Blue Peter
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| Blue Peter | |
|---|---|
 The current version of the Blue Peter logo, a stylised galleon based on an original design by Tony Hart. |
|
| Genre | Childrens, Entertainment |
| Running time | 0:25 (0:30 CBBC Channel) |
| Creator(s) | John Hunter Blair |
| Starring | Konnie Huq Zoe Salmon Gethin Jones Andy Akinwolere |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original channel | BBC One, BBC Two, CBBC Channel |
| Original run | 16 October 1958– |
| No. of episodes | Over 4000 |
- For other uses, see Blue Peter (disambiguation).
Blue Peter is a popular, long-running BBC television programme for children, and airs on Children's BBC (CBBC) . It is named after the blue-and-white flag hoisted by ships in port when they are ready to sail. The reasoning behind the choice of title is that the programme is intended to be a voyage of adventure and discovery for the viewers, constantly covering new topics.
The signature tune, in recognition of the origin of the title, is a sea shanty called "Barnacle Bill", and the programme's motif is a stylised sailing ship designed by Tony Hart. Hart's original design was never successfully used in a totally uniform fashion, with several different reproductions used in studio, on badges, the Blue Peter books and on-screen graphics. This was until the show's redesign in 1999, when the ship's rigging and hull detail was removed, and in 2000, the flags were subtly reshaped. This version is still in use today, and now appears across all media (although the revised badges retain the old-style flags).
On Thursday 16 October 2008, Blue Peter will celebrate its 50th birthday.
Contents |
[edit] History
The programme, devised by John Hunter Blair and edited for many years by Biddy Baxter, was first shown on 16 October 1958 with presenters Christopher Trace and Leila Williams. The initial format was mainly the two presenters demonstrating dolls and model railways, with the male presenter concentrating on traditional boys' toys such as model aeroplanes, and the female restricting herself to domestic tasks, such as cookery.
Over the years, the programme changed to reflect the times. Originally, it was a 15-minute weekly programme; now, it is 25 minutes, and shown three times a week on BBC One and repeated later on the CBBC Channel. The 4000th edition was broadcast on 14 March 2005. Most episodes are still broadcast live.
Almost every episode from 1964 onwards still exists in the BBC archives. This is extremely unusual for programmes of that era, and stands as testament to Baxter's foresight and initiative, as she personally ensured that telerecordings and, from 1970, video copies were kept of the episodes. Among the benefits of this policy is that one 1973 episode[1] contains the only known broadcast quality footage of the lost final episode of the Doctor Who serial "The Tenth Planet", which depicts The Doctor's first regeneration.
Blue Peter has had a longstanding relationship with Doctor Who, often running features on the show with appearances by actors and behind-the-scenes personnel. One notable contest in 1967 had viewers design a monster in the style of those featured on Doctor Who. A similar competition was held in 2005 to help design a new monster for one of the episodes, which became "Love & Monsters".
In addition, longtime host Peter Purves was himself a former co-star on the series. One programme asked viewers to help recover the lost footage of Doctor Who.
Many items from Blue Peter's history have passed into television legend, especially moments when things have gone wrong, such as the much-repeated clip of Lulu the elephant (from a 1969 edition)[2] who defecated on the studio floor and then proceeded to attempt an exit, dragging her keeper along the ground behind her. Other well-remembered and much-repeated items include the Girl Guides' bonfire that got out of hand on the 1970 Christmas edition, John Noakes' report on the cleaning of Nelson's Column,[3] and Simon Groom referring to a previous item on door-knockers with the words 'What a beautiful pair of knockers',[4] which has usually been explained as an accidental turn of phrase, but which Groom later admitted was a deliberate joke. Additionally, Groom is remembered for inappropriately reciting, while wearing a suit of armour, 'Once a king always a king, but once a (k)night is enough', while Peter Duncan's cookery instructions to 'finely chop one raw egg' will also go into the annals.
There have also been times when the show has broadcast breaking news in the days before 24-hour news channels. Possibly the most famous is showing the first colour images on British television of the sinking of the RMS Queen Elizabeth in 1972.[5]
[edit] Content
Blue Peter's remit is very wide-ranging. Most programmes include a filmed report. There will also often be a demonstration of an activity in the studio, and/or a music or dance performance. The programme is made at BBC Television Centre, and often comes from Studio 1, which is one of the largest TV studios in Europe (being the 2nd largest in Britain). This enables Blue Peter to include large-scale demonstrations and performances within the live programme. The show is also famous for its 'makes', which are demonstrations of how to construct a useful object or prepare food. These have given rise to the oft-used phrase 'Here's one I made earlier', as presenters bring out a perfect and completed version of the object they are making. Time is also often given over to reading letters and showing pictures sent in by viewers.
[edit] Appeals
Enduring features of the programme include the annual charity appeal, which involves young viewers by asking them to collect items that can be recycled or sold to raise money for the chosen cause. This is always a charity project in the UK in odd-numbered years, and abroad in even-numbered. The appeal is usually launched in late November and runs through to February or March of the following year. One of the most popular forms of raising appeal money has been through encouraging viewers to hold "Blue Peter Bring And Buy Sales" at which buyers are also encouraged to bring their own bric-a-brac or produce to sell. The Great Bring And Buy Sale was used every few years or so as a means of adding variety to the collecting theme during other years.
Between 2001 and 2003 a series of "Bring And Buy Appeals" led many viewers and the media to voice their concern that the traditional method of collecting scrap items to recycle was being abandoned in favour of the "easier revenue" generated by the sales. This led to an on-air explanation by presenter Konnie Huq during the 2003 Get Together Appeal that this particular appeal required the sort of funding that only Bring And Buy Sales could raise. The 2004 and 2005 appeals have seen a return to the collecting theme: the first being to collect old clothes that Oxfam could sell in its stores to raise funds for a family-searching service in third world countries ravaged by war, and the second being the collection of old mobile telephones and coins that could be recycled to raise money for ChildLine.
Continuing the return to collecting unwanted items, Blue Peter has launched its 2006 campaign - the Shoe Biz Appeal. Its aim is to collect unwanted pairs of shoes or other footwear in order to raise money for children orphaned by AIDS and HIV in Malawi.
[edit] Pets
The team of presenters keep pets and bring them onto the show. The original idea of this was to show viewers lucky enough to own animals how to care for them, and for the creatures to act as surrogate pets for children without them. The first pet was a dog named Petra in 1962. Other canines have included Patch, Shep the Border Collie, Meg, and golden retrievers Goldie and her daughter Bonnie. There also have been tortoises, including Freda (originally misidentified as a male and called Fred), Maggie, Jim and George, and cats, such as Jason, Jack and Jill, Willow, Kari and Oke and the late Smudge. The current animal line-up comprises: dogs Lucy and Mabel; Socks the cat; Shelley the tortoise, and the rarely seen Blue Peter Riding for the Disabled horse, Jet, who replaced Rags.
The programme has had a long association with Guide Dogs for the blind, which stretches back to 1964 – captivating millions of viewers and helping to transform the lives of thousands of visually impaired people. The first Blue Peter guide dog puppy was Honey, whose training was charted by Valerie Singleton on the programme in 1964.Since then there has been Cindy who was puppy walked by Peter Purves in 1968; Prince, whose training was followed by Peter Duncan in 1981 and most recently a second pup called Honey – named in honour of her predecessor – who was trained by presenter John Leslie during 1991. In 2006 Andy Akinwolere began puppy walking a new Blue Peter Guide Dog named Magic.
[edit] Blue Peter Garden
The presenters also maintain the famous Blue Peter Garden, adjacent to Television Centre, which was designed by Percy Thrower. Its features include an Italian sunken garden with a pond, which contains goldfish, a vegetable patch, greenhouse and viewing platform. The 2000 Blue Peter time capsule, which is due to be dug up in 2029, is buried there. George the Tortoise was interred in the garden following his death in 2004, and there are also a bust of Petra, sculptures of Mabel and the Blue Peter ship, and a plaque in honour of Percy Thrower. The garden is also available to other programmes for outside broadcasts, and is often used for the links between children's programmes during the summer months and for BBC One's Breakfast weather broadcasts. In 1984, the garden was vandalised, leading to an on-air appeal for viewers to come forward with information — which now often appears on clip shows. A rumour circulated in the early 1990s that the vandalism had been carried out by a gang including the footballers Dennis Wise and Les Ferdinand when they were children.[6] Both men have denied direct involvement in the actual vandalism, although Ferdinand did later confess to "helping a few people over the wall."[7]
[edit] Annual Events
The programme also marks annual events, including Chinese New Year, St David's Day, Shrove Tuesday, Mothering Sunday, Guy Fawkes Night and Christmas. The latter, in particular, is a special occasion with a traditional format repeated year on year, featuring the story of the Nativity, a last-minute Christmas make, a filmed clip and the grand finale, the Chalk Farm Salvation Army Band and children from local schools marching "up the hill" and into the studio from the cold outside (lanterns in hand!) singing a Christmas carol (usually either Hark the Herald Angels Sing or O Come All Ye Faithful around the Blue Peter Christmas tree.
[edit] Blue Peter Traditions
The programme maintains its long-standing practice of avoiding using commercial names on air. Most famously, this policy led to the invention of the phrase 'sticky-backed plastic' (marketed under the trade name Fablon) back in the 1970s. An extreme example occurred in February 2005, when the show ran a feature on how Smarties are made, without once mentioning the name of the product.[8]
The Blue Peter Summer Expedition is another long-running tradition. These visits focus on a single country and are filmed while the programme is off the air from June to September.
During the 1950s and 1960s, the programme sometimes included a cartoon series as 'light relief' from some of the more informative articles. One such was Bleep and Booster, which started in 1963 and continued in the Blue Peter books until 1977.
Many of these long-standing traditions were started during the 1960s and 1970s by the show's editor, Biddy Baxter, along with producers Edward Barnes and Rosemary Gill, and most of them still feature on the programme.
[edit] The Blue Peter badge
Children (and occasionally adults) who appear on the show or achieve something notable may be awarded the coveted Blue Peter badge. The Blue Peter badge allows holders free entry into a number of visitor attractions across the UK. In March 2006, this privilege was temporarily suspended after a number of badges were discovered for sale on the auction site eBay by a number of people. This suspension was lifted in June 2006, when a new 'Blue Peter Badge Card' was introduced to combat the problem. Each badge winner is now issued with an ID card to prove that they are the rightful owners.[9] The original badge was slightly smaller in size than the current version, but still featured a blue coloured ship logo printed on a white plastic shield. This remained unchanged until the 1990s when a revised badge featuring a raised moulding of the ship design by Tony Hart was introduced (more detailed and neat than the previous printed reproduction). This version disappeared in 1997 when the old-style badge returned. It was not until 2004, coinciding with the show's September revamp, that a new badge was introduced. Slightly larger in dimension and with a much bolder printing of the new-style traditional ship without its rigging detail (though the pre-2000 style flags remain). In October 2003, to celebrate the 45th birthday of the programme, a new, limited edition, badge was introduced, to last only a year. This moulding was made of rubber and larger than the traditional badge. It consisted of a white shield with a raised 'bubble ship' applique.
The presenters almost always wear their badge; the only exception being when their apparel is incompatible (for example, a life jacket), in which case a sticker with the ship emblem is normally used instead. In addition, large prints or stickers of the ship are attached to vehicles driven by the presenters during filming assignments. Other badges exist, and are awarded for various achievements:
- Blue Badges (a white shield with a blue ship print) are given to viewers who have stories, poems, pictures etc.
- Silver badges (a blue shield with silver ship print) are given to viewers or participants who have already won a blue badge.
- Green badges (green shield with white ship print) and a Blue Peter pedometer are awarded for any correspondence from viewers with a conservation, nature or environmental theme (in addition, the presenters often wear this badge when their reports deal with such issues, or when in the garden).
- Gold badges (a gold-plated ship-shaped pin brooch) are very rarely awarded and are usually given only to people who have performed acts of extreme bravery, represented their country in a major event and so on. Bizarrely, and perhaps disappointingly, the gold badge has been awarded on several occasions to famous film actors or sportspeople - slightly at odds with the youth ethos of the programme.
- The Competition badge was previously a round metal disc in white, with the blue ship, printed with the words 'Blue Peter Competition Winner'. However, after more than 40 years, it has recently been redesigned to look similar to the other badges, and is now an orange shield with a white ship. These badges are awarded to all winners and runners-up of Blue Peter competitions - with the new look badges being introduced in September 2006.
- The new Team Player's badge (a purple shield with white ship print), which was introduced in September 2006, will be given to 12 children every month, who have ideas for the show; these children will also win the chance to spend a day working with the Blue Peter team. This was the first new badge to be introduced since 1988.
- The limited edition Birthday Badge (very similar to blue badge but has a raised moulding of the Millennium bubble ship used between 1999-2004, and is made out of rubber) was awarded in the year of the 45th Birthday, in place, or with a blue badge. It is rare edition.
- Badges are only awarded one at a time.
[edit] Tributes and honours
In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, Blue Peter was placed 6th.
Asteroid 16197 Bluepeter is named in its honour. The asteroid was discovered on 7 January 2000, the day that the Blue Peter time capsules from 1971 and 1984 were unearthed.
[edit] The signature tune
The following is a list of all the musicians who have recorded a version of the Blue Peter signature tune:
- Ashworth/Hope: October 1958 to January 1979 — Blue Peter Theme Tune from 1958
- Mike Oldfield: January 1979 to June 1989 — Blue Peter Theme from 1979
- Simon Brint: July 1989 to August 1994 — Blue Peter Theme from 1990 Blue Peter Theme from 1993
- The Yes/No People: September 1994 to August 1999 — Blue Peter Theme from 1996
- David Arnold and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra: September 1999 to June 2004 — Blue Peter Theme from 2002
- Nial Brown: September 2004 to present — Blue Peter Theme from 2005
A new version of the signature tune was arranged by Murray Gold and recorded in 2006, and viewers were told that it would be used when the series returned from its summer break in September 2006; however, for unknown reasons, this has not been used, although part of it has been used as incidental music and during Children's BBC trailers for the programme. Instead of an all-new theme, a slightly shortened version of the 2004 arrangement was used, with the opening bars removed, and the recording crashing into the main tune after the opening drum role.[7]
Nearly as famous as the opening signature tune is the closing theme, which has been used and re-arranged from 1958 to 1999, in line with the various re-arrangements. During the period from 1999–2004, a shorter version of the opening tune was used to close the programme. The editor at the time, Steve Hocking, said that he was happy for the same tune to be used at the beginning and end of each broadcast. However, in recent years the traditional finale track has returned. Nial Brown rearranged the closing signature tune, from 2004 onwards.
[edit] Blue Peter Books
In 1964, the very first Blue Peter Book was published. Although an annual in all but name, the books are rarely referred to as such. Each book (published in time for Christmas) features highlights from the previous twelve months of Blue Peter features, and chronicles major guests who visit the studio, the Summer Expedition, the annual appeal, and the pets. The style of the books' contents has changed very little over the years, with the only noticeable difference between a 1960s book and the current formula being the increase in colour photography and digital artwork; otherwise, the principle is the same. There has, at a point in the mid-1980s and between 1992-1998, been a break in the publication of the books, and the publisher has, in recent years ,appeared to change almost annually! However, since Pedigree took over the books in 2004, there has been a noticeable step up in quality. The books are now bigger than ever before, with a far greater number of pages, a testament to their enduring popularity and viability. Traditionally, the Blue Peter editor and members of the production team write the book, and choose its content, though the book is written from the presenters' point of view. As for the 'book' or 'annual' debate, it is interesting to note that, as of Book 34 in 2004, the cover makes reference to it as 'Annual XXXX' and the spine marking it as 'Book XX'.
A lucrative collectors' market has developed, as a result of the Blue Peter Books, with 'Book One' being especially rare and commanding triple figures on online auction websites. Books from the late 1960s and 1970s are more common, and often turn up for less than a pound in second hand bookshops or charity stores. Books from the '80s and later '90s tend to be more expensive and rarer, as people realised the value of keeping hold of them.
[edit] Blue Peter presenters
For many years, Anita West was not officially recognised as a Blue Peter presenter, having stood in for several months between Leila Williams leaving the show and a full-time replacement being found. West was finally added to the official list of presenters at the time of the show's 40th anniversary celebrations in 1998.
Of the 32 presenters who have fronted the programme during its lifetime, one or two have failed to live up to the 'squeaky-clean' image required of them. The most infamous scandal involving a presenter occurred in 1998, when Richard Bacon had his contract terminated, after publicly confessing to having taken cocaine; the BBC's Head of Children's Programming, Lorraine Heggessey, addressed viewers on-air before the first edition of the programme following his sacking to explain to the audience why he had been asked to leave and to apologise for his actions.[10] Ironically, Bacon became a successful broadcaster because of the scandal, rather than despite it.
The programme maintains friendly links with most of its former presenters, many of whom have made further appearances on the show after leaving, particularly in the show's Christmas specials.
Other people who have played roles on the show include the zoologist George Cansdale, who was the programme's first on-screen vet, and Percy Thrower who was the show's resident gardening expert from the 1960s until shortly before his death in 1988. He was followed briefly by Chris Crowder, and then Clare Bradley, who was replaced by the current incumbent, Chris Collins.
Another contributor, though rarely seen on screen, was Margaret Parnell, who created almost all of the show's 'makes' from the early 1960s until her retirement in 2001. Her role is now filled by Gillian Shearing, though Parnell's name still appears in the credits from time to time when a classic 'make' is re-used.
[edit] Trivia
- The programme is often broadcast live. Former editor Biddy Baxter did not encourage presenters' ad-libs, and Simon Groom would infuriate her and test his fellow presenters by making ad-libbed double-entendres with a straight face.
- The two most famous phrases associated with Blue Peter - 'And now for something completely different' (later made synonymous with Monty Python) and 'Here's one I made earlier' - were both coined by one of its first presenters, Christopher Trace.
- Tony Hart originally asked for his design fee for the Blue Peter badges to be paid as a royalty of 1d for each badge made, but was offered a flat fee of £100 (equivalent to around £1,600 at 2006 rates).
- Petra, the first Blue Peter pet, was a mongrel dog introduced in 1962. She gave birth to eight puppies in 1965, one of which - Patch - became John Noakes' pet when he began presenting in 1965.
- Petra was not actually who she seemed: the first dog, Petra, died after the first programme, and was secretly replaced by an identical dog, also named Petra, so as not to upset the viewers. The facts surrounding Petra II were not revealed until after her death in 1977.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- CBBC - Blue Peter at bbc.co.uk
- Blue Peter Special Assignment From TV Cream
- Encyclopedia of Television
- British Film Institute Screen Online
- Profile of Biddy Baxter
- The National Deaf Children's Society 'Blue Peter Loan Service'
- BBC News Online: "TV novice becomes Blue Peter host"
- Blue Peter @ Memorable TV'
- Blue Peter 2006 Shoe Biz Appeal offical site.
- Blue Peter at the Internet Movie Database
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Edition broadcast 5 November 1973. [1]
- ^ Edition broadcast 3 July 1969. [2] Contrary to popular belief, the episode was not live, but recorded to allow the presenters to catch a flight to Ceylon for a filming trip.
- ^ Edition broadcast 30 May 1977. [3]
- ^ Edition broadcast 14 January 1980. [4]
- ^ Edition broadcast 10 January 1972. [5]
- ^ Boniface, Susie. "Football star and the Blue Peter garden", The Guardian, 2000-10-21. Retrieved on 2006-10-22.
- ^ Jeffery, Simon. "Blue Peter", The Guardian, 2003-10-14. Retrieved on 2006-10-22.
- ^ Edition broadcast 18 February 2005. [6]
- ^ Edition broadcast 19 June 2006.
- ^ The statement was broadcast before the programme on 19 October 1998. That day's episode (a filmed special about gorilla conservation, in which Bacon did not appear) was then broadcast as scheduled.
