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BBC 2 Idents The Original 1991 Set
16th February 1991 saw the relaunch of BBC2 presentation in a dramatic change with the past. The "TWO" ident wwas discarded and a series of innovative idents were launched. A standard set of idents which are available to presentation directors for inclusion before each programme. Sometimes the choice of ident matches the genre of programme, at other times there would seem to be no correlation. The standard set is occasionally added to, and occasionally some are withdrawn. Additionally, a number of special idents have been introduced, either for specific strands of programme (eg Def II, Animal Zone) or for theme nights or themed series. That latter category has produced some rarities, with some idents only ever broadcast once.
This page lists the 11 original idents from 1991 and the new clock. 6 of those original 11 are still in use in 1998, seven years on.
If anyone can
help with the missing dates, when idents were withdrawn, please
get in touch.
The contents of this site are discussed in mhp-chat
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No. 1 - Water The "2" is inserted into water at a 45 degree angle. The camera is then rotated by a similar amount. A subtle variation of this can be seen later. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
| No. 2 -
"Copper Cut-Out" Sparks flying off a metallic "2". Again, a variation of this can be seen later. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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No. 3 -
"Paint" The "2" gets a can of paint thrown on it. The camera is on its side, and the paint is dropped vertically. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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"Blade" A menacing "2" drops in to view, piercing the blue and wobbling from the impact. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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No.
5 - "Sign" also known as "Neon" Flashing Neon bulbs. There are seven bulbs, leading to 5040 possible combinations. I have yet to see the sequence repeat, and I am unlikely to, as only 50 seconds was recorded. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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"Glass" A crystal- style glass "2" reflects the light in different ways. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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No. 7 -
"Silk" A sheet of silk hovers over the "2" Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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"Shadow" A fairly simple one to film, a cut out two is rotated, and the shadow filmed. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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No. 9 -
"Paper Cut-Out" A very grey paper foreground is cut out revealing a very colourful blue and white background. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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"B&W Copper Cut-out" This black and white version of ident no. 2 features the same sparks flying off the same metallic "2" with the same music. You have to wonder if the original designers run out of ideas at this point! Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
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No. 11 -
"Water Reflection" This is a very subtle variation of ident no. 1, the only difference being that water reflections are visible in the upper half of the "2". This was presumably achieved by placing it in at a slight angle and adjusting the lighting. Introduced : 16 Feb 1991 |
| Introduced at the same time as all the above, the BBC
2 clock. It is not seen very often now, mainly at closedown and before weekend news programmes. The length of the hands have been changed through the years. |
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Last Update 06 Apr 2000