BBC Select
Encyclopedia
BBC Select was an overnight television service run by the BBC
during the hours when BBC1
or BBC2
had closed down, usually between 2am and 6am.The channel showed programming intended for specialist audiences, such as businessmen, lawyers, nurses and teachers, and was designed to be viewed after broadcast via a video recording. It was funded by a subscription, and most programming was scrambled.
and 2
. The service experimented with programming for specific audiences, and with overnight broadcasts, experience the BBC would later use when broadcasting the BBC Learning Zone
. By broadcasting the programming now, it allowed the BBC to broaden their audience, while allowing more time in the day for other programming.
The programming was specifically aimed at the professional services of business, nurses, teachers and lawyers with programming made in-house by the BBC with some programming supplied by other independent companies as part of their remit. An example of this was Thames Television
whose film about Living with Disabilities, and their series The Way Ahead, both made for the Department of Social Security
, was freely distributed on the condition that no financial gain be made from it: as a result the programme was broadcast un-encrypted.
Corporate companies also took advantage of the service. In 1992 and 1993 Cable and Wireless used BBC Select to broadcast highlights of their AGM. The first broadcast, of their 1992 AGM, was the first time in the UK that a company AGM had been televised.
, or BBC Selector and BBC Select viewing card was required which both decoded and unscrambled the programme. The box also received signals, sent out prior to the programme start, that would alert the box to the fact the programme was starting. The box would then trigger VCR's to begin recording by sending out a pulse of Infrared
to set off the VCR's recorder, as if the viewer had pressed the record button.
The scrambling
system used was called "VideoCrypt
'S'". The system was very similar to what British Sky Broadcasting
were using for their analogue
satellite
transmissions, but was modified due to technical limitations of terrestrial TV.
The ident featured the circle that began rotating, becoming a coin, City of London
seal, a rotating machinery part, a retracting telescope, stage light, aeroplane Jet engine
, film reel before finally becoming the circle again. The ident could also form out of the background, as the circle drew itself from the top clockwise. This was occasionally used at the startup of the service.
Because the service was designed to be played back on VCR, the breaks between programmes were deliberately long, the average gap was five minutes and gaps could easily reach ten minutes, so that programmes could be set to overrun for 5 minutes so the end would not be missed, but it would avoid disrupting recording of a subsequent programme. In these five minute breaks, a filler was used that composed the static ring logo against a background that constantly and gradually changes colour, to an extended version of the ident music. This would then usually fade into the ident.
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...
during the hours when BBC1
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...
or BBC2
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...
had closed down, usually between 2am and 6am.The channel showed programming intended for specialist audiences, such as businessmen, lawyers, nurses and teachers, and was designed to be viewed after broadcast via a video recording. It was funded by a subscription, and most programming was scrambled.
History
The service was officially launched on 21 January 1992 overnight, and ran on both BBC1BBC 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...
and 2
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...
. The service experimented with programming for specific audiences, and with overnight broadcasts, experience the BBC would later use when broadcasting the BBC Learning Zone
BBC Learning Zone
The BBC Learning Zone is an educational strand run by the BBC as an overnight service on BBC Two. It shows programming aimed at students in Primary, Secondary and Higher Education and to adult learners...
. By broadcasting the programming now, it allowed the BBC to broaden their audience, while allowing more time in the day for other programming.
The programming was specifically aimed at the professional services of business, nurses, teachers and lawyers with programming made in-house by the BBC with some programming supplied by other independent companies as part of their remit. An example of this was Thames Television
Thames Television
Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
whose film about Living with Disabilities, and their series The Way Ahead, both made for the Department of Social Security
Department of Social Security
The Department of Social Security is the name of a defunct governmental agency in the United Kingdom.The DSS replaced the older Department of Health and Social Security, from 1988 until 2001, when it was itself largely replaced as a department of the Government of the United Kingdom by the...
, was freely distributed on the condition that no financial gain be made from it: as a result the programme was broadcast un-encrypted.
Corporate companies also took advantage of the service. In 1992 and 1993 Cable and Wireless used BBC Select to broadcast highlights of their AGM. The first broadcast, of their 1992 AGM, was the first time in the UK that a company AGM had been televised.
BBC Selector
To watch programming, a set-top boxSet-top box
A set-top box or set-top unit is an information appliance device that generally contains a tuner and connects to a television set and an external source of signal, turning the signal into content which is then displayed on the television screen or other display device.-History:Before the...
, or BBC Selector and BBC Select viewing card was required which both decoded and unscrambled the programme. The box also received signals, sent out prior to the programme start, that would alert the box to the fact the programme was starting. The box would then trigger VCR's to begin recording by sending out a pulse of Infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
to set off the VCR's recorder, as if the viewer had pressed the record button.
The scrambling
Scrambler
In telecommunications, a scrambler is a device that transposes or inverts signals or otherwise encodes a message at the transmitter to make the message unintelligible at a receiver not equipped with an appropriately set descrambling device...
system used was called "VideoCrypt
VideoCrypt
VideoCrypt is a cryptographic, smartcard-based conditional access television encryption system that scrambles analogue pay-TV signals. It was introduced in 1989 by News Datacom and was used initially by Sky TV and subsequently by several other broadcasters on the SES Astra satellites at 19.2°...
'S'". The system was very similar to what British Sky Broadcasting
British Sky Broadcasting
British Sky Broadcasting Group plc is a satellite broadcasting, broadband and telephony services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, with operations in the United Kingdom and the Ireland....
were using for their analogue
Analog signal
An analog or analogue signal is any continuous signal for which the time varying feature of the signal is a representation of some other time varying quantity, i.e., analogous to another time varying signal. It differs from a digital signal in terms of small fluctuations in the signal which are...
satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
transmissions, but was modified due to technical limitations of terrestrial TV.
Presentation
The new service had differing presentation to the BBC channels that they broadcast on. The presentation featured a single gold circle in centre screen with the BBC Select caption beneath. The 'S' in Select of the caption has a circle around it. The channel featured no announcements, promotions or captions for upcoming programming, with presentation featuring only the ident, filler and promotions of the service itself.The ident featured the circle that began rotating, becoming a coin, City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
seal, a rotating machinery part, a retracting telescope, stage light, aeroplane Jet engine
Jet engine
A jet engine is a reaction engine that discharges a fast moving jet to generate thrust by jet propulsion and in accordance with Newton's laws of motion. This broad definition of jet engines includes turbojets, turbofans, rockets, ramjets, pulse jets...
, film reel before finally becoming the circle again. The ident could also form out of the background, as the circle drew itself from the top clockwise. This was occasionally used at the startup of the service.
Because the service was designed to be played back on VCR, the breaks between programmes were deliberately long, the average gap was five minutes and gaps could easily reach ten minutes, so that programmes could be set to overrun for 5 minutes so the end would not be missed, but it would avoid disrupting recording of a subsequent programme. In these five minute breaks, a filler was used that composed the static ring logo against a background that constantly and gradually changes colour, to an extended version of the ident music. This would then usually fade into the ident.