The British Broadcasting Company, today known as the BBC, was formed in October 1922 by a group of leading wireless manufacturers including the great radio pioneer, Guglielmo Marconi.
Then general manager, John Reith, had a higher purpose than just selling radio sets, which was the basic commercial purpose of the BBC. He envisaged an independent British broadcaster able to educate, inform and entertain the whole nation, free from political interference and commercial pressure. However, the powerful newspaper industry successfully kept the BBC out of the news business. Bulletins were prepared by the news agencies, and could only be broadcast after 7pm – so as not to upset newspaper sales.
John Reith, who never saw the value of television, opposed the idea when BBC was asked to test two rival television systems. On 2 November 1936 the BBC opened the world's first regular service of high-definition television from Alexandra Palace in North London. After just two months the US-backed electronic system developed by EMI-Marconi was formally adopted. Important landmarks include the first Wimbledon coverage (June 1937) and the first FA Cup Final coverage (April 30, 1938).
Before the decade was out, Reith had stepped down. His last preoccupation had been to set in place arrangements for wartime broadcasting.
In 1943, the BBC set up its War Reporting Unit. Its members underwent rigorous training in military survival techniques and were equipped with a new, light recording device developed by BBC engineers for use in the field of action. Distinguished BBC war correspondents, including Richard Dimbleby, Frank Gillard, Godfrey Talbot and Wynford Vaughan-Thomas, were able to bring back near-live war coverage to a nation desperate for news.
On June 2 1953, a single event changed the course of television history. An estimated 22 million TV viewers – many crowded into neighbours’ living rooms - saw the young Queen crowned. The television age had arrived. The event prompted many to buy their own sets, and it was evident that television would soon be as important as radio to UK audiences.
As television licence income grew, more ambitious programmes were possible, and a new crop of stars emerged, including David Attenborough ('Zoo Quest' 1954), Eamonn Andrews ('This Is Your Life' 1955) and Jack Warner ('Dixon of Dock Green' 1955). Drama successes like 'The Quatermass Experiment' and the controversial adaptation of 'Nineteen Eighty Four' became talking points all over the country. TV hits of the 50s included 'Panorama', 'The Sky At Night', 'Grandstand', 'Blue Peter' and 'Jukebox Jury'.
In the 50s the BBC was again in conflict with the government, as the country teetered on the brink of war in the Suez Crisis. Again there was talk of the government taking over the BBC because of what was seen to be an unpatriotic stance, but the BBC kept its nerve, and emerged with its reputation for independence intact.
There were two major technological breakthroughs this decade. In 1955, the introduction of VHF transformed sound broadcasting. It finally allowed listeners to enjoy clear reception, overcoming problems associated with the cluttering of the long and medium wavebands.
At the end of the decade, electronic video recording arrived, to transform television production. At last programmes could be recorded in advance at low cost, and live programmes, with all their imperfections, became rarer.
BBC Television Centre in West London opened in June 1960. In the same year, an inquiry into the future of television and radio praised public service broadcasting and authorised the setting up of a second channel, BBC Two (launched in 1964). Radio 1 began in 1967 following the banning of pirate radio stations.
Colour television broadcasts began on BBC Two in 1967, followed by BBC One in 1969. Within ten years there would be 12 million colour licences in the UK.
The Sixties was also the decade when the monarchy first went public on television in 'The Royal Family' (1969), when England won the World Cup (1966), and when Mary Whitehouse became a household name with her “Clean Up TV” campaign.
1970’s was the ‘golden age’ of television. Income grew as more and more homes bought television licences and, more significantly, more switched to colour. As a result the schedules were able to offer greater depth and variety. Documentary highlights included programmes such as The 'Ascent of Man'. 'The Family', a fly-on-the-wall series in 1974, could claim to be the first 'reality TV' programme.
I Claudius, Pennies from Heaven and Last of the Summer Wine reflect the variety of television drama. The BBC earned the description of 'The Theatre in the Living Room' when the televising of all of Shakespeare’s plays began in 1978 with 'Romeo and Juliet'. This was a vintage period for outstanding new comedy such as 'Are You Being Served?' (1973), 'The Good Life' and 'Fawlty Towers' (1975).
As well as entertaining and informing, the BBC addressed its educational remit. This decade saw the launch of 'the university of the airwaves', the BBC’s collaboration with the Open University.
In 1972 the CEEFAX text service was introduced after engineers developed the technique of transmitting digital data within analogue signals. Subtitling of programmes on CEEFAX began in 1979.
The BBC faced many challenges from the Government regarding programme output. The Annan Committee Report of 1977 criticised the BBC for 'loss of nerve' and 'organisational fog'. As a result of this report, the way was paved for the establishment of Channel 4 (1982).
1979 saw the BBC bring together all its commercial activities under BBC Enterprises Ltd. Now called BBC Worldwide, this commercial arm returns significant funds back to BBC programming through its sales of videos, books, audio and magazines.
The 1980’s was a challenging decade for BBC correspondents who reported in depth on dramatic and often dangerous events from Northern Ireland, Tiananmen Square, the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. In Ethiopia, Michael Buerk alerted the world to a famine of Biblical proportions. It led the phenomenal Live Aid concert of 1985, which raised more than £60 million.
This was the decade of the Falklands War (1982), the miners’ strike (1984), the wedding of the Prince of Wales to Lady Diana Spencer (1981), the arrival of 'EastEnders' (February 1985) and 'Neighbours' (October 1986).
Important new television programmes included 'Newsnight' (1980), 'Rough Justice', 'Timewatch' (1982), 'Crimewatch' (1984) and 'Watchdog' (1985). 'EastEnders', the BBC’s response to Granada’s 'Coronation Street', quickly became the most watched BBC programme on television. It still regularly attracts over 12 million viewers. Breakfast Television, a new venture for the BBC presented by Frank Bough and Selina Scott, began in 1983 and this was followed three years later by daytime television.
Television coverage of the House of Lords began with a six-month experiment in 1985, and four years later cameras were allowed in the House of Commons for an experimental period. In 1990 the Commons voted in favour of allowing the cameras to stay.
Home video recorders arrived in the Eighties, and gradually changed the way the nation regarded and used broadcasting. Other advances included satellite broadcasting. The BBC contemplated satellite, but judged the risks, and costs, to be too great.
It was a decade of competitive pressure and political pressure on the BBC. Channel 4 went on air in 1982, more commercial radio stations opened, and satellite television services were launched.
The 80s were littered with political rows, the most spectacular of which concerned a current affairs programme, 'Real Lives', in 1985. The Home Secretary, Leon Brittan, concerned asked the BBC governors to stop the broadcast of an edition about extremists in Northern Ireland. The Board, quite exceptionally, viewed the programme before the planned transmission and demanded that changes were made. Staff went on strike over a decision that brought the Corporation’s tradition of political independence into question.
The arrival of digital technology and the Internet during this decade marked a new era in broadcasting. For the viewer, digital television offered more channels and wider interactivity; for the listener, digital radio provided CD-quality sound and flexibility of service. BBC Online, an Internet service which did not exist at the beginning of the 90s, was one of the leading websites in Europe by the end of 1999.
In the mid-90s, Director-General John Birt introduced Producer Choice, a full-blown internal market, which encouraged producers to choose between BBC suppliers and the outside market for their facilities. Resulting savings, along with the profits from the sale of the BBC transmitter network, enabled the BBC to meet the cost of the technological revolution.
In the face of growing competition, the BBC sought to offer a range of programmes that commercially funded broadcasters would not provide. It was this ‘Extending Choice’ mission that secured a new Charter in 1996. Many new series made an instant impact, including comedy shows such as 'One Foot in the Grave', 'Absolutely Fabulou's and 'Have I Got News For You'. The late Nineties saw a revival of costume drama, with the adaptation of 'Middlemarch' and 'Pride and Prejudice'. The end of the decade saw a number of groundbreaking science and natural history programmes – in particular, 'The Human Bod'y and 'Walking with Dinosaurs'.
The nation’s fascination with its Royal Family was never more evident than in the 90s. Huge audiences watched a 'Panorama' interview with Diana, Princess of Wales, in which she spoke frankly about her crumbling marriage, and the expressions of grief at her death in 1997 took the BBC by surprise. Other innovations in the 90s included the 'Teletubbies' and 'Tweenies' for children, and the launch of BBC News 24.
The BBC opened the new millennium with the most ambitious programme in its history. Hundreds of outside broadcasts across the globe fed into BBC Television Centre, and a continuous programme lasting 28 hours was beamed back to viewers around the world. The show involved 60 nations, and was seen in over 80 countries worldwide.
'The Weakest Link' presented by Anne Robinson was an instant success and the format was quickly exported to other countries. Landmark television such as 'Blue Planet' and 'Walking with Beasts', as well as groundbreaking comedy such as 'The Office', pulled huge audiences. In children’s television 'Teletubbies' was sold to over 75 countries and translated into 45 languages.
Digital expansion followed with the launch of BBC Four, Cbeebies, CBBC and BBC Three. Interactive television kicked off with coverage of Wimbledon 2001 and its success encouraged increased interactive activity in television programming.
In May 2003 the BBC became embroiled in a bitter row with Government. A report on the Today programme had suggested that the Government ‘sexed up’ the case for war with Iraq in a dossier of evidence about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
The governors backed the report, rejecting demands from Prime Minister Tony Blair for a retraction. The row escalated over the following weeks, when editorial flaws became evident. In July both sides were stunned by the suicide of David Kelly, the government weapons advisor, who had been exposed as the source of the BBC report. The Hutton Inquiry followed, and on January 28 2004 chairman Gavyn Davies resigned when Lord Hutton’s findings were published. The following day the remaining governors accepted the resignation of Director-General Greg Dyke.
In 2007 the BBC launched iPlayer, a service that allows people to download television programmes on to their computers to watch after the broadcast. The BBC also started placing video clips on YouTube and, as more and more people now surf the internet on their mobile phones, began creating mobile-friendly versions of some of its most popular websites such as News, Sport and Weather.
Then general manager, John Reith, had a higher purpose than just selling radio sets, which was the basic commercial purpose of the BBC. He envisaged an independent British broadcaster able to educate, inform and entertain the whole nation, free from political interference and commercial pressure. However, the powerful newspaper industry successfully kept the BBC out of the news business. Bulletins were prepared by the news agencies, and could only be broadcast after 7pm – so as not to upset newspaper sales.
John Reith, who never saw the value of television, opposed the idea when BBC was asked to test two rival television systems. On 2 November 1936 the BBC opened the world's first regular service of high-definition television from Alexandra Palace in North London. After just two months the US-backed electronic system developed by EMI-Marconi was formally adopted. Important landmarks include the first Wimbledon coverage (June 1937) and the first FA Cup Final coverage (April 30, 1938).
Before the decade was out, Reith had stepped down. His last preoccupation had been to set in place arrangements for wartime broadcasting.
In 1943, the BBC set up its War Reporting Unit. Its members underwent rigorous training in military survival techniques and were equipped with a new, light recording device developed by BBC engineers for use in the field of action. Distinguished BBC war correspondents, including Richard Dimbleby, Frank Gillard, Godfrey Talbot and Wynford Vaughan-Thomas, were able to bring back near-live war coverage to a nation desperate for news.
On June 2 1953, a single event changed the course of television history. An estimated 22 million TV viewers – many crowded into neighbours’ living rooms - saw the young Queen crowned. The television age had arrived. The event prompted many to buy their own sets, and it was evident that television would soon be as important as radio to UK audiences.
As television licence income grew, more ambitious programmes were possible, and a new crop of stars emerged, including David Attenborough ('Zoo Quest' 1954), Eamonn Andrews ('This Is Your Life' 1955) and Jack Warner ('Dixon of Dock Green' 1955). Drama successes like 'The Quatermass Experiment' and the controversial adaptation of 'Nineteen Eighty Four' became talking points all over the country. TV hits of the 50s included 'Panorama', 'The Sky At Night', 'Grandstand', 'Blue Peter' and 'Jukebox Jury'.
In the 50s the BBC was again in conflict with the government, as the country teetered on the brink of war in the Suez Crisis. Again there was talk of the government taking over the BBC because of what was seen to be an unpatriotic stance, but the BBC kept its nerve, and emerged with its reputation for independence intact.
There were two major technological breakthroughs this decade. In 1955, the introduction of VHF transformed sound broadcasting. It finally allowed listeners to enjoy clear reception, overcoming problems associated with the cluttering of the long and medium wavebands.
At the end of the decade, electronic video recording arrived, to transform television production. At last programmes could be recorded in advance at low cost, and live programmes, with all their imperfections, became rarer.
BBC Television Centre in West London opened in June 1960. In the same year, an inquiry into the future of television and radio praised public service broadcasting and authorised the setting up of a second channel, BBC Two (launched in 1964). Radio 1 began in 1967 following the banning of pirate radio stations.
Colour television broadcasts began on BBC Two in 1967, followed by BBC One in 1969. Within ten years there would be 12 million colour licences in the UK.
The Sixties was also the decade when the monarchy first went public on television in 'The Royal Family' (1969), when England won the World Cup (1966), and when Mary Whitehouse became a household name with her “Clean Up TV” campaign.
1970’s was the ‘golden age’ of television. Income grew as more and more homes bought television licences and, more significantly, more switched to colour. As a result the schedules were able to offer greater depth and variety. Documentary highlights included programmes such as The 'Ascent of Man'. 'The Family', a fly-on-the-wall series in 1974, could claim to be the first 'reality TV' programme.
I Claudius, Pennies from Heaven and Last of the Summer Wine reflect the variety of television drama. The BBC earned the description of 'The Theatre in the Living Room' when the televising of all of Shakespeare’s plays began in 1978 with 'Romeo and Juliet'. This was a vintage period for outstanding new comedy such as 'Are You Being Served?' (1973), 'The Good Life' and 'Fawlty Towers' (1975).
As well as entertaining and informing, the BBC addressed its educational remit. This decade saw the launch of 'the university of the airwaves', the BBC’s collaboration with the Open University.
In 1972 the CEEFAX text service was introduced after engineers developed the technique of transmitting digital data within analogue signals. Subtitling of programmes on CEEFAX began in 1979.
The BBC faced many challenges from the Government regarding programme output. The Annan Committee Report of 1977 criticised the BBC for 'loss of nerve' and 'organisational fog'. As a result of this report, the way was paved for the establishment of Channel 4 (1982).
1979 saw the BBC bring together all its commercial activities under BBC Enterprises Ltd. Now called BBC Worldwide, this commercial arm returns significant funds back to BBC programming through its sales of videos, books, audio and magazines.
The 1980’s was a challenging decade for BBC correspondents who reported in depth on dramatic and often dangerous events from Northern Ireland, Tiananmen Square, the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. In Ethiopia, Michael Buerk alerted the world to a famine of Biblical proportions. It led the phenomenal Live Aid concert of 1985, which raised more than £60 million.
This was the decade of the Falklands War (1982), the miners’ strike (1984), the wedding of the Prince of Wales to Lady Diana Spencer (1981), the arrival of 'EastEnders' (February 1985) and 'Neighbours' (October 1986).
Important new television programmes included 'Newsnight' (1980), 'Rough Justice', 'Timewatch' (1982), 'Crimewatch' (1984) and 'Watchdog' (1985). 'EastEnders', the BBC’s response to Granada’s 'Coronation Street', quickly became the most watched BBC programme on television. It still regularly attracts over 12 million viewers. Breakfast Television, a new venture for the BBC presented by Frank Bough and Selina Scott, began in 1983 and this was followed three years later by daytime television.
Television coverage of the House of Lords began with a six-month experiment in 1985, and four years later cameras were allowed in the House of Commons for an experimental period. In 1990 the Commons voted in favour of allowing the cameras to stay.
Home video recorders arrived in the Eighties, and gradually changed the way the nation regarded and used broadcasting. Other advances included satellite broadcasting. The BBC contemplated satellite, but judged the risks, and costs, to be too great.
It was a decade of competitive pressure and political pressure on the BBC. Channel 4 went on air in 1982, more commercial radio stations opened, and satellite television services were launched.
The 80s were littered with political rows, the most spectacular of which concerned a current affairs programme, 'Real Lives', in 1985. The Home Secretary, Leon Brittan, concerned asked the BBC governors to stop the broadcast of an edition about extremists in Northern Ireland. The Board, quite exceptionally, viewed the programme before the planned transmission and demanded that changes were made. Staff went on strike over a decision that brought the Corporation’s tradition of political independence into question.
The arrival of digital technology and the Internet during this decade marked a new era in broadcasting. For the viewer, digital television offered more channels and wider interactivity; for the listener, digital radio provided CD-quality sound and flexibility of service. BBC Online, an Internet service which did not exist at the beginning of the 90s, was one of the leading websites in Europe by the end of 1999.
In the mid-90s, Director-General John Birt introduced Producer Choice, a full-blown internal market, which encouraged producers to choose between BBC suppliers and the outside market for their facilities. Resulting savings, along with the profits from the sale of the BBC transmitter network, enabled the BBC to meet the cost of the technological revolution.
In the face of growing competition, the BBC sought to offer a range of programmes that commercially funded broadcasters would not provide. It was this ‘Extending Choice’ mission that secured a new Charter in 1996. Many new series made an instant impact, including comedy shows such as 'One Foot in the Grave', 'Absolutely Fabulou's and 'Have I Got News For You'. The late Nineties saw a revival of costume drama, with the adaptation of 'Middlemarch' and 'Pride and Prejudice'. The end of the decade saw a number of groundbreaking science and natural history programmes – in particular, 'The Human Bod'y and 'Walking with Dinosaurs'.
The nation’s fascination with its Royal Family was never more evident than in the 90s. Huge audiences watched a 'Panorama' interview with Diana, Princess of Wales, in which she spoke frankly about her crumbling marriage, and the expressions of grief at her death in 1997 took the BBC by surprise. Other innovations in the 90s included the 'Teletubbies' and 'Tweenies' for children, and the launch of BBC News 24.
The BBC opened the new millennium with the most ambitious programme in its history. Hundreds of outside broadcasts across the globe fed into BBC Television Centre, and a continuous programme lasting 28 hours was beamed back to viewers around the world. The show involved 60 nations, and was seen in over 80 countries worldwide.
'The Weakest Link' presented by Anne Robinson was an instant success and the format was quickly exported to other countries. Landmark television such as 'Blue Planet' and 'Walking with Beasts', as well as groundbreaking comedy such as 'The Office', pulled huge audiences. In children’s television 'Teletubbies' was sold to over 75 countries and translated into 45 languages.
Digital expansion followed with the launch of BBC Four, Cbeebies, CBBC and BBC Three. Interactive television kicked off with coverage of Wimbledon 2001 and its success encouraged increased interactive activity in television programming.
In May 2003 the BBC became embroiled in a bitter row with Government. A report on the Today programme had suggested that the Government ‘sexed up’ the case for war with Iraq in a dossier of evidence about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
The governors backed the report, rejecting demands from Prime Minister Tony Blair for a retraction. The row escalated over the following weeks, when editorial flaws became evident. In July both sides were stunned by the suicide of David Kelly, the government weapons advisor, who had been exposed as the source of the BBC report. The Hutton Inquiry followed, and on January 28 2004 chairman Gavyn Davies resigned when Lord Hutton’s findings were published. The following day the remaining governors accepted the resignation of Director-General Greg Dyke.
In 2007 the BBC launched iPlayer, a service that allows people to download television programmes on to their computers to watch after the broadcast. The BBC also started placing video clips on YouTube and, as more and more people now surf the internet on their mobile phones, began creating mobile-friendly versions of some of its most popular websites such as News, Sport and Weather.