The Red, White But No Blue Thread

Red and white seems to be a common combo for TV these days - BBC1, the reported new look for News 24, tne new CITV... What do you think of this red-and-white craze? Worth it, or a red-and-white wash?

Firstly, if they were to copy the White Stripes I think there would have to be an abundance of black as well. But anyway, what about:

ITV News...................blue.
Sky News...................some blue.
(anyone care to add others....)

Blue was very big in the 1990's anyway, it's just having a rest while red takes over again. The arty people will change their mind in 7 years and decide that blue now signals urgency, connectivity with the audience and all that bull.

In my opinion blue and white are ideally suited for news.

The ITN News channel was incredibly well designed, with that space-agey looking studio and excellent idents. It's a shame what it was replaced with. Blue is ITN's trademark colour almost, so why their current ITV News studio is plastered with just about every colour imaginable is beyond me.

Red has to be the most hideous colour for a backdrop ever! I really do get eye-strain watching News 24 sometimes. Those walls should have stayed in that lovely calming ivory colour, as Lambie-Nairn intended in 1999.

I much prefered the old 'circular' national news set on BBC ONE with the tinted view of the newsroom, the ivory walls and the '8' shaped newsdesk.

Why oh why does the BBC mess about with what was designed for them?

Channel 4 News' studio is revolting. It looks like the inside of a Fisher-Price kids toy.

Channel 5 News from 1997 was the best news set though. Fancy having a presenter walking around the studio! I never!