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Diana death coverage

22nd anniversary (August 2019)

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MA
Markymark
James Vertigan posted:
Firstly apologies for starting yet another “Diana” thread, but as we’ve been approaching the anniversary a thought has been going through my head.

Perhaps those who were working at the Beeb at the time or indeed watching the events unfold through the night can answer this?

We all know how BBC1, ITV, C4, C5 etc covered the events, but I’ve been wondering about BBC2. Yes, they showed exactly the same as BBC1 for much of the Sunday, but MHP’s Diana coverage page states that BBC2 closed down at the scheduled time that night.

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My memory is BBC2 split away from BBC1 early afternoon to show Cricket. Didn't it also show of the displaced BBC1 schedule for that evening?
VM
VMPhil
Markymark posted:
James Vertigan posted:
Firstly apologies for starting yet another “Diana” thread, but as we’ve been approaching the anniversary a thought has been going through my head.

Perhaps those who were working at the Beeb at the time or indeed watching the events unfold through the night can answer this?

We all know how BBC1, ITV, C4, C5 etc covered the events, but I’ve been wondering about BBC2. Yes, they showed exactly the same as BBC1 for much of the Sunday, but MHP’s Diana coverage page states that BBC2 closed down at the scheduled time that night.

.


My memory is BBC2 split away from BBC1 early afternoon to show Cricket. Didn't it also show of the displaced BBC1 schedule for that evening?

Just before 3pm there was the last joint continuity with a rundown of both a BBC1 and BBC2 menu, then BBC2 split off to show Sunday Grandstand with Sue Barker (no titles or music) where the main feature was indeed cricket. The ident used into it was Water Reflection. Ref: MHP file 21497.
VM
VMPhil
Adam Beckwith (@AdamNostalgia) on Twitter yesterday shared a link to this recent upload which features more of ITN's early breaking news coverage. Worth reading the description on this upload too.



From the same channel, BBC2 continuity from the day:

SW
Steve Williams
James Vertigan posted:
We all know how BBC1, ITV, C4, C5 etc covered the events, but I’ve been wondering about BBC2. Yes, they showed exactly the same as BBC1 for much of the Sunday, but MHP’s Diana coverage page states that BBC2 closed down at the scheduled time that night.

It would be interesting to know who made the decision to recall BBC2 from closedown, exactly when this occurred and how was it handled on air considering the BBC2 transmitters would have been turned off for the night as this was in the days before 24 hour TV.

Appreciate it’s been 22 years but would be interesting to hear from anyone with any recollection of this.


I'm not sure about this - if BBC2 closed down as scheduled and then began to simulcast BBC1 when the rolling programme began at 6.30am, it presumably wouldn't have been especially complicated as they were scheduled to open at 6am anyway for the Open University. Of course, they were also broadcasting 24 hours a day during the week.

As has been mentioned before, the episode of Fully Booked scheduled to be shown that morning was actually shown 48 hours later on Tuesday at 7.30am, as it was pre-recorded, of course. I would imagine most kids would have been baffled by that, given it made no reference to the fact it was Tuesday.

Markymark posted:
My memory is BBC2 split away from BBC1 early afternoon to show Cricket. Didn't it also show of the displaced BBC1 schedule for that evening?


It showed the first episode of Full Circle with Michael Palin, which was then repeated on BBC1 the following week, but none of the other programmes. As I've mentioned several times before, the BBC1 programme at 9pm that night was Airplane II, which I'd never seen before and was amazed to see when I opened the Radio Times. To this day I've never seen it (although apparently it's not very good).
GE
thegeek Founding member
Steve Williams posted:

As has been mentioned before, the episode of Fully Booked scheduled to be shown that morning was actually shown 48 hours later on Tuesday at 7.30am, as it was pre-recorded, of course. I would imagine most kids would have been baffled by that, given it made no reference to the fact it was Tuesday.

Something I'm only learning now, after 22 years - the schools having gone back in Scotland a couple of weeks previously. Does anyone remember what went out in the CBBC slot on the Monday morning?
IS
Inspector Sands
Steve Williams posted:

I'm not sure about this - if BBC2 closed down as scheduled and then began to simulcast BBC1 when the rolling programme began at 6.30am, it presumably wouldn't have been especially complicated as they were scheduled to open at 6am anyway for the Open University.

Yes, as I say it wouldn't have been an issue to open it up at any time of the night.

By the time BBC2 closed for the night it would have been decided to put World onto 1 so they'd have been aware of the possibility that 2 might be involved too
BC
Blake Connolly Founding member
Revitt posted:
Blake Connolly posted:
As an aside, something I learned recently-ish was that the Nine O'Clock News background wasn't used that morning because of its suitably dark and sombre look as I'd assumed but for the much more straightforward reason that they were going to air before any of the scene shifters were in to change the back panels from the night before.


They did use the Nine O'clock backdrop for the morning of the funeral though, so I assume that was planned.

AFAIK they were the only occasions that backdrop was used in the daytime.


Good point, just going on what I was told by someone who was working on the news output that morning. Perhaps after seeing how it looked they felt it was suitable for the Saturday.

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