 post Big Brother 8.

So low is Channel 4′s share of TV viewing is that the broadcaster has seen figures falling to its lowest level for 15 years. To get a little techie for a moment, the channel attracted a 7.4% share of the audience in the week beginning Monday September 17, compared with an average of 9.8% in the whole of 2006. These are believed to be the lowest weekly audience share recorded by the channel since 1992.

Since Big Brother, it seems that eyes are wandering elsewhere. With Channel 4 hoping for bums on seats for their homegrown comedy shows like Fonejacker and Star Stories, it looks like people would rather go elsewhere, notably Saxondale, That Mitchell and Webb Look, Mock The Week… all on BBC2. It seems to have upped the output of cookery shows, which seem to be performing well, but isn’t there a bit of overkill?

The channel’s director of television and content, Kevin Lygo, announced a “creative overhaul” of the channel in August, announcing his intention to axe almost all of the channel’s 9pm reality and factual entertainment programmes. Big Brother will return next year, but Celebrity Big Brother has been shelved. [Mof Gimmers]

p.s. Please notice my photoshopping of the Channel 4 On Demand logo… it took me a surprisingly long time to do.