Portal:BBC

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The BBC Portal

"Nation shall speak peace unto nation." Motto of the BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation, known as the BBC, is the world's largest broadcasting organisation, founded in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company. Originally a radio broadcaster, the corporation began television broadcasts in 1932 and now operates ten UK television channels including the oldest and most watched, BBC One. The BBC also operates 58 radio stations, including the most popular station in the UK, BBC Radio 2, and has an online presence through BBC Online. Internationally, the BBC name is used as a brand for several channels operated by commercial arm BBC Worldwide, including the BBC World Service and BBC World News. Through BBC News, the corporation is the largest broadcasting news gatherer in the world, and has developed a good reputation for news gathering and reporting through the years.

Affectionate names for the BBC include auntie, the beeb and together, Auntie Beeb.

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Selected article

Joking Apart is a BBC television sitcom written by Steven Moffat about the rise and fall of a relationship. It juxtaposes a couple, Mark (Robert Bathurst) and Becky (Fiona Gillies), who meet and fall in love before getting separated and finally divorced. The twelve episodes, broadcast between 1993 and 1995, were directed by Bob Spiers and produced by Andre Ptaszynski for independent production company Pola Jones. The show is semi-autobiographical; it was inspired by the then-recent separation of Moffat and his first wife. Some of the episodes in the first series followed a non-linear parallel structure, contrasting the rise of the relationship with the fall. Other episodes were ensemble farces, predominantly including the couple's friends Robert (Paul Raffield) and Tracy (Tracie Bennett). Paul-Mark Elliott also appeared as Trevor, Becky's lover. Scheduling problems meant that the show attracted low viewing figures. However, it scored highly on the Appreciation Index and accrued a loyal fanbase. One fan acquired the home video rights from the BBC and released both series on his own DVD label.

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Selected picture

BBC journalist Nick Robinson (right, now Political Editor) interviewing then-MP Michael Portillo close to the Palace of Westminster for BBC News.

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Selected building

Specially built for the BBC and opened in 1960, BBC Television Centre in London is home to much of the BBC's television output. Studio TC1, at 995 square metres, is the second largest television studio in Britain. The corporation has plans to dispose of the building by 2015.

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Did you know...

Highlights from Wikipedia's Did you know...

• ... that the proposed BBC television special Planet Relief, created to raise awareness of climate change, was cancelled before it was made, for fear that it would be biased against climate sceptics?
• ... that the first series of British radio stand-up comedy show Mark Steel's in Town was recorded in Skipton, Boston, Lewes, Walsall, Merthyr Tydfil and the Isle of Portland?
• ... that BBC traffic reporter Sally Traffic has also narrated poetry albums for the blind?
• ... that the BBC coat of arms was adopted in 1927 and uses heraldic symbols to depict the various qualities of broadcasting?
• ... that Private Passions, a weekly classical music programme on BBC Radio 3, has occasionally featured interviews with hoax characters played by comedian John Sessions?

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Selected biography

Martin Brundle is a British former racing driver and a sports commentator for the BBC.

Brundle began his Formula 1 racing career with Tyrrell Racing in 1984. He put in a number of aggressive and fast drives, finishing fifth in his first race and then second at Detroit. At the Dallas Grand Prix, Brundle broke his ankles in a crash during a practice session. Then Tyrrell were disqualified from the world championship for 1984 due to a technical infringement, wiping his achievements for that season from the record books.

Having largely retired from motor racing, Brundle became a highly regarded commentator on British television network ITV, who he joined when they began Formula One coverage in 1997, initially alongside Murray Walker, and since 2002 James Allen. Brundle has won the RTS Television Sports Award for best Sports Pundit in 1998, 1999, 2005 and 2006. In 2005 the judges described him as: "...an outstanding operator at the very peak of his game – with an extraordinary ability to simplify and entertain in an often complex sport. He also exhibited a fearless authority on some of the most sensitive issues – not least his gimlet-eyed pursuit of Formula one boss Bernie Ecclestone on the grid at Indianapolis".

Brundle first commentated on F1 during the 1989 Belgian Grand Prix on the BBC. Having retired from the race, Brundle was asked by the BBC to enter the commentary box alongside Murray Walker because regular BBC commentator James Hunt failed to show up. Brundle was also part of the 1995 BBC commentary team whenever Aguri Suzuki was driving the Ligier-Mugen Honda such as for the 1995 San Marino Grand Prix.

In September 2008 Brundle denied that he had signed a deal with the BBC to commentate for next year's coverage although announced that he would love the chance to go to the BBC and said that discussions were ongoing. However, while at the Autocar Awards in November 2008, Brundle confirmed that he would be part of the BBC's commentary team for 2009.

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The BBC in the news

• Patrick Moore has died.

[1]

• The BBC Trust has appointed a new Director-General of the BBC, the Chief Executive of the Royal Opera House, Tony Hall. Lord Patten, Chairman of the BBC Trust, described his journalistic experiences as "invaluable".

[2]

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Selected categories

BBC BBC history BBC Television BBC Radio

BBC people Offices, studios and buildings Nations and regions BBC television programmes

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Related portals

Television in the United Kingdom	Culture	Radio
Doctor Who	EastEnders	Strictly Come Dancing	Hitchhiker's

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Quotes

• "I got the first page with about three minutes to go. Then, the red light came on and it was up to me. It was an intensely dramatic script and most of the pages were fed to me at the microphone, so I had to get it right first time. God knows I put my heart into it." — Newsreader Robert Dougall, recalling his message as the 'anonymous Englishman', calling for Germany to withdraw its forces.

• "... confronted with problems of which I had no experience: Copyright and performing rights; Marconi patents; associations of concert artists, authors, playwrights, composers, music publishers, theatre managers, wireless manufacturers." – John Reith (later Lord Reith)'s description of launching the BBC.

• "Now, if you'll pardon me, I've a little bit of news of my own. If the mail is anything to go by, most of the listening population have spotted a report that next year I'm going to turn into Chris Evans.

And I hate to tell you, but it's true." - Sir Terry Wogan announcing he is to step down as presenter of the breakfast show on Radio 2.

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Things you can do

Here are some tasks you can do: Article requests: Improve BBC, BBC News (TV channel) and BBC News to Good Article status following previous reviews, create BBC Computer Literacy Project (in light of forthcoming 30th anniversary) Cleanup: Chucklevision - references and general clean-up, Pebble Mill Studios - over-detailed and long, BBC World Service Television - unreferenced and confusing Copyedit: BBC News, Broadcasting House Expand: Top 20 start-class BBC articles with most importance - see here, BBC Japan, BBC World Service Television, BBC Lifestyle, BBC Two Northern Ireland NPOV: Criticism of the BBC (See comments) Stubs: Stub-Class BBC articles Other: Add infoboxes to the BBC articles without infoboxes Add free-use images to biographical articles where possible Add references to Goa Mix (see assessment) and Coat of arms of the BBC Return Dad's Army to a Good article. (See comments) Reassess BBC following improvements to article.

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WikiProjects

This portal is maintained by members of WikiProject BBC, in particular those listed on the Portal Maintenance page.

To join the project, please add your username to the list of members.

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