Grand National 2013: Channel 4 turns to Hollywood for big premiere Those sentiments were echoed by Channel 4"s racing spokesman Hannah Walker, who refused to speculate on the size of audience the broadcaster was expecting but admitted it faced a far bigger challenge than during its recent Cheltenham coverage. "We know that and we've got the various benchmarks from the other events we've done, from the cricket to even the Paralympics," she said. Channel 4"s sporting high came during last year's Paralympics, when a peak audience of more than 11 million tuned in during the opening ceremony. It would need to get close to that figure simply to match the audience that watched the final Grand National shown by the BBC last year, something surely beyond even Channel 4"s wildest dreams. But the broadcaster has left nothing to chance, devoting much of its schedule over the next three days to the race meeting, while giving some of its highest-rating entertainment shows an Aintree theme. It will show specials involving Come Dine With Me and comedian Alan Carr as well as rebranding Sunday Brunch as Saturday Brunch in what has been billed as a 'Grand National season. Its racing coverage itself will attempt to push the boundaries both in terms of content and technological innovation. Hicks was hoping for unprecedented access to areas on the racecourse usually off-limits to television cameras. He said: "We want to make more of the animals and the people. So we want to be behind the scenes at times. Channel 4 also aims to use Hollywood-style filming techniques to bring viewers closer to the action than ever before. The 45 cameras being used at Aintree will include one on a low-flying helicopter manned by Emmy award-winning cameraman David Manton, as well as one on an 18ft arm attached to the top of a roving vehicle that will track and broadcast the runners and riders as they make their progress during the races. Walker said: "That's going to be a first for the sport." Channel 4 has also reinstated the head-on camera placed within Aintree's most notorious fence, Becher's Brook, much to the approval of the racing community. However, horses have died after falling at the fence in each of the previous two years and Hicks was acutely aware of the added pressures that would surface for him and his team if the worst were to happen in the coming days. Channel 4 has released a trailer in the build-up to Saturday, billing racing as 'The Original Extreme Sport. The action involves, among other shots, horses racing through streets and jumping parked cars. It has received a mixed reception, particularly among racing fans, but Hicks pledged "ultimate caution" when it came to the broadcast of any accidents. The BBC came in for strong criticism of this last year when the loss of a camera meant disturbing pictures were broadcast. Hicks said: "You don't show images that are going to upset people. You stick to a fairly conservative position. You go even further than what a fair-minded member of the public thinks. You think, 'What would a sensitive member of the public think"?"