VH2 was a sister channel to
VH1 in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. It launched in 2003, and slowly became an
Indie rock
Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produc ...
channel, aimed primarily at men in the 25-34 demographic. It mainly showed music videos, though it also aired documentaries about artists VH2 played.
VH2 also had many chart shows, including the "Indie 500" weekend, which counted down the Top 500 Indie Songs with songs by artists such as
The Stone Roses
The Stone Roses were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist Ian Brown, ...
,
Pixies
A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...
,
Oasis,
Dinosaur Jr
Dinosaur Jr. is an American rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1984, originally simply called Dinosaur until legal issues forced a change in name.
The band was founded by J Mascis (guitar, vocals, primary songwriter), Lou Barlo ...
,
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith has remained the only constant member. The band's ...
,
The Strokes
The Strokes are an American rock band from New York City. Formed in 1998, the band is composed of lead singer and songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikolai Fraiture, and drummer Fabrizio Mor ...
,
Blur and
Radiohead. The winner of the Indie 500 was "
There Is a Light That Never Goes Out
"There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" is a song by the English rock band the Smiths, written by guitarist Johnny Marr and singer Morrissey. Featured on the band's third studio album ''The Queen Is Dead'', it was not released as a single in t ...
" by
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. They comprised the singer Morrissey, the guitarist Johnny Marr, the bassist Andy Rourke and the drummer Mike Joyce. They are regarded as one of the most important acts to eme ...
, whilst The Stone Roses' song "
I Wanna Be Adored" was second (though on a condensed version of the counting listing just the top 50, the two tracks had switched place, leading "I Wanna Be Adored" to first place)
VH2 closed at 6 a.m. on 1 August 2006 and was replaced by
MTV Flux
MTV Flux was a television channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The version in the UK and Ireland launched on 6 September 2006. The brand started as a website on 1 August. It used bandwidth that was originally used to broadcast VH2. There i ...
. Its last days saw it unspool older MTV idents of the past.
[VH2 faces axe by MTV as ringtone ads slow](_blank)
by the Darren Davidson Campaign. Created July 6, 2006. Retrieved July 26, 2006
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vh2
Defunct British television channels
Television channels and stations established in 2003
Music video networks in the United Kingdom
Television channels and stations disestablished in 2006
2003 establishments in the United Kingdom
2006 disestablishments in the United Kingdom
VH1