BBC Network Rebrand

Maybe the BBC ditched the clocks purely because... they didn't want clocks on their television channels anymore? Why should they have a clock? Purely for historical reasons, so what they have always had a clock before?

Take BBC 1 idents - dancers - a clock doesn't really fit into that package does it?

The BBC used to display a clock for public service reasons, so you could set your clocks at home before the 6 O'Clock News. These days many people have computers with the time automatically set, and if you have to rely on your television for the time, it's easy to put BBC News 24 or Sky News on and voila...its displayed in the corner!

Destination Three it was called. All very random and pointless.

It would have been good, if you replaced all the presenters, the set, the script, the concept....

I remember when ITV2 launched they tried IVC and it got dropped not long afterwards.
Unfortunately, clocks are unlikely to return. I wish they would, as they are a neutral introduction to the news (you don't have to worry about whether or not your choice of "dancer" or "emotion" is going to clash with one of the news stories) and you have the movement of the second hand so its not static. Alas the powers-that-be decided long ago that clocks, along with holding slides and indeed IVC belonged to the past.
I wouldn't get too excited about this rebrand either. Firms like Lambie Nairn and Buzzy Bee Media get too much money from devising "clever" but expensive branding notions like "emotions" and the "four squares" on BBC 4 (which quickly pale and have to be equally if not more expensivly rebranded in three or four years time) to allow the BBC1 controller to say "look - all I want is a rotating globe with BBC One (or 1) underneath it". Even if he wanted to he'd never get away with it.

Wasn't that one an Andi Peters idea?

I actually liked it! Looks like I'm one of the few that did again though!..

Ain't that the truth! Martin Lambie Nairn was onto a real winner for many years. Go to the Beeb, sell them a rebrand, stay on contract as a consultant, pop up again a couple of years later and say "this branding's looking a bit tired mate - tell you what, why don't I sort you out with something new?". Repeat as required, pocket wads of cash. Of course this approach works best if you sell them something that goes out of fashion really quickly. Especially something with people in it! Presumably Red Bean Media have learned this trick from Lambie Nairn and are putting it into practice with ITV's rebrand.

Resist erge to mention fickle, former controller.

No, not the legendary Ms. Heggessey? Fickle? Never!!!