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BBC Two

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BBC Two
Ownership
OwnerBBC

BBC Two (or BBC2 as it was formerly styled) was the second UK television station to be aired by the BBC and Europe's first television channel to broadcast regularly in colour (from 1967), envisaged as a home for less mainstream and more ambitious programming.

History

Prior to its launch, BBC2 was promoted on the BBC Television Service channel soon to be renamed BBC1 and later BBC One; the animated adverts featured the campaign mascots "Hullabaloo" (a mother kangaroo) and "Custard" (her joey). The channel was scheduled to begin at 7:20 p.m. on April 20 1964 and show an evening of light entertainment, starting with the comedy show The Alberts, a performance from Soviet comedian Arkady Raikin, and a production of Cole Porter's Kiss Me, Kate, culminating with a fireworks display. However, at around 6:45 p.m. a huge power failure, originating from Battersea Power Station, caused the Television Centre to lose all power. BBC One was able to continue broadcasting via its facilities at Alexandra Palace, but all attempts to show the scheduled programmes on the new channel failed. Associated Rediffusion, the London ITV franchise-holder, offered to transmit on the BBC's behalf, but their gesture was rejected, presumably for pride's sake. However, at 10 p.m. BBC2 had no choice but to concede defeat and postpone programming until the following morning. As the BBC's news centre at Alexandra Palace was unaffected, they did in fact broadcast brief bulletins on BBC Two that evening, beginning with an announcement by the newsreader Gerald Priestland at around 7:25. [1]. There was believed to be no recording ever made of this bulletin, but one was discovered in Early 2003.

At 11 a.m. on April 21, power had been restored to the studios and programming began, thus making Play School the first official programme to be shown on the channel. The launch schedule, postponed from the night before, was then successfully shown that evening albeit with minor changes. In reference to the power cut, the transmission opened with a shot of a lit candle which was then sarcastically blown out by presenter Denis Tuohy.

To establish the new channel's identity and draw viewers to it, the BBC decided that a widely promoted, lavish series would be essential in its earliest days. The production chosen was The Forsyte Saga, a no-expense-spared adaptation of the novels by John Galsworthy, featuring well-established actors Kenneth More and Eric Porter. Critically for the future of the fledgling channel, the BBC's gamble was hugely successful, with an average of six million viewers tuning in per episode of a total of only 9 million able to receive the channel at the time, and BBC Two was safely established with the public.

Unlike the other channels available at that time (BBC One and ITV), BBC Two was broadcast only on the 625 line UHF system, so was not available to viewers with 405 line VHF sets. This created a market for dual standard receivers which could switch between the two systems. The early technical problems, which also inclued being ble to transmit US made programmes created using an altogether different system were resloved by a committe headed by James Redmond. BBC One and ITV later joined BBC Two on 625-line UHF but continued to simulcast on 405-line VHF until 1985. BBC Two became the first channel in Europe to broadcast in colour in July 1967, using the PAL system. BBC One and ITV simultaneously introduced PAL colour on UHF in late 1969. BBC Two is to be the first BBC channel to leave the domain of analogue television. The analogue service will be switched off from 2008, region by region, about a month before the other remaining analogue channels. This will be the first major step in forcing those relying on analogue signal over to one of the BBC's digital platforms - Freeview or Freesat.

Present and past role

Nowadays new BBC programmes often appear on BBC Two, especially if those behind them have not proven themselves elsewhere. A successful BBC Two programme may be moved to BBC One, in the manner of Have I Got News For You. Over its first thirty or so years the channel developed a reputation for screening highly praised and prestigious drama series, amongst these Boys from the Blackstuff (1982) or 1996's epic, critically-acclaimed Our Friends in the North ; its "highbrow" profile compared to rivals is also in part attributable to a long history of demanding, flagship documentaries, most famously Civilisation and The Ascent of Man. During the 1980s and early 1990s, like the early Channel 4, BBC Two also started to establish for itself a reputation as a champion of independent and international cinema.

The channel has often been judged in more recent years increasingly to have moved away from this original role and to have moved closer to the mainstream. The perception of its greater minority interest nevertheless persists in today's multi-channel world so that a programme moved from BBC Two to BBC One will often attract a much larger audience, even though no other change has been made. Since 2004 there have been some signs of an attempt to return closer to parts of BBC Two's earlier output with the new arts strand The Culture Show and intermittent night-time repeats of programming from BBC Four.

During the evenings BBC Northern Ireland broadcast local programmes on BBC Two NI, while BBC Wales broadcasts a special channel BBC 2W. These are both only available on Digital Television such as Freeview; presently, during this period BBC Two's regular programming is only available via analogue transmission. Additionally, BBC Scotland broadcasts variations from the main network on BBC Two Scotland, such as Newsnight Scotland, and often Gaelic-language programmes under the banner "BBC Two Alba". In Northern Ireland and Wales an analogue version of BBC Two is broadcast with local continuity and occasional opt-outs for nation specific programming.

Some well-known programmes

Public service, educational and community programming

An important part of BBC Two's early mission was not only to provide minority interest entertainment but also to fulfil the public service functions of educational and community broadcasting.

Following a long and important association with the Open University, which has always co-produced programming with the channel, BBC Two has also carried BBC's Schools programmes from 1983 onward from BBC One. In recent years the Open University programming has been broadcast under the wider category of BBC Learning Zone, in its long-standing slot late at night and during the early hours. However, in 2004 the Open University announced it is to stop its late night programmes on BBC Learning Zone in 2006.

As a result of the channel's commitment to community broadcasting and amongst other related programming the channel produced the symbolic "Open Space" series, a strand developed in the early 1970s in which members of the public would be allotted half an hour of television time, and given a level of editorial and technical training in order to produce for themselves a film on an issue most important to them. BBC Two's Community Programmes Unit kept this aspect of the channel's tradition alive into the 1990s in the form of Video Diaries and later Video Nation, an intended role which, despite intermittent reappearances in the form of "Video Shorts" has since gradually been given up during the channel's move toward the mainstream.

On-screen identity

Main article: BBC television idents § BBC Two
File:Oldbbc2.jpg
BBC Two ident "Copper cutout" used from February 1991 to December 1999. The '888' in the top right indicated the availability of subtitles on Ceefax.

As well as programmes, BBC Two has also proved memorable for its numerous idents—various short films shown in between programme junctions, promoting the channel identity. Since it began in 1964, the figure '2' has almost always been used, using revolving, mechanical models and computer-aided technology, including the world's first computer-generated ident in 1979. At Easter 1986 the '2' was replaced by the word 'TWO' in red, green and blue on a white background. However, a survey carried out by the BBC in 1990 found that this gave the channel a 'dull' and 'old-fashioned' image, and the ident was changed back to a figure '2' in 1991. From then the '2' appeared the same shape but in various guises, adopting ideas like a remote-controlled car, a rubber duck, a Dalek and a fluffy dog. These are generally regarded as the best idents ever produced for a television channel and stayed in use for 10 years, ending in November 2001 (the new BBC Logo was incorporated within the idents from 1997 to 2001). The current presentation style, introduced on November 19th 2001 kept the figure '2', though it was now always shown white on a yellow background, and completely computer generated. Occasionally, to advertise certain programmes or themes on the channel, the ident moves away from the standard style. For example, as a trailer for the second series of The Catherine Tate Show, one of the characters is shown arguing with a '2', in the guise of a dog. This dog identity for the '2' is part of the BBC's Pedigree Comedy branding for comedy programmes on the channel.

Withdrawn idents have also made a return to BBC Two for special events. The 'Garden' ident (in which a '2' grows out of flowers) was returned for the 2001 Chelsea Flower Show, after having been retired in 1997, and remained in occasional use until the November 2001 refresh. For the 2006 Winter Olympics, the 2000 Christmas ident was used again, and remains in occasional use. For the 2006 Chelsea Flower Show, the 'Predator' ident (where a '2' butterfly is eaten by a Venus fly-trap shaped like a '2') was used again, and has remained in occasional use, recently, in Gardener's World. In each case, the branding has been updated to match the current style.

On July 2, 2006, it was announced that new idents are to be developed and produced for the channel by Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO. The company has previously worked for the corporation, with the development of several trailers including those for the 2006 series of Dragon's Den.

BBC Two and BBC Four

Over recent years BBC Two has often been accused of "dumbing down", and since the launch of the digital-only BBC Four, the BBC has been accused in particular of letting its more highbrow output go to the new channel, which a sizeable minority (34.1%[2]) of viewers still cannot receive, rather than BBC Two, the perceived strategy being to allow BBC Two to show more popular programmes and to secure higher ratings. Many commentators have judged there to be a strong resemblance between the new Four and the earlier, more ambitious, BBC Two. Output from BBC Four (documentaries rather than foreign films) is repeated on BBC Two after Newsnight in a 'BBC Four on Two' branded area, although this is often in a late night broadcast slot.

Controllers of BBC Two

The current controller of BBC Two is Roly Keating, who took up the post in June 2004 having formerly been controller of BBC Four. His predecessor Jane Root, who was appointed in 1999 and was the first woman to be appointed controller of a BBC television channel, departed in May 2004 to become the executive vice president and general manager of US-based Discovery Channel.

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