diff --git a/examples/companion_radio/ui-core/ChannelControl.h b/examples/companion_radio/ui-core/ChannelControl.h
index 44742689..d29e7577 100644
--- a/examples/companion_radio/ui-core/ChannelControl.h
+++ b/examples/companion_radio/ui-core/ChannelControl.h
@@ -19,6 +19,10 @@ namespace chanctl {
 
 enum Result : uint8_t { OK, FULL, NO_NAME, NO_SECRET, BAD_SECRET, EXISTS, FAILED };
 
+// A channel's name without the '#' a hashtag channel's starts with -- for a
+// label that puts its own '#' in front (as ui-new's tiles do), never "##test".
+static inline const char* bareName(const char* name) { return name[0] == '#' ? name + 1 : name; }
+
 static const char* resultText(Result r) {
   switch (r) {
     case OK:         return "Saved";
diff --git a/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/MessagesScreen.h b/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/MessagesScreen.h
index fb5d6700..46b15666 100644
--- a/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/MessagesScreen.h
+++ b/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/MessagesScreen.h
@@ -721,7 +721,7 @@ class MessagesScreen : public UIScreen {
         ChannelDetails ch;
         if (the_mesh.getChannel(pfx[0], ch) && ch.name[0]) {
           nm[0] = '#';
-          DisplayDriver::translateUTF8Static(nm + 1, ch.name, sizeof(nm) - 1);
+          DisplayDriver::translateUTF8Static(nm + 1, chanctl::bareName(ch.name), sizeof(nm) - 1);
         }
       } else {
         for (int idx = 0; ; idx++) {
diff --git a/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/UITask.cpp b/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/UITask.cpp
index 5775de59..83fa018e 100644
--- a/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/UITask.cpp
+++ b/examples/companion_radio/ui-new/UITask.cpp
@@ -463,7 +463,7 @@ class HomeScreen : public UIScreen {
         ChannelDetails cd;
         if (!the_mesh.getChannel(c[k].ch, cd) || !cd.name[0]) continue;
         r.ch = c[k].ch;
-        snprintf(r.name, sizeof(r.name), "#%s", cd.name[0] == '#' ? cd.name + 1 : cd.name);
+        snprintf(r.name, sizeof(r.name), "#%s", chanctl::bareName(cd.name));
         r.n = _task->getChannelUnread(r.ch);
         r.overflow = r.n > 0 && _task->getChannelUnreadOverflow(r.ch);
       } else {
@@ -1645,7 +1645,7 @@ public:
             // '#' marks a channel apart from a contact tile — the two share the
             // grid and Enter does something different on each.
             name[0] = '#';
-            display.translateUTF8ToBlocks(name + 1, ch.name, sizeof(name) - 1);
+            display.translateUTF8ToBlocks(name + 1, chanctl::bareName(ch.name), sizeof(name) - 1);
             unread   = _task->getChannelUnread(ch_idx);
             overflow = unread > 0 && _task->getChannelUnreadOverflow(ch_idx);
             resolved = true;