History of BBC television idents

The history of BBC television idents starts in the early 1950s, when idents were first used by the BBC to differentiate each of their channels and create separate identites for them. As new technology has become available, these idents have evolved from simple still black and white images to the sophisticated full colour short films seen today. With the arrival of digital services in the United Kingdom, and with them many more new channels, branding is perceived by broadcasters to be much more important, meaning that idents need to stand out from the competition.

This article describes the development of the BBC's main television channels' identities.

BBC Television Service/BBC One

The original BBC Television Service launched in November 1936, was taken off the air at the outbreak of war in September 1939, returning in June 1946. As the only public television service in Britain, and initially in the world, there was no need for a station ident in the early days.However, with the imminent arrival of commercial television in Britain, 2 December 1953 saw the arrival of the first ident, nicknamed the 'Bat's Wings'. This was an elaborate mechanical contraption constructed by Abram Games, which featured a tiny spinning globe in the centre, surrounded by two spinning "eyes", with lightning flashes to either side.Unlike later idents, this was filmed, rather than live. The model was temperamental, and broke down shortly after it was filmed. [cite web |url= http://www.transdiffusion.org/emc/baird/symbol.php |title= Oh, that Symbol... |accessdate= |last= Elen |first= Richard G. |publisher= Baird |date= 1 December 2003] By the early 1960s the "Bat's Wings" had been superseded by the "BBC tv" logo within a circle, beneath which would appear a map of Britain split into the BBC's broadcast regions.The channel's most famous emblem, the globe, appeared in its first guise on 30 September 1963. The first such ident featured the continuity announcer speaking over a rotating globe while a "BBC tv" caption would appear with the announcement, "This is BBC Television" being made.

The launch of sister channel BBC2 saw the channel renamed BBC1 on 20 April 1964, although the name was not changed on-screen until the introduction of the "watch-strap" globe in 1966. The reason the change was delayed was due to coverage of BBC2 being limited; BBC1 remained BBC tv in the meantime.

. [cite web | url = http://www.tvradiobits.co.uk/idents/bbc1i.htm | title = BBC1 Pre 1991 | publisher = TV & Radio Bits]

.

, although the globe already officially debuted before then.

was included in all BBC One and BBC Two idents.

A change in controller at BBC One saw the balloon globe icon become the shortest-lived ident package of the colour television era. After 39 years, the globe style was replaced on 29 March 2002 by new idents featuring a new mutlicultural theme. The relaunch also saw a new logo for the channel based upon that of BBC Two, though the logo was instead the BBC logo and the word 'ONE' below it within a red box. The box style later became a common style for the BBC's channels.

The new idents were collaboratively called the 'Rhythm and Movement' idents and featured dancers at various locations dancing to different musical styles. These proved to be hugely unpopular, some accused the BBC of being politically correct regarding some of the dancers involved: disabled dancers in wheelchairs on a basketball court, while fans of the globe and traditionalists were dismayed that the longstanding motif had left the BBC after 39 years. This was also the first new presentation package not to include a clock though one had been designed — it had become difficult to transmit the time accurately, given the delay introduced by satellites and digital transmission.

After four years, the idents were replaced themselves by a new set introduced on 7 October 2006, abandoning the overtly red colour scheme yet retaining the colour slightly less obviously as the main colour. The relaunch brought about a new channel logo once more with the box replaced in favour of a lowercase name, effectively appearing as "^BBC one".

A circle motif now features as the main theme of the idents, while the content is much more diverse than previous: swimming hippos, motorcycle stunt riders, children playing "ring a roses", lit windows, surfers, football players, the moon as well as kites. [cite web | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2006/09_september/26/idents.shtml | title = BBC ONE launches new channel identity | author = BBC Press Office | date = 26 September 2006] The first of the new idents shown was 'Kites', appearing at 10:00 BST on 7 October. According to former channel controller Peter Fincham, the new circle motif is both a 'nod' to the channel's heritage as well as a symbol of people coming together, in the way the channel brings people together

BBC Two

BBC2 as it was originally styled, was forced to reschedule the planned opening extravaganza from 20 April 1964 to the following evening, as the result of a massive power failure in west London. The channel's first logo was an animation where white and grey stripes flew in from the left and right before a "2" and the BBC corporate logo flew in from the top and bottom. For the introduction of the first British colour broadcasting service in 1967 there was no new ident, but a new logo which was a 2 with a dot in the hook of the 2. Prior to this, there was a test period where the original presentation was used with possible electronic colour added. The static "2" logo became a rotating dotted "2" ident with each face a different colour – blue, red, green, and white in 1969 when the BBC1 colour service started and the 2 channels were synchronised in their presentation. This ident changed to being just blue in the early 1970s. A facelift occurred in time for the channel's tenth anniversary in 1974, with the "2" being formed of blue and white raster lines, the different colours entering from opposite sides of the screen. In 1979, BBC2 adopted the world's first computer-generated ident, with the logo being drawn live every time it was played.Fact|date=April 2008

The channel's association with the Lambie-Nairn branding agency began in 1986, with a new ident, the coloured letters T W O emerging from and disappearing back into a white background: an effort to make the channel appear more "highbrow". [cite web | url = http://www.tvradiobits.co.uk/idents/bbc2g.htm | title = BBC2 Pre 1991 | publisher = TV & Radio Bits]

In 1991 this ident was replaced by the start of the highly successful [cite web | url = http://www.tvradiobits.co.uk/idents/bbc2b.htm | title = BBC2 1997-2001 | publisher = TV & Radio Bits] series of idents involving the number '2', some of which were animated, especially for special events such as Christmas. These survived the 1997 rebrand and simply displayed the new logo, while more idents were added to the batch, including many for theme nights, weeks or seasons.

After nearly eleven years, the channel received a new look in 2001 with a set of new figure robotic figure 2s, each displaying individual personalities. BBC Two also became the first BBC channel to receive the new style of logo, in its case this was a purple box with the BBC logo stacked above 'TWO'. [cite web | url = http://www.tvradiobits.co.uk/idents/bbc2c.htm | title = BBC2 2001-07 | publisher = TV & Radio Bits] At the time, the channel stuck out as being different, because all the other channels still had their 1997 branding. Also, rather than a variety of backgrounds seen in the previous presentation package, idents now had a universal yellow background while the figure 2 became 3D and white.

The general style of white 2 and yellow background was occasionally replaced by previously withdrawn idents from the 1991-2001 package, but also by some specially produced idents to highlight particular shows or programming strands.cite web | url = http://www.tvradiobits.co.uk/idents/bbc2f.htm | title = BBC2 2001-01 – Goodbye to yellow? | publisher = TV & Radio Bits] Examples included an updated dog 2 to advertise the channel's "pedigree comedy" trailers while previously withdrawn idents have included "Venus fly-trap", as well as the Christmas 2000 ident which resurfaced to introduce coverage of the 2006 Winter Olympics.

The most recent relaunch of the channel's presentation package came on 18 February 2007, with the introduction of idents designed by advertising agency Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO and produced by Red Bee Media, costing £700,000 in total. Controller of BBC Two Roly Keating said, "These new idents embody all of BBC Two's distinctive humour, creativity, playfulness and surprise – and they're also beautifully-executed pieces of film-making in their own right". [cite web | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2007/02_february/13/two.shtml | title = BBC Two's new "Window on the World" | author = BBC Press Office | date = 13 February 2007] cite web | url = http://idents.tv/blog/?p=456 | title = TV on the television: The new BBC Two idents | date = 19 February 2007 | publisher = idents.tv] Entitled "Window on the World", these new idents feature a cut-out '2' made from various materials behind which different scenes can be seen. In addition to these new idents, the on-screen presentation system and the [http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctwo BBC two website] have also been altered to reflect the new theme.

BBC Choice/BBC Three

The young-adult oriented BBC Three was launched on 9 February 2003, as the successor to BBC Choice.

A 'demolition' of the channel's orange box idents, using a wrecking ball, began in December 2002, marking the channel's final months. Idents soon depicted a building site, complete with two builders, where large upper-case letters spelling the word 'three' could be seen under construction. The site's safety fence displayed a countdown in weeks to completion starting on 19 January 2003.

The Lambie-Nairn branding agency had created both the previous BBC Choice identity, together with the transition building site design and also created those for BBC Three. The official launch night revealed the towering three-dimensional figure "THREE" populated by small computer generated "blobs" designed and created by Stefan Marjoram at Aardman Animations.

Marjoram's "blobs" were given voices from sound clips from the BBC's vast archive while the launch theme music "Three Is The Magic Number", based (only the lyrics are copied) upon Schoolhouse Rock! played in the background.

Channel trailer animations showed one blob standing in front of the figure 'THREE' shouting "Three!", before another 'THREE' rises up from underneath the original, toppling it.

BBC Three controller Danny Cohen has unveiled a new brand for the channel designed to emphasise its new focus on cross-platform programming. The newly revamped BBC Three identity can be seen as a continuous link between the TV, the internet and the mobile connections of the BBC Three channel. This ties in with the new ability to be able to watch live streaming of BBC Three on the internet, making it a multi-platform channel

"The thinking behind this re-brand of the channel is that we have, in effect, created a BBC Three world in which our content can move seamlessly between TV, online and mobile," he explained. "We have a fantastic line-up of programmes and we are going to make them available wherever young people want them."

BBC Knowledge/BBC Four

The BBC's "cultural" channel BBC Four was launched on 2 March 2002 as a successor to BBC Knowledge. The initial series of idents were generated "on the fly" reflecting the frequencies of the continuity announcers' voice or of backing music and were designed by Lambie-Nairn. As a result, no two idents were ever the same.

Red Bee Media designed a new set of idents introduced in September 2005 that appear to be one image but eventually break into four quarters.

One_of_the_improvised_idents,_used_between_2002_and_2005.Image:BBCfourpoolident2005.jpg|Mountains_and_sea,_one_of_new_idents_introduced_in_September_2005.

BBC News 24/BBC News Channel

BBC News 24 launched at 5.30pm on 9 November 1997 as the BBC's domestic 24-hour news channel and sister to BBC World. Between 1997 and 1999, the channel used the same fictional flag idents designed by Lambie-Nairn as BBC World with only the channel's name as a difference.

The major relaunch of all BBC News output in 1999 saw the channel adopt a common theme with the rest of the BBC's main news bulletins. A new cream-and-red colour scheme designed by Lambie-Nairn was introduced together with a variation on the "drums and beeps" musical composition by David Lowe.

A third relaunch came in 2003 with a refresh of the common BBC News style and a departure from Lambie-Nairn in favour of in-house productions for news titles.

A fourth relaunch on 22 January 2007 coincided with a new look for all the main bulletins on BBC One, which saw titles not wholly dissimilar to the previous set being introduced. A new set of on-screen graphics was also introduced.

BBC News 24 became simply 'BBC News' in April 2008 as part of a £550, 000 relaunch of BBC News output by Lambie-Nairn. New graphics and titles similar to those introduced in 1999 accompanied a new set - shared with BBC One news bulletins.

BBC Parliament

BBC Parliament took over from the cable-only "Parliamentary Channel" in September 1998. BBC Parliament transmits sessions of the House of Commons, House of Lords, Scottish Parliament, Welsh National Assembly, and the Northern Ireland Assembly (when not suspended), together with various other programmes of political interest during Parliamentary recesses which include occasional archive programming of past election results programmes and documentaries about past political events. BBC Parliament is a somewhat unusual channel in that for several years after it was founded the digital terrestrial television platform had insufficient bandwidth to allow the channel to transmit pictures, and it was restricted to sound-only transmissions with a fixed caption and from 2002 to 2006, only broadcasting a quarter-screen picture.

The channel took on a variation of the corporate BBC News theme in 2002 with a new ident designed by Lambie-Nairn and accompanied by music by David Lowe. The model was designed to be a motor, an interpretation of the inner workings of Parliament.

The_original_BBC_Parliament_ident_used_from_the_channel

BBC World News

BBC World, the BBC's international 24-hour news and current affairs channel launched in 1995, following the split of the previous BBC World Service Television.

Since launch, the channel has shared a common appearance with domestic news channel BBC News 24 since 1997. The channels, based within the News Centre at BBC Television Centre in West London, swapped studios in 1999 and have remained in their respective studios ever since.

Following the major BBC News relaunch in 1999 across all output, the channel received an individual style based upon the theme introduced with graphics created by the Lambie-Nairn branding agency and music composed by David Lowe.

A subsequent relaunch of BBC News bulletins came in 2003 with new graphics and titles, produced by designers within the BBC itself. This design was subsequently updated in 2007.

BBC World became 'BBC World News' in April 2008 as part of a major £550, 000 relaunch of BBC News output by Lambie-Nairn.

BBC World in 1995 had a completely different style of presentation to BBC News in the UK. The set design was similar however.
BBC World was given an almost identical look to BBC News 24, with similar set designs and graphics.
The_channel_adopted_the_BBC News style in 1999.
BBC News graphics in 2007.

CBBC

CBBC, originally Children's BBC, can trace its roots back to the "Children's Hour" of the original BBC Television Service. As a strand of programming for children aged 6-13 with distinctive programme presentation on BBC1, "Children's BBC" first appeared in September 1985. These idents were generated live on air by a BBC Micro computer.

Children's BBC was officially renamed CBBC in October 1997, with the production of appropriate idents. The idents all had a yellow background, with the black outlines of the various cartoons. Many idents were created up to 2002 - 'Snail', 'Cat and Mouse', 'Octopus', 'Dragon', 'Fish' and 'Mouse', to name a few.

When CBBC was given its own channel on the digital terrestrial platform on 11 February 2002, the CBBC "blob" ident was created. These animated 'bugs' were designed by Lambie-Nairn, and were always green in colour. Idents included 'Karate', 'Multiply', 'Dance' and 'Splat'. The blob was later refreshed and given a 3D appearance in 2005.

In December 2006, CBBC moved from Studio TC9, its home since 1997, to TC12 within BBC Television Centre. The use of a set was replaced by a new virtual set consisting of presenter standing in front of a bluescreen while only a fixed camera is used. [cite web | url = http://www.tvradiobits.co.uk/idents/cbbc.htm | title = CBBC | publisher = TV & Radio Bits] CBBC relaunched again in the autumn of 2007, with new logo and idents. More idents of the same style were added in March 2008.

CBeebies

CBeebies launched on the same day as the CBBC Channel - 11 February 2002, with an original age range of pre-school children only. Following changes within the BBC Children's department, this changed to ages up to 8, with CBBC targeting ages 8 to 12.

The idents for the channel, designed by Lambie-Nairn, are the same as at launch and consist of yellow blobs, the opposite to the green blobs launched with the CBBC Channel with a much younger feel, as befits the target audience.

Continuity links are presented by the CBeebies presenters but are recorded rather than broadcast live.

ee also

*BBC One 'Balloon' idents
*BBC One 'Rhythm & Movement' idents
*BBC One 'Circle' idents
*BBC Two 1991-2001 idents
*ITV television presentation

References

External links

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk bbc.co.uk]
* [http://www.tv-ark.org.uk TV Ark - The Television Museum]
* [http://www.meldrum.co.uk/mhp/identzone/index.html The Ident Zone]
* [http://www.thetvroom.com The TV Room]
* [http://www.thetvroomplus.com The TV Room Plus]