ITN docks at Dover for Channel 4

Historic UK port Dover is to undergo the ob doc treatment in a six-part ITN Productions series for Channel 4.

Dover 24/7: Britain’s Busiest Port will examine the frontline staff at some of the key port control centres, highlighting the teamwork, expertise, operational challenges and minute-by-minute decisions that impact millions around the UK.

Filmed across the course of last summer, ITN’s cameras captured the port’s busiest time of the year, covering Brits’ holidays and the droves of sports fans who were attending the European Championships in Germany and the Olympics in Paris, which helped bump the port’s tourist numbers to its highest since 2019.

On top of this, during the summer months, port officials process upwards of 10,000 freight vehicles and 15,000 passenger vehicles a day, while also handling 33% of all trade goods with the EU. Dover is also an award-winning cruise port.

The series was ordered by commissioning executive Simon Lee out of C4’s docs and fact-ent department, with ITNP’s Anoushka Roberts and Caroline Short exec producing and Chris Hackett series producing.

Lee said: “This is an exciting opportunity to see first-hand the integral, complex and highly skilled workings of this bastion of all ports. I am certain that viewers will be captivated by the challenges the staff face as they ensure this vital transport hub is kept open for business 24 hours a day.”

Richard Christian, head of corporate affairs at the Port of Dover, added: “Following several years of discussion regarding a potential TV series to showcase the diversity and scale of activity at the Port of Dover to a national audience, we’re incredibly proud to have partnered with ITN Productions.

“They are a trusted company, both with TV networks and the people whose stories they share, and it was important for us to find a partner that would ensure our fantastic people feel comfortable, whilst we create this series together.

“Being our busiest time since before the pandemic and one when we are preparing for future challenges and opportunities, it seemed like the perfect time to show the nation the full extent of what we do, and so we are thrilled that Channel 4 has agreed to come and take a look in Britain’s busiest port.”