BBC News: Nostalgia

[JamesWorldNews]

What was YOUR favourite strand? I liked every single one of these, especially Lyse's with no name! (She popped up on The Hub and Impact Asia very frequently though). The days of the aforementioned N8 with it's swirly frosted glass.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95oiu_O2Lqw

[JamesWorldNews]

Possibly my most favourite BBC News intro ever! That long Lowe-esque beeps segment accompanied by excellent jib work.

Oh, and a clicky Parker ballpoint pen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj7FnBFn_5Q

[itsrobert]

What was YOUR favourite strand? I liked every single one of these, especially Lyse's with no name! (She popped up on The Hub and Impact Asia very frequently though). The days of the aforementioned N8 with it's swirly frosted glass.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95oiu_O2Lqw

Wow, those strands were introduced over 11 years ago now - how time flies. I actually quite liked that period of BBC World News as it reminded me of the 1990s with a mix of strands and generic bulletins. Lyse's programme was supposed to be called Frontline as I recall. I know a David Lowe set of music had been composed for it but for some reason the programme never made it to air in the end. I wonder why not?

[VMPhil]

Possibly my most favourite BBC News intro ever! That long Lowe-esque beeps segment accompanied by excellent jib work.

Oh, and a clicky Parker ballpoint pen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj7FnBFn_5Q

Yes, this has to be the best news intro ever. Big long, ominous intro and then Michael Buerk shouting in your face that it's the year 2000.

[Rolling News]

Possibly my most favourite BBC News intro ever! That long Lowe-esque beeps segment accompanied by excellent jib work.

Oh, and a clicky Parker ballpoint pen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj7FnBFn_5Q

The bellowing enthusiasm of Buerky really adds to it as well.

[DTV]

Wow, those strands were introduced over 11 years ago now - how time flies. I actually quite liked that period of BBC World News as it reminded me of the 1990s with a mix of strands and generic bulletins. Lyse's programme was supposed to be called Frontline as I recall. I know a David Lowe set of music had been composed for it but for some reason the programme never made it to air in the end. I wonder why not?

I did sort of make it to air as a weekly edition of World News Today that aired on Fridays during the Impact slot. IIRC, she frequently did not present the show and it was dropped by the autumn and replaced by a Friday edition of Impact Asia. I imagine that, being primarily a correspondent, Lyse did not want to get tied down to a regular studio gig.

It'd be great to hear the piece of music that Lowe composed for it. I feel that those early-2010s World packages (GMT, Impact, Focus on Africa) really showed what Lowe could do with the basic elements of his BBC News music - they are all so different and work for the respected programmes and yet are all recognisably BBC News.

[itsrobert]

Wow, those strands were introduced over 11 years ago now - how time flies. I actually quite liked that period of BBC World News as it reminded me of the 1990s with a mix of strands and generic bulletins. Lyse's programme was supposed to be called Frontline as I recall. I know a David Lowe set of music had been composed for it but for some reason the programme never made it to air in the end. I wonder why not?

It'd be great to hear the piece of music that Lowe composed for it. I feel that those early-2010s World packages (GMT, Impact, Focus on Africa) really showed what Lowe could do with the basic elements of his BBC News music - they are all so different and work for the respected programmes and yet are all recognisably BBC News.

Here you go: https://up.metropol247.co.uk/itsrobert/Frontline.zip

[JamesWorldNews]

WHAT A STUNNING PIECE OF MUSIC, ROB!!!!! Thanks for that.

[itsrobert]

WHAT A STUNNING PIECE OF MUSIC, ROB!!!!! Thanks for that.

You're welcome, James. It's a shame it was never used, isn't it?

[MMTV]

If David Lowe, alongside George Fenton make an even better version of these https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDXpyvEB6go , I'd be over the Moon!

It might even sound a little bit like this...
LoweFenton 1
LoweFenton 2

Those sound brilliant. With very little tweaking they'd work brilliantly on TV.

I agree with the tweaking comment. The thing that I woud do these is keep a 4/4 beat and length to the 1999 era theme. Use the pips as the framework of the composition and them remove said pips. But if developed more could be a good first audio work in The Gallery.

I would love to hear your versions for the Breakfast, 1pm and 9pm themes

The 9 O'Clock News would close and sound something like this:
LoweFenton 9 O'Clock News (Close)

[DTV]

Here you go: https://up.metropol247.co.uk/itsrobert/Frontline.zip

Wow! Thanks for that. I suppose it's a testament to Lowe that he didn't just wholesale recycle any of his unused themes, although I can't be the only one who gets a Global vibe from some of the beds - particularly the piano.

As you said earlier, it's startling to think that the February 2010 relaunch is now closer to the end of the flags era than it is to today. Although a bit different from the launch format, Impact was the only survivor left at the start of the pandemic. I wonder if we'll see the 'stranded' programmes return post-Covid? I think that a few stranded programmes are OK, but it did get a bit overkill in recent years - from the Spring 2017 schedules until last March, BBC World News weekdays would go over 16 hours without a standard BBC World News bulletin! The Feb 2010 schedule was probably the right balance - although the strands could have done with being more spread out throughout the day - but giving the different slots individual characters was certainly preferable to the World News Today-athon that had existed from 2007-2010.

[JLav25]

Possibly my most favourite BBC News intro ever! That long Lowe-esque beeps segment accompanied by excellent jib work.

Oh, and a clicky Parker ballpoint pen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj7FnBFn_5Q

The bellowing enthusiasm of Buerky really adds to it as well.

I can never tell if Buerk was a little bit tipsy when presenting this, or just extremely happy

[Steve]

Possibly my most favourite BBC News intro ever! That long Lowe-esque beeps segment accompanied by excellent jib work.

Oh, and a clicky Parker ballpoint pen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj7FnBFn_5Q

The bellowing enthusiasm of Buerky really adds to it as well.

It’s an amazing sequence and Michael Buerk’s enthusiasm carries it - as does the punchy headline sequence. Today there’d be three minutes of SOTs, etc.

[Roger Darthwell]

If David Lowe, alongside George Fenton make an even better version of these https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDXpyvEB6go , I'd be over the Moon!

It might even sound a little bit like this...
LoweFenton 1
LoweFenton 2

Those sound brilliant. With very little tweaking they'd work brilliantly on TV.

I agree with the tweaking comment. The thing that I woud do these is keep a 4/4 beat and length to the 1999 era theme. Use the pips as the framework of the composition and them remove said pips. But if developed more could be a good first audio work in The Gallery.

I would love to hear your versions for the Breakfast, 1pm and 9pm themes

The 9 O'Clock News would close and sound something like this:
LoweFenton 9 O'Clock News (Close)

Outstanding job MMTV! An advice you should really do something on the Gallery with these theme tunes, they rock! Can't wait for Breakfast and 1pm!

[Matrix]

What was YOUR favourite strand? I liked every single one of these, especially Lyse's with no name! (She popped up on The Hub and Impact Asia very frequently though). The days of the aforementioned N8 with it's swirly frosted glass.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95oiu_O2Lqw

Wow, those strands were introduced over 11 years ago now - how time flies. I actually quite liked that period of BBC World News as it reminded me of the 1990s with a mix of strands and generic bulletins. Lyse's programme was supposed to be called Frontline as I recall. I know a David Lowe set of music had been composed for it but for some reason the programme never made it to air in the end. I wonder why not?

Indeed, I seem to remember a lot of prep went into 'Frontlines' given a focus to try and shift it from sounding a bit too militaristic with arts and culture being a big focus (akin to the old Newsnight Review format) but around this time there was a number of shifts in the International Team (Lyse formally taking on the title of Chief International Correspondent and John Simpson's role being scaled back a bit alongside a review of 'Regional' Editors - Middle East, Africa, Europe etc).

I think as others have commented as well, Lyse is a first rate field correspondent who genuinely enjoys being on assignment so I think the view was that it was best to focus her energies leading a reformatted team.