BBC 'Rhythm & Movement' idents were a set of on-screen channel identities designed by Lambie-Nairn

Lambie-Nairn

Lambie-Nairn is an international branding agency within the WPP Group, headquartered in London with offices in Munich, Madrid, Abu Dhabi and Prague...

 and used on BBC One

BBC One

BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...

 from 29 March 2002 until 7 October 2006. They replaced the earlier balloon idents, and spelled the end of the much recognised globe identity by the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

, which had been used in various ways since 1963.

Components of Look

The presentational package featured numerous people of various backgrounds dancing in a predominantly red background to a soundtrack based around an upbeat central jingle. The BBC One logo is now located in a red box, similar in style to BBC Two's idents of the time

BBC Two 'Personality' idents

The Personality Idents were a set of idents used on BBC Two between 19 November 2001 and 18 February 2007. The idents were produced by the Lambie-Nairn branding agency, who had created the previous look...

, with the BBC logo stacked on top of an upper case 'ONE'. The music for all idents was written by Peter Lawlor [Stiltskin] of Water Music Productions in London. The look was also the first one not to feature a station clock. It has been reported that a station clock was designed for the new look, however BBC Marketing decided not to use it. The concerns with this stemmed around a lack of serious ident to link into the news, and indeed this problem famously occurred one day into the new look upon the death of The Queen Mother.

Promotional style originally consisted of the BBC One box placed in the lower left corner of the screen throughout the promotion and an end board consisting of a translucent white strip along the bottom containing the box logo. This end board style was recreated for the, less frequently seen, static captions. This style was changed on 1 May 2004 to an orange background that would close shut over the end of a promotion to contain the programme title. The static slide was also updated, with the space for the programme image reduced to the top quarter of the screen.

Idents

Title	Air dates
Filmed at the Minack Theatre Minack Theatre The Minack Theatre is an open-air theatre, constructed above a gully with a rocky granite outcrop jutting into the sea...  in Cornwall Cornwall Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of... , the ident features 10 ballerina Ballerina A ballerina is a title used to describe a principal female professional ballet dancer in a large company; the male equivalent to this title is danseur or ballerino... s dressed entirely in red. The camera slowly tracks, showing the Minack stage where the ballerinas perform a graceful dance, with the dramatic Cornish coastline in the background, accompanied by a string quartet with the cello dominant. This ident sequence was the most sombre of all the idents, and a still of it was used when BBC announced the death of the Queen Mother Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II... . For most of its life, this ident was used during times of "reflection" only, namely times of national tragedy and the death of a Royal Family member. It was mainly used to introduce coverage of funeral Funeral A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor... s, such as that Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...  and George Best George Best George Best was a professional footballer from Northern Ireland, who played for Manchester United and the Northern Ireland national team. He was a winger whose game combined pace, acceleration, balance, two-footedness, goalscoring and the ability to beat defenders... . This ident was also the last out of all the Rhythm and Movement idents to be shown on the channel, in its entirety as part of the final montage.
Filmed against the London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...  skyline Skyline A skyline is the overall or partial view of a city's tall buildings and structures consisting of many skyscrapers in front of the sky in the background. It can also be described as the artificial horizon that a city's overall structure creates. Skylines serve as a kind of fingerprint of a city, as... , it shows Mestre Poncianinho and Contra-Mestre Casquinha doing Capoeira Capoeira Capoeira is a Brazilian art form that combines elements of martial arts, sports, and music. It was created in Brazil mainly by descendants of African slaves with Brazilian native influences, probably beginning in the 16th century... , a Brazil Brazil Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people... ian martial art. The camera circles around two Capoeiristas throughout its duration. The two performers are dressed in red and white. An alternative edit, which joins the action a few seconds earlier than the standard version, was used in Wales Wales Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...  and Scotland Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the... .
Sometimes known as Rave, and filmed at RAF Bovingdon RAF Bovingdon RAF Bovingdon was a Royal Air Force station, located to the west of Bovingdon, two and a half miles south of Hemel Hempstead and two and a half miles south east of Berkhamsted, in Hertfordshire, UK.... , it begins with a close up of two women dancing together with a "techno"-style version of the BBC One jingle playing in the background, somewhat resembling a rave party. Red takes on prominence in the background. This version of the jingle was sampled in a later dance music track, Forever and a Day by State One in 2003.
Filmed in a field in Wales Wales Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²... , it first shows a closeup of a Māori native, Jo Hutley, and then pulls back to reveal 14 Welsh amateur rugby Rugby football Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...  players performing Haka Haka Haka is a traditional ancestral war cry, dance or challenge from the Māori people of New Zealand. It is a posture dance performed by a group, with vigorous movements and stamping of the feet with rhythmically shouted accompaniment... , a traditional Māori dance that shows art and movement by using hands, feet, legs, body, voice, tongue and eyes. The players are dressed in red-striped polo shirts . The music is slow and played on strings, accompanying the sound of the rugby players' chant. This ident was eventually withdrawn after licensing issues with the music, and did not appear in the final montage. It was also one of the only two idents to be withdrawn during its run (the other being Tai-Chi (reflection)).
Sometimes known as Basketball, and filmed on a basketball Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...  court, this ident shows three basketball players dancing in their wheelchair Wheelchair A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing... s to a hip hop theme. The dancers are all dressed in red, with matching accents on their wheelchairs. The lead dancer is Adrian Adepitan Adrian Adepitan Ade Adepitan MBE is a British television presenter and wheelchair basketball player. He uses a wheelchair as a result of contracting polio as a child which led to the loss of use of his left leg.- Early life :... , a British paralympic basketball player, and presenter of the CBBC CBBC CBBC is one of two brand names used for the BBC's children's television strands. Between 1985 and 2002, CBBC was the name given to all the BBC's programmes on TV for children aged under 14...  programme Xchange. The dance is made up of different wheelchair-basketball moves used in the game.
Launched on 5 January 2004, this ident was filmed on an African Savanna Savanna A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some... . It features nine native Maasai tribesmen dancing in the centre. It is the only 'Rhythm & Movement' ident to be filmed outside the UK. The music is predominantly percussion-based.
First broadcast on 4 October 2002, to coincide with the premiere of Fame Academy Fame Academy Fame Academy is a televised competition to search for and educate new musical talents. The winner received a chance to become a successful music artist. The prize consisted of a £1m recording contract with a major record company, plus the use of a luxury apartment in London and a sports car for one... , the ident was filmed in studio with a red backdrop. It features one lead dancer and six back-up dancers. This ident resembles a music video, hence its name. It was the first ident that was not part of the original set of eight.
Filmed in Hertfordshire Hertfordshire Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...  against a decorated red backdrop, the camera first focuses on a couple dancing salsa Salsa (dance) Salsa is a syncretic dance form with origins in Cuba as the meeting point of Spanish and African cultures.Salsa is normally a partner dance, although there are recognized solo forms such as solo dancing "suelta" and "Rueda de Casino" where multiple couples exchange partners in a circle... , and then reveals a large group of dancing couples from a variety of backgrounds doing the same thing.
Launched on 5 September 2003, the ident features three skateboarders skateboarding through a shipyard. This ident was filmed on location at the Harland and Wolff Harland and Wolff Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Northern Irish heavy industrial company, specialising in shipbuilding and offshore construction, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....  Shipyard in Belfast Belfast Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly... , Northern Ireland. The featured skateboarders are, from left to right, British professional skateboarders Olly Todd, Franklin Stephens and Danny Wainwright. Because the accompanying jingle is a mellow interpretation performed on a solo piano, this ident was often used to introduce the news. It was also often used in the Midlands and Northern Ireland. On 7 September 2005, BBC Northern Ireland BBC Northern Ireland BBC Northern Ireland is the main public service broadcaster in Northern Ireland.The organisation is one of the three national regions of the BBC, together with BBC Scotland and BBC Wales. Based at Broadcasting House, Belfast, it provides television, radio, online and interactive television content...  made a slight alteration to the skateboarders ident by turning the "BBC One NI" logo from red to green and introducing a new square in the opposite corner of the screen showing an English England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...  flag with the word "Nil" written over it. This was to celebrate Northern Ireland's 1–0 victory over England in a qualifier match for the 2006 FIFA World Cup 2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six... . The ident was shown again the following Saturday ahead of Football Focus Football Focus Football Focus is a BBC television show, broadcast on BBC One on Saturday lunchtimes, covering football, presented from the 2009/2010 season by Dan Walker... .
First broadcast on 16 June 2003, the ident features seven people dressed in traditional Chinese China Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...  clothing performing t'ai chi on a lochside. This ident had two versions: one with the camera drawing back, revealing all the performers and their mirror image on the loch; the other (withdrawn in 2003) starts with the mirror image and spins round to reveal that the viewer is actually looking at the reflection. The tai chi exponents in the ident were mainly students of Edinburgh Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area... -based tai chi instructor Ian Cameron, most of whom are teachers in their own right. The particular tai chi form performed was taken from the traditional Wudang system, adapted to suit the demands of the landscape. It was filmed near Loch Rannoch Loch Rannoch Loch Rannoch is a large body of fresh water in Perth and Kinross, Scotland.The loch is over long in a west-east direction with an average width of about . The River Tummel begins at its eastern end. The Tay Forest Park lies along its southern shore...  in Scotland. It was used frequently before the news.
Launched on 2 January 2003, the ident was filmed in Leadenhall Market in the City of London and features three couples dancing the tango Tango (dance) Tango dance originated in the area of the Rio de la Plata , and spread to the rest of the world soon after.... , supposedly in the rain.
Filmed inside a power station, this ident shows six members of the dance troupe Tap Dogs Tap Dogs "Tap Dogs" is a tap dance show, created by Australian dancer and choreographer, Dein Perry. The original production of the show had its world premiere in January 1995 at the Sydney Theatre Festival in Australia....  performing a tap dance. The upbeat jingle incorporates the sound of the troupe's tap shoes.
First broadcast on 4 January 2005, the ident features five people (all with some red on their clothes) breakdancing on a walkway. It had to be relaunched after 24 hours, apparently due to a copyright dispute over the background music. BBC One Scotland continued to use the original version until the rebranding in 2006. The jingle is upbeat and features synthesised brass. It was filmed on location at the now-demolished BBC Birmingham BBC Birmingham BBC Birmingham is one of the oldest regional arms of the BBC, located in Birmingham, West Midlands. It was the first region outside of London to start broadcasting both the corporation's radio and television transmissions, the latter from the Sutton Coldfield television transmitter...  Pebble Mill studios, and was the final 'Rhythm & Movement' ident to be added to its regular playlist.

Special Idents

The BBC continued its long tradition of using special idents at Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

 time throughout this branding period. The first ident, Snowflakes featured children dressed as snowflakes falling to earth and running around against a red sky background. This ident was used in 2002 and, for the first time in its history, was re-used again in 2003. BBC Two

BBC Two

BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...

 also followed suit the same year, although rather than re-using an ident, they were used alongside that year's newer one. This re-using of the previous years ident caused public controversy and, as a result a new ident, entitled Christmas Puddings. The ident featured children dressed in red and bouncing on Space Hopper

Space hopper

A space hopper, also known as a moon hopper, skippyball, kangaroo ball, bouncer, hoppity hop, or hop ball, is a rubber ball with handles which allow one to sit on it without falling off...

s that looked like Christmas pudding

Christmas pudding

Christmas pudding is a pudding traditionally served on Christmas Day . It has its origins in medieval England, and is sometimes known as plum pudding or plum duff, though this can also refer to other kinds of boiled pudding involving dried fruit.-Basics:Many households have their own recipe for...

s against a red background. The ident was designed by a young viewer of the children's programme Blue Peter

Blue Peter

Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...

, as part of a competition. A new ident was commisioned for 2005 entitled Christmas Tree. In this one included children, again dressed in red, walking round a giant Christmas tree

Christmas tree

The Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...

, carrying brightly coloured balls. The background this time was green, and the look and music has often been compared to the 2005 film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory directed by Tim Burton

Tim Burton

Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...

.

This look was unusual in that no special idents were produced for events or programmes. However, a way used to promote the third series of Little Britain

Little Britain

Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...

was for the shows announcer, Tom Baker

Tom Baker

Thomas Stewart "Tom" Baker is a British actor. He is best known for playing the fourth incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction television series Doctor Who, a role he played from 1974 to 1981.-Early life:...

 to provide the continuity announcements for the evening over the normal idents.

Parodies

The idents were very quickly parodied

Parody

A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...

 by digital channel E4 in 2002 with spoofs of the Capoeira, Ballet and Acrobat idents.

Comedians French & Saunders

French & Saunders

French and Saunders is a British sketch comedy television show written by and starring comic duo Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. It is also the name by which the performers are known on the occasions when they appear elsewhere as a double act....

 also created spoof idents for their 2002 Christmas special in which, dressed as old women, they first copied the Acrobat ident yet came loose from their ribbons and fell to the ground while in a spoof of Hip-Hop, the pair drove around slowly in mobility scooters.

Comedian Peter Kay

Peter Kay

Peter John Kay is an English comedian, writer, actor, director and producer. His work includes That Peter Kay Thing , Phoenix Nights , Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere , Britain's Got the Pop Factor... and other independent productions which have included two sell out tours.-Early career:Peter Kay...

 also made spoof editions of the Hip-Hop ident in 2003 in the guise of his Phoenix Nights character Brian Potter

Brian Potter

Brian Chelsea Potter, one of many fictional characters played by Peter Kay, is the owner of The Phoenix Club in both That Peter Kay Thing and Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights...

. The second version was shown minus the BBC One logo in 2005. This ident was used to introduce the Comic Relief of 2003.

A further spoof featured Jon Culshaw

Jon Culshaw

Jonathan Peter Culshaw is an English impressionist and comedian. He was educated at St Bede's RC High School, Ormskirk and St John Rigby College, in Orrell, Wigan....

 as Tony Blair

Tony Blair

Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...

 dancing in a fictional ident outside 10 Downing Street

10 Downing Street

10 Downing Street, colloquially known in the United Kingdom as "Number 10", is the headquarters of Her Majesty's Government and the official residence and office of the First Lord of the Treasury, who is now always the Prime Minister....

. This was shown on a July 2003 episode of Dead Ringers

Dead Ringers (comedy)

Dead Ringers is a UK radio and television comedy impressions broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and later BBC Two. The programme was devised by producer Bill Dare and developed with Jon Holmes, Andy Hurst and Simon Blackwell. It starred Jon Culshaw, Jan Ravens, Phil Cornwell, Kevin Connelly and Mark Perry...

, broadcast on BBC Two.

Spoofs have also cropped up in BBC Three

BBC Three

BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...

's animated adult comedy series Monkey Dust

Monkey Dust

Monkey Dust is a British satirical cartoon, notorious for its dark humour and handling of taboo topics such as murder, suicide and paedophilia. There were three series broadcast on BBC Three between 2003 and 2005...

, making use of the generic red theme of the normal idents to show "idents" such as a gangland killing and the resulting aftermath.

Replacement

In August 2005, BBC One controller Peter Fincham

Peter Fincham

Peter Fincham is a British television producer and executive, currently the Director of Television for the ITV network. He was also formerly the Controller of BBC One, the primary television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation, until his resignation on 5 October 2007, following...

 had hinted that the dancers may be on their way out. He told the Edinburgh International Television Festival that "It may well be that the time is coming to look at a new way of doing it. No date or direct decision has been made but it's under review".

According to the Media Guardian, Fincham then confirmed that in autumn 2006, the 'Rhythm and Movement' idents would be replaced with a new presentation package, along with a new schedule. As speculated, Red Bee Media

Red Bee Media

Red Bee Media Limited is a media management company.Headquartered in west London, United Kingdom at the Broadcast Centre, with international offices in Scotland, Australia, France, Germany and Spain, Red Bee Media has 1500 employees worldwide including homeworkers and revenues of £153m in...

 would create the new presentation package. Red Bee created the new idents for the ITV

ITV

ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...

 channels that were introduced in January 2006. On 26 September the BBC confirmed that from 7 October 2006, the 'Rhythm and Movement' idents would be replaced by a new Circle ident collection

BBC One 'Circle' idents

The BBC One 'Circle' idents are a set of on-screen channel identities that debuted on BBC One at 10am BST on 7 October 2006. They also feature on the BBC Worldwide channel, BBC America...

, including the Moon, surfers

Surfing

Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...

 and hippopotamus

Hippopotamus

The hippopotamus , or hippo, from the ancient Greek for "river horse" , is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest...

es.

The idents aired for the final time on 7 October 2006, at 1.10am, in which a montage of idents was aired together, ending with the rarely seen 'Ballet' ident. The new idents made their debut on 7 October 2006 at 10am BST

British Summer Time

Western European Summer Time is a summer daylight saving time scheme, 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. It is used in the following places:* the Canary Islands* Portugal * Ireland...

, marking the end of the 'Rhythm and Movement' idents, which had defined the channel for four and a half years.

External links

• BBC One 'Rhythm & Movement' idents at TV Ark
• Video of BBC One 'Rhythm & Movement' collection at idents.tv (includes parodies and farewell)
• The TV Room