BBC Two 1991–2001 idents

Paint, the first of this series to be broadcast and the last to be broadcast during their first run from 1991 until 2001. This was also the last to be broadcast in Northern Ireland in 2018.

The BBC Two 1991–2001 idents were broadcast from 16 February 1991 until 19 November 2001, and again from 9 July 2014 until 26 September 2018, on BBC Two in the United Kingdom. The idents, which consisted of a sans-serif '2' in Gill Sans, accompanied by the colour viridian, were created by branding agency Lambie-Nairn (and later, Red Bee Media), who also created the Channel 4 logo.

The ident package was retained following the corporate rebrand of the BBC in October 1997 when a new logo and additional idents were introduced. The idents were taken out of service in November 2001, and were later revived on 21 June 2014 for "90s Night" and in July 2014, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of BBC Two. They replaced the "Window on the World" idents and were broadcast until the evening of Wednesday 26 September 2018.

Conception

The newly recruited BBC2 controller, Alan Yentob, noticed that the then-logo for the channel, which featured the word 'TWO' in red, green and blue within a white background and the 'O' being white, was affecting the reputation of BBC2. Surveys commissioned realised that most viewers thought the branding was "dull but worthy". He then decided to commission a worthy successor capable of displaying the personality of the channel, revealing his thoughts in the How Do They Do That? episode - about the idents.

I realised there was a problem almost as soon as I took over the channel [BBC2]. It was obvious that the logo [TWO] made absolutely no impact. In fact, it was something anyone could have told you. It was singularly unmemorable, and told you nothing about the personality of the channel. So we decided to commission a corporate design company to do some research.

— Alan Yentob

The idents were designed by the late branding expert Martin Lambie-Nairn, and first aired on the same day as the BBC1 virtual globe ident, also designed by Lambie-Nairn as part of a corporate rebrand of both channels.

We took this '2', actually, and you think to yourself "Well, there's nothing special about this". But there is something special about this, actually. It's a very distinctive '2'. It has very sharp bits on it and it's rather nice and fat. The reason we wanted that particular '2' is because we wanted to do things with it. So, you need lots of '2', lots of body on the '2' in order to achieve that.

— Martin Lambie-Nairn

Idents

The idents featured a sans-serif '2' in a variety of different forms and environments usually accompanied by an element of the colour viridian and accompanied by a static corporate logo DOG below the '2'. Another DOG often used with the look was a small '888' legend in the top right of the screen. This meant that subtitles were available to accompany the programme on Ceefax page 888. Following the 1997 rebrand, the BBC logo was changed, with the word TWO added after the logo at the bottom of the screen. The '888' legend was also phased out on 1 July 1999, to be replaced with 'Subtitles' following the uptake in digital television and the increased use of the new BBC Text service. A section of the TV programme How Do They Do That? that was broadcast on 15 February 1995 described how the graphics and sound of some of the idents were created.

The clock idents had been changed through years and were mainly used for closedowns and news. The first clock ident was used in February until December 1991, the second was used in December 1991 until October 1997. The clock was edited in October 1997 with the new logo. This was the last BBC Two logo to use the clock ident.

The new idents commissioned after 1997 placed less emphasis on the use of the colour viridian and the bell/harp music. Later on, as the Internet began to grow, the URL of BBC's website (www.bbc.co.uk) was included in idents on-screen from January 2000. On 27 September 2018, BBC Two received a rebrand, with the sans-serif '2' symbol being retired after 27 years; a new set of idents featuring a curve motif resembling a '2' were introduced. The last ident from this set, Optics, was aired one minute before the new set of idents were introduced.

Ident list

1991–1997

Title	Description
Paint	Paint featured a white polystyrene '2' on a black and white background, splashed by a blob of viridian paint which hurtles in horizontally from the right side of the screen.
Water	This ident featured an aqua-coloured '2' on a background of the same colour, half submerged in a pool of water at a 45-degree angle.
Blade	Blade featured a sharp, metal '2' falling into a viridian-coloured block and impaling it on its edge, standing and wobbling.
Neon	A '2' on a black background is depicted with seven viridian neon lights attached to it which flash in random sequences.
Copper Sparks	Also known as Copper Cut-Out. As the title suggests, it featured a copper cut-out of a '2' off of which sparks flew, as the figure glowed at its edges.
Glass	Featured a glass-cut '2' against a grey background, which reflected light in various directions.
Silk	This ident included a swathe of viridian silk drifting over the top of a '2' shape.
Paper Cut-Out	Paper Cut-Out featured a completely grey, paper-like foreground, with a '2'-shaped cut-out in the middle, revealing a partly cloudy sky behind it.
Black & White Copper Sparks	Also known as Black & White Copper Cut-Out. This ident was the black-and-white equivalent of the original Copper Sparks with viridian sparks flying off the '2'.
Shadow	A cast shadow of a '2' rotates against a viridian wall.
Water Reflection	A variation on Water, the light was altered in such a way that it cast a reflection of the water line onto the top half of the '2'.
Flowers	Also known as Garden. A circular patch of grass in the middle sprouts several white flowers that form the shape of the '2'.
Powder	This featured a birds-eye view of the '2' falling onto a bed of white powder, revealing a layer of viridian powder beneath it, left streaked around the '2' as the stray particles clear away.
Optic	Also known as Optics. Optic included many optical fibres of mainly viridian and green colour, swaying from side to side, initially with great momentum but slowly and eventually settling into the shape of the '2' symbol.
Car	A viridian '2' with an aerial moves about on wheels in a yellow studio, in the same manner as a remote-controlled car.
Jumping Dog	Also known as Dog. This ident included a fluffy mint green '2' whirring, yapping and doing back flips in the manner of a toy mechanical dog on the same mint green table against the shaded-red background.
Balloon	Balloon featured a silver, helium-filled balloon in the shape of a '2' bobbing around gently in a fixed spot.
Crystal Ball	A crystal ball passes over an ethereal-looking surface, revealing a silhouette in the shape of a '2'.
Firecracker	This ident featured a viridian '2' on a rusty-looking brown desk, with live firecrackers attached to it, which then explode.
Diary	This ident featured a white '2' on a black background, with paper layers peeling off and drifting away.
Steam	Water droplets fall onto a viridian-coloured, metallic '2' of extremely hot temperature, turning into steam.

1997–2001

Title	Description
Aerial	Aerial featured a dark green '2' with aerials attached to it in a red studio, appearing in random places between flashes of static, before finally appearing in the centre of the screen.
Toy Ducks	Also known as Duck. A series of idents depicted a soapy setting, featuring a yellow '2' in the style of a toy rubber duck variously emerging from soapy water, sitting in a bath with small rubber ducks, or pretending to be a shark, or a submarine.
Paint Pot	In a follow-up to the original Paint ident, a silver paint pot is bombarded by lots of little viridian '2's, once again falling sideways.
Zapper and Fly	Also known simply as Zapper. This featured a fly running into a fly zapper in the shape of a '2' upon a wall.
Gorilla	There were three variations on this ident. A gorilla stands up a yellow '2' in one ident, named Gorilla Shadow, knocks it over in the other, named Gorilla Tantrum and walks past it in the third. The third name is unknown.
Swan	Introduced at the start of 1998, it featured three grey '2's, resembling cygnets, swimming past a swan, which shakes its head shortly after.
Dalek	Black and white Daleks in the shape of '2's move through a grey corridor. A variant on this ident, named Exterminate, has the sequence opening with the Dalek '2' shouting the familiar phrase.
Excalibur	Excalibur featured a cerulean-blue '2' rising from a pool of water sideways.
Catalyst	Catalyst features a turquoise polystyrene '2' on a black and dark teal background, in this ident, a bunch of liquid droplets fly in from the top right corner of the screen and cause flames to flare up around the '2' on contact.
Wave	Also known as Wave Day. This featured a dark cyan '2' within a shaded-white background and a sheet of blue liquid that splashes around it throughout.
Predator	Predator begins centered on a '2'-shaped butterfly sitting within a jungle environment. The camera then zooms out, and the '2' is gobbled up by a larger green '2' in the form of a Venus flytrap.
Kebab	Kebab has a '2' made of meat roasting on a kebab spit, spinning around in flames.
Woodpecker	This ident depicted five metal poles, of varying distance, against an orange background, with '2's descending down the poles in the same manner as a mechanical woodpecker.
Wave Night	A variation on Wave, which is set in a darker background and liquid pool, with a bright cyan '2'.
Warp	This ident depicted the '2' warping and twisting in a variety of ways. It ultimately went unused for being too abstract.
It's Scary Out There	It's Scary Out There features an empty graveyard. The camera then zooms further into the graveyard until a giant '2' pops out of nowhere, and the camera zooms back.
Camcorder	Camcorder featured a view of the cityscape via camcorder is seen. The camera then zooms in to reveal a flashing '2' at the night sky, before it disappeared during a glitch.
Super 8	A variation on Camcorder, which was shot on Super 8, with no glitching.

Special idents

Christmas

Title	Description
Christmas 1991	The Christmas identity for 1991 was inspired by A Trip to the Moon. A star drops snow in a cloud, suddenly turning into a wrapped 2.
Christmas 1992	A Christmas tree with green lights bounces in a silk red field, the 2 inside the tree has red lights.
Christmas 1993	A lengthy sequence featuring small hobbit-type creatures carry the 2 to the top of a tree. Often a version with the end result was seen, and rarely, it caught fire.
Christmas 1994	A 2, lit in yellow, is trapped inside a dome in a tundra landscape.
Christmas 1995	Created to promote the Wallace and Gromit short A Close Shave, which aired during that year's Christmas season. Gromit turns on the lights of a decorated 2.
Christmas 1996	A wizard walks on a cloud, then he spins and becomes a 2 made of stars.
Christmas 1997	The 2 is a snow sculpture inside a snowglobe.
Christmas 1998	A fairy gets zapped, atop a Christmas tree, revealing a 2 being held by another fairy.
Christmas 1999	Similar to the previous year's ident, a winged 2 kicks off a fairy with her want atop a Christmas tree, when the 2 settles, a cityscape is revealed.
Christmas 2000	Miniature 2s ski atop a 2-shaped mountain, shown at an angle.

Theme nights and other occasions

Title	Description
English	Used for the Little England strand in September-December 1991. A tea-cosy appears in the centre of the screen which is removed to reveal the "2" as a teapot. Hilda Ogden-style ducks can be seen on the wall.
Made in Japan	Preceding the Made in Japan programmes in September 1991. The Japanese kanji for "two" (二, ni) appears in viridian, then a red burst appears, where, after that, a smoke effect billows out forming a red circle behind it (akin to the flag of Japan), and the Japanese "2" dissolves into the usual 2, in the same colour. The soundtrack is from the Paint ident.
A Perfect Christmas	A series of idents was commissioned for the A Perfect Christmas special on 21 December 1991. Each programme was preceded by a related ident. Included a full of golden presents and a big '2' are wrapped up for Christmas, but it was picked up by a man, a paper Christmas hat with '2' on the front, a '2' wrapped in paper in a World War II billet suitcase, a '2' sewn into a pair of 70s jeans, a big white '2' with a grey toupee on stage in front of the gold curtains, then someone else pulls the toupee off, leaving a '2' completely bald, accompanied by laughter from the audience, a camera zooms slowly to reveal a viridian '2' in a snowglobe, accompanied by an instrumental bells version of Jingle Bells and a '2' shaped horseshoe thrown onto a furnace.
Wet & Windy	A theme night on 8 May 1992 dedicated to the science of weather forecasting. The cyan moon-shaped "2" is reflected in the window, which bangs open and shut the door in the wind and rain. Audio similar to Optics.
One World	The globe is a flat disk which starts the sequence side-on, rotating 90 degrees along its vertical axis, until it faces the camera. Coloured powder "blows" on to the disk, finally forming the image on the left. The sequence is obviously the reverse of how it was shot - the powder was blown off the disk as it rotated away from the camera. Audio was the same as Paint. One World started on BBC1 in 1988 and moved to BBC2 in 1992.
Billboard	Used for the Commissions & Collaborations season in April-May 1992. In time-lapse, a yellow billboard is peeled out, revealing the viridian 2 in a white field. Audios similar to Copper Cutout and Glass.
War & Peace	In the weeks leading up to Remembrance Sunday 1992 (8 November), a season of programmes dedicated to all aspects of war was broadcast. A "2" made of barbed-wire forms around a single poppy, which is strangled at the start of the ident.
A Night of Love	Aired on 13 February 1993, the eve of Valentine's Day. A red "2" symbol rises out of the water, with its reflection making the shape of a heart.
Birth Night	Aired on 27 February 1993, to counter BBC1 airing a violent episode of Casualty. The 2 appears in an ultrasound.
Cell	One of the two idents for the Crime and Punishment season in May 1993. A beam of light from a lantern, shaped like the 2, appears over a prison cell with a bed, whose blanket is in the usual channel colour.
Fingerprint	The other Crime and Punishment ident. The 2 is inside a fingerprint. Used to precede the Cops on the Box theme night on 30 May 1993.
After Margaret	Used in October 1993. The 2 is slammed on the door of Number 10 at Oxford Street. Uses the soundtrack of the Powder ident, with its climax heard when the door is shut.
One Day in the Sixties	The viridian 2 is behind a 5x5 grid where 60s-related imagery appears in most of the slots. The slots toggle locations every second, partly covering the channel's logo.
30th Anniversary	Patterned after the Powder ident and using its audio, a 2 falls on a birthday cake with a 30 and twelve lit candles. Once the 2 falls, the candles are turned off.
New Year	Preceding Jools' Annual Hootenanny up until the 1997 BBC rebrand (when it started at midnight) from 1993/94 to 1996/97. An alarm clock with 2s in all markers and the BBC logo in the centre appears. When the clock reaches midnight, the alarm sets off and banners emerge from its top, after which, a party hat falls.
Centenary	Used throughout 1995 for the centenary of cinema and film. A 2-shaped film can is plunged down from a great height onto a bed of film and cinema tapes.
Mars Weekend	An unidentified flying object flies around a 2-shaped Mars. This was the last special ident made before the October 1997 refresh.
Red Dwarf Night	Aired on 14 February 1998. The idents are centred on a love affair between the 2 and one of the robot droids from Red Dwarf.
Evolution Weekend	Aired as part of a themed weekend of documentaries during the 150th anniversary of the publishing of Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species. The single ident was animated by starting with the still image of a "2" in clear water. A stone is dropped causing large ripples in the water. We see the reflection of a monkey peering into the water, as it morphs into an ape, early man, and into modern man before he moves away to reveal the "2" where we started. Further ripples are seen with just the "2" visible.
Simpsons Night	A theme night dedicated to The Simpsons (which the BBC had the FTA rights to at the time) on 23 June 2000, featuring two special idents. The first one was a parody of the show's opening titles, showing a yellow 2 cracking the camera recording it. The second shows a power cut in the Simpsons household. The Simpsons family's bodies are all 2s.

External links

• BBC Two: 2015 Idents (whole set with video clips)
• Ident Gallery Special Pres 2013