Channel 4 is to run a week-long season of programming about 'Fake News' this February. From the fakers peddling fiction as fact to professional blaggers stealing the headlines – it’s never been easier to make or make up the news. In a world where truth is compromised by popularity, determined by clicks, likes and shares, is anyone telling it like it is?
The season will include a documentary about comedian and hoaxer Simon Brodkin, who made headlines around the world showering Sepp Blatter in banknotes and storming Kanye West’s stage at Glastonbury.
In 2016 Channel 4 gained exclusive access to the comic for a unique documentary. Britain’s Greatest Hoaxer lifts the lid on the months of meticulous planning and preparation it takes to pull off a headline-grabbing stunt as Brodkin sets his sights on three of the world’s most notorious and newsworthy figures: Simon Cowell, Sir Philip Green and President-elect of the United States, Donald J. Trump.
The season will also include the previously reported Fake News quiz show from Hat Trick, the makers of Have I Got News For You. The one-off is now called The Fake News Show. It will be hosted by Stephen Mangan and will feature guests including Richard Osman and Katherine Ryan.
