Broadcaster UKTV has unveiled a fresh new look for entertainment channel Dave set to launch on 9th November.
The award-winning channel has long been home to a huge range of UKTV Original comedy hits from some of the UK’s favourite comedic stars, and now with popular original podcasts and digital YouTube commissions Dave’s branding has been refreshed to reflect its new content and reach new audiences.
UKTV’s Chief Marketing Officer, Penny Brough, who joined the company in September, said, “Dave is an iconic TV brand so it is a particularly exciting time to enter the business as its fresh new look hits screens. Following this year’s successful W and UKTV Play brand refreshes, this marks the next step in Dave’s evolution as it expands its footprint and draws in new viewers.”
Nick Gilmer, UKTV’s Interim Marketing Director for Dave, led the rebrand after utilising audience insights and working with brand consultancy Eat Big Fish on new brand positioning. Brand strategists Craig+Bridget were consulted to help create the brief, while in-house agency UKTV Creative designed and delivered all new brand assets in collaboration with branding agency Studio Output.
Nick said, “With a brand as distinctive and celebrated as Dave, keeping it fresh and relevant to audiences was a real balancing act. We had to ensure Dave continues to feel modern and resonates with viewers without losing the unique identity that made the brand one of the most recognisable in TV. Our new look reflects our audience’s everyday world back at them in a uniquely Dave way, borrowing from our heritage and ensuring Dave provides viewers with a fresh fix of funny wherever they engage with the brand.”
The rebrand called for a design system that could be tailored for any purpose and the new suite of branded assets set out to mimic recognisable, everyday life behaviours in a smart and witty way. This started with an evolution of the well-recognised Dave logo, which is now housed in a container that acts as window into everyday life. A range of photographic real-world textures has also been introduced to the brand ecosystem, adding colour, texture and vibrancy to the brand.
UKTV’s Head of Design, Peter Allinson, said, “As UKTV Creative we wanted to take the smart, comic Dave tone-of-voice and apply it to the biggest canvas of all; everyday life. Inserting Dave into the world of our viewers allows us to really resonate as a brand. Dave’s fresh new look and design language also helps us open up the Dave ‘world’, from telly and YouTube to podcasts and TikToks. It’s a new dawn, it’s a new Dave!”
Key design elements include a new typeface family, a series of lozenge shapes to frame footage and imagery, surprising and engaging animations and a secondary set of vibrant colours in addition to the iconic Dave black and white. Dave’s new channel idents also allow the brand to play with everyday scenarios, with a constantly updated bank of real-world videos acting as backdrops for continuity, logo stings and canvasses for contextual humour. The combination of all elements allows for fantastic flexibility across on-air, off-air and digital formats and ensures that everything always feels distinctly Dave.
Cherie Cunningham, Dave channel director, said, "I’m so excited to see the new branding come alive on air and across our platforms, marketing campaigns and social channels. The fresh new suite of assets really gives us the tools to bring Dave’s programming to life, connect to our viewers wherever they are and showcase our exciting original TV, podcast and digital content."
The rebrand comes ahead of new UKTV Original programmes set to TX on Dave this month; Live at the Moth Club and We Are Not Alone. Viewers can catch up on all of Dave’s recent hits on UKTV Play including Mel Giedroyc: Unforgivable, Late Night Mash, Big Zuu’s Big Eats, Question Team and Hypothetical.
