BBC ONE Balloon

i've just been viewing a website of various bbc1 closedowns.

i'm sure in the early days of the balloon ident they played the national anthem at closedown until bbc news 24 filled the early hours.

i'd like to find a site where i can view the bbc1 closedown balloons style.

thanks in advance to anyone who can help.

Yes before BBC NEWS 24 ran overnite on BBC ONE, there was a montage of balloons with the soundtrack of the national anthem, i have yet to find a site with video file of this though!

It's on http://www.thetvroom.com/ i think. It was a montage of balloons. When you hear it it seems very strange

thought so. i remember seeing one once.
don't know why they dropped it though as the use of a montage was good.

if say bbc1 closed at 1.50am they could go 'we're off to bed. back at 6am.' or something like that, then play the national anthem before going into a brief test card before joining news 24 at 2am on the dot.

You can find the Anthem montage used from October to November 1997 at The TV Room - here it is: http://www.btinternet.com/~mike.mcgonagle/video3/B-BBC1-CLOSE-97.rm

The CA says something like: 'That's it for another night on BBC ONE, if you want some company, tune in to BBC Radios 1, 2, 3 and Five Live. From me, x, on behalf of everyone here at BBC Television Centre, good night.' Cue National Anthem and long sequence of balloons.

(Edited by DAS at 10:04 pm on Mar. 24, 2002)

thank you hymagumba and DAS.

looking back at it they made it a quite pleasant closedown sequence.

i wonder if bbc1 will bring that back when they use the balloons for the final time?

the announcer could say something like
'this is bbc1 at (time). in a few minutes we'll cross over to news 24 but firstly we'd like to tell you that from tomorrow there will be a new look bbc1. the balloons will be no more. as we take a last look at the clock this is (name) wishing you all a very good night and farewell to the bbc1 balloons. goodnight. (pause)

(national anthem plays as various bbc1 balloon idents are shown)


(Edited by aztec west at 10:12 pm on Mar. 24, 2002)

I supplied the balloon National Anthem to the TV Room The TV Room some time ago

Aaaah - OK - you've found it. Ignore post!!!

(Edited by Mark B at 1:06 pm on Mar. 25, 2002)

If it were done BBC TWO-style, the last anno would be something like:

'Well, that's it from BBC ONE for tonight and as we know it. After five years, its time to say farewell to the famous balloon. As we join BBC NEWS 24, we leave where we began - English 9, filmed at the Swinside Stone Circle in Cumbria. Good night.'

There you go!

Sorry Mark B, I was sure I hadn't seen the old balloons closedown on the TV Room. However after my post I had a look found it and downloaded it.

wow look at this! (I found it by searching google images for BBC Balloon!)

http://www.dartnall.f9.co.uk/gallery/compositeimages/bbc1.jpg

Actually I had an idea... maybe the Balloon could fly off into space and go to a new world, that's desperately in need of good idents. So it could stay...

I had a horrible dream the other day when I saw Lorraine Hedgehog dressed as a witch, with a BBC Balloon in her hand, and she popped it with a pin, she then laughed like a witch does and then she signs off by saying 'Now watch my vision of BBC One!'

If only it was a dream...