Nick Higham reflects on the history some of the BBC’s most iconic idents.

He speaks to the daughter of esteemed graphic designer Abram Games – who created the first ever BBC TV ident, the intricate “Bat’s Wings” logo. The Bat’s Wings drew the ire of countless newspaper columnists back in the 1950s, likely to the delight of Games.

Mechanical models were used to realise idents like the Bat’s Wings and later the BBC Globe and the BBC 2 clock idents of the 1960s and 1970s. In the 1980s, computer-generated idents became the norm, while subsequent years have seen all manner of techniques used to create these short, striking visual stings.

Finally, Nick speaks to Martin Lambie-Nairn, the designer who conceived the popular ‘Balloon’ series of idents for BBC One.

Originally broadcast 29 November, 2013.

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