diff --git a/frontend/src/App.tsx b/frontend/src/App.tsx
index 5c4b503..882b168 100644
--- a/frontend/src/App.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/App.tsx
@@ -145,7 +145,12 @@ export default function App() {
   // browser-history entry (history.state._chan = channel id, _chanName = a display name to show
   // before the detail loads), so Back closes the channel page (after any player opened over it)
   // and reload returns to the normal app. Channels/videos are reached by id, so it's not in the URL.
-  const [channelView, setChannelView] = useState<{ id: string; name?: string } | null>(null);
+  const [channelView, setChannelView] = useState<{ id: string; name?: string } | null>(() => {
+    // Restore the open channel page across a reload (it rides in history.state, which survives F5),
+    // unlike the YouTube search which is intentionally dropped (it would re-spend quota).
+    const c = window.history.state?._chan as string | undefined;
+    return c ? { id: c, name: (window.history.state?._chanName as string) ?? undefined } : null;
+  });
   const openChannel = useCallback((id: string, name?: string) => {
     setChannelView({ id, name });
     const st = window.history.state || {};
@@ -264,8 +269,9 @@ export default function App() {
   useEffect(() => {
     // Drop any stale _yt from a prior session (a reload starts on the normal feed; ytSearch
     // begins null), so the first Back doesn't resurrect a search we're no longer showing.
-    const { _yt: _staleYt, _chan: _staleChan, _chanName: _staleChanName, ...rest } =
-      window.history.state || {};
+    // Drop a stale _yt (a reload starts on the normal feed; a search would re-spend quota), but
+    // KEEP _chan/_chanName so the open channel page survives F5 (channelView restores from it above).
+    const { _yt: _staleYt, ...rest } = window.history.state || {};
     window.history.replaceState({ ...rest, sfPage: page }, "");
     function onPop(e: PopStateEvent) {
       const p = (e.state?.sfPage as Page) ?? "feed";
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/ChannelPage.tsx b/frontend/src/components/ChannelPage.tsx
index baa1448..25906c7 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/ChannelPage.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/ChannelPage.tsx
@@ -133,16 +133,21 @@ export default function ChannelPage({
       {/* Banner + back */}
       <div className="relative">
         {ch?.banner_url ? (
-          <div
-            className="h-24 sm:h-36 w-full bg-cover bg-center"
-            style={{ backgroundImage: `url(${ch.banner_url})` }}
-          />
+          // Keep the banner's real aspect ratio (object-contain, capped height); letterbox with
+          // the surface colour rather than stretching/cropping it to fill.
+          <div className="w-full flex justify-center bg-surface">
+            <img
+              src={ch.banner_url}
+              alt=""
+              className="block max-h-40 w-auto max-w-full object-contain"
+            />
+          </div>
         ) : (
           <div className="h-14 w-full bg-surface" />
         )}
         <button
           onClick={onBack}
-          className="absolute top-3 left-3 inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 px-3 py-1.5 rounded-lg text-sm bg-black/45 text-white hover:bg-black/65 backdrop-blur-sm"
+          className="absolute top-3 left-3 z-10 inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 px-3 py-1.5 rounded-lg text-sm bg-black/45 text-white hover:bg-black/65 backdrop-blur-sm"
         >
           <ArrowLeft className="w-4 h-4" />
           {t("channel.back")}
@@ -150,8 +155,9 @@ export default function ChannelPage({
       </div>
 
       <div className="px-4 sm:px-6">
-        {/* Identity + actions */}
-        <div className="flex items-end gap-4 -mt-8">
+        {/* Identity + actions. relative+z-10 so the avatar that overlaps up into the banner
+            paints ABOVE it (the banner's positioned container would otherwise cover it). */}
+        <div className="relative z-10 flex items-end gap-4 -mt-8">
           <Avatar
             src={ch?.thumbnail_url ?? null}
             fallback={name}