Channel 4 Invests In Whisper Films

Channel 4 has taken a minority stake in Whisper Films, a production company with an established reputation for creating high quality sports programmes, further diversifying its Growth Fund investment portfolio.

Set up by Sunil Patel, David Coulthard and Jake Humphrey in 2010, Whisper Films has built a strong slate of sports-related programming including films for global brands within Formula 1 such as Red Bull, UBS, Shell, Casio and Hugo Boss; several short films for the BBC; highlights programming for ITV; a one-off documentary for BBC One, Racing With The Hamiltons: Nic In The Driving Seat commissioned as part of the BBC's Beyond Disability season; and two international documentaries, Horse Power and Road to 2015, placed with many major networks including NBC, Sky Atlantic and BBC World.

Following Channel 4's Growth Fund investment, Whisper Films will shortly hire a new Head of Television and a small development team to leverage the company’s extensive contacts and develop the television production arm of the business.

Sunil Patel was previously a producer for BBC Sport where he worked across all sports including the RTS award winning Euro 2008, Match of the Day, the Olympics, Wimbledon, The Open – and was most recently instrumental in its BAFTA TV award winning Formula 1 coverage. He has also worked at Sky and IMG.

David Coulthard is a former Formula 1 racing driver who won 13 Grand Prix during his career. He is now a pundit and co-commentator for BBC Sport’s Formula 1 coverage and a brand ambassador for several blue chip companies.

TV presenter and journalist Jake Humphrey is the presenter of BT Sport football coverage and previously presented BBC Sport’s Formula 1 coverage from 2009-2012, including the BAFTA TV award winning coverage of the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The trio are a close creative team and bring the wealth of their experience from their different fields within the industry to all their productions.