BBC Schools and Colleges

BBC Schools, also known as BBC for Schools and Colleges, is the educational programming strand set up by the BBC in 1957, broadcasting a range of educational programmes for children aged 5–16. From launch until 1983, programming was based on BBC One during the daytime, before programming was transferred to BBC Two when BBC One gained its own daytime schedule. The strand remained on BBC Two for many years after, supplemented by the 'Class TV' strand on the CBBC Channel. Today, BBC Schools programmes are part of the BBC Learning Zone overnight service. The BBC began broadcasting schools programmes on BBC Television in the Autumn of 1957 in the afternoons. Morning transmissions began on the 19th September 1960.

The Pie Chart

From September 1960 until September 1974, the presentation was a black and white card with a pie chart split into 5 segments with a BBC logo in the bottom right corner. The pie chart segments disappeared with the seconds and was operated via a mechanical model. They were introduced, from 1969, by a special version of the BBC One Mirror Globe, but without the 'Colour' legend, as schools programmes were still in black and white while the rest of BBC One's programmes were in colour.

The Diamond

The Blue Diamond 1974 - 1975

In September 1974, the presentation was changed to a blue diamond on a black background with the BBC One legend. It was commissioned to mark the start of schools programmes in colour, and consisted of the three diamonds of increasing size inside one another, first forming out of the background before pulsating and splitting into smalled diamonds, before eventually decreasing altogether. The colour scheme was changed following the BBC One rebrand of image to orange on a navy blue background with, unusually, an orange legend.

The Yellow Diamond 1975 - 1977

This was accompanied by an orange version of the BBC One Network clock. A still version of the diamond was occasionally used on the channel, with a double lined version of the BBC1 logo. This was accompanied by a similar version for BBC Two with double lined BBC2 logo, for occasions when schools programmes were transferred to that channel.

The Dots

In September 1977, presentation was again changed to a countdown clock of disappearing dots around a spinning 'Schools and Colleges' legend. A white BBC1 legend was underneath, with the altered network clock discontinued. The spinning Schools and Colleges legend was in fact unintended and was a result of an issue with the mechanical model used. This was amended by the following summer. By 1981, the new corporate double lined BBC1 logo was added to the model in replkacement of the old one, however this amended model only lasted three months, as the whole mechanical model was replaced by a computer generated version. The primary difference was that the dots, instead of fading to the background colour of blue, they instead faded to black.

Upon occasions when the schools strand was transferred to BBC Two, a version with the BBC2 double lined logo was used the 2 legend replacing the BBC1 legend. Following the switch to electronic, the BBC2 version was also recreated, however during the Falklands War, a version with a hastilly added BBC Two ident was used, with the replaced region being the orange logo on a black background box.

At around this time, special holding captions with the phrase 'Follows Shortly' were beginning to be used for junctions longer than the 90 seconds that the ident required. During a junction, the follows shortly caption would be shown over music before the screen faded into the ident.

Following the rebrand of TWO to BBC2, including the introduction of the 2 idents, no special strand was set out to mark schools programmes. The 'Follows Shortly' captions were phased out in place of promotions of other appropriate programmes, through static programme captions. In 1995, following the launch of the BBC Learning Zone some programming, generally the secondary education programming, was transferred to the new overnight service, as more schools were showing recordings of the programmes rather than the programmes live and by the mid 2000s even the primary schools programming had left the daytime schedules.

Since the launch of the CBBC Channel, their remit has resulted in their need to show schools programming. They resulted in this by theClass TV strand, shown during schools hours for a few hours, usually repeats of previous programmes, rather than new programmes. In 2008, the CBBC remit was altered to remove the schools element from the channel.

Today, all schools programmes are shown overnight on the BBC Learning Zone. And that as they say was that, the end of an era. God bless Schools and Colleges!