Lockdown Wedding Live: Channel 4 announces coronavirus programming

First Dates star Fred Sirieix will be ‘overseeing proceedings’

Channel 4 has announced a new slate of programming in response to the coronavirus outbreak, including a live stream of a wedding on “lockdown”.

The broadcaster invites viewers to share in the wedding celebration of a couple who have had to cancel their usual ceremony in Lockdown Wedding Live, with First Dates star Fred Sirieix overseeing proceedings “for the whole country to enjoy”.

“We’ll be broadcasting a wedding celebration live for one couple’s loved ones – and everyone else - to enjoy from the safety of their homes,” said Director of Programming Ian Katz.

The official programme description is as follows: “For hundreds of couples across Britain, isolation and social distancing have meant putting their plans for a dream wedding on ice. In a historic first for Channel 4, one bride and groom will be given a wedding celebration like no other – live online with the support of some famous faces - for their loved ones (and the whole of the UK ) to watch and enjoy from their homes.”

It is not yet clear who the “famous faces” will be or how exactly the ceremony will take place.

Many couples in the UK have been forced to cancel their weddings due to the new social distancing rules, and one recently made headlines for donating the food they had ordered for the event to NHS workers.

As a result of Fiona and Adam Gordon’s donation, more than 400 hospital staff in Hull were fed over the weekend.

Other highlights announced by Channel 4 include the fast-tracked premiere of The Steph Show, in which presenter McGovern will be celebrating everyday heroes who keep the UK moving, as well as sharing ideas on how to fill your time in lockdown.

Artist Grayson Perry will front Grayson’s Art Show, in which he will teach viewers how to “sculpt, draw and create” and Kirstie’s House of Craft will see Kirstie Allsopp helping the nation through lockdown through the art of craftmaking.

Meanwhile, Jamie Oliver is presenting Jamie: Keep Cooking and Carry On, and Grime Gran, famous for her expletive-ridden rant against supermarket stockpilers, will be making a daily address from her home in East London, advising the nation on “how not to be a d***” during lockdown.