BBC Two

History

The channel was scheduled to begin at 7:20 pm on April 20 1964 and show an evening of light entertainment, starting with the comedy show The Alberts, a performance from Soviet comedian Arkady Raikin, and a production of Cole Porter's Kiss Me, Kate, culminating with a fireworks display. However, at around 6:45 pm a huge power failure, originating from Battersea Power Station, caused the Television Centre to lose all power. BBC One was able to continue broadcasting via its facilities at Alexandra Palace, but all attempts to show the scheduled programmes on the new channel failed, and at 10 pm they conceded defeat postponing programming until the following morning. As the BBC's news centre at Alexandra Palace was unaffected, they did in fact broadcast brief bulletins on BBC Two that evening, beginning with an announcement by the newsreader Gerald Priestland at around 7:25.

Related Topics:
April 20 - 1964 - Soviet - Arkady Raikin - Cole Porter - Kiss Me, Kate - Battersea Power Station - Alexandra Palace

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At 11 am on April 21, power had been restored to the studios and programming began, thus making Playschool the first official programme to be shown on the channel.

Related Topics:
April 21 - Playschool

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Unlike the other channels available at that time (BBC One and ITV), BBC Two was broadcast only on the 625 line UHF system, so was not available to viewers with 405 line VHF sets. This created a market for dual standard receivers which could switch between the two systems. BBC One and ITV later joined BBC Two on 625-line UHF but continued to simulcast on 405-line VHF until 1985. BBC Two became the first British channel to broadcast in colour in July 1967, using the PAL system. BBC One and ITV simultaneously introduced PAL colour on UHF in late 1969.

Related Topics:
BBC One - ITV - UHF - VHF - Dual standard - 1985 - British - 1967 - PAL - 1969

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