BBC World Service idents over the years (Lilliburlero)
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- Опубликовано: 21 май 2009
- Idents of the BBC Empire Service (up till 1948) followed by the General Overseas Service (till 1980s) including the short time 'oranges and Lemons' ident of the 70s. Afther that is Lilliburlero, the world famous ident of the BBC World Service as played from the 90s till 2008. Finally, the Brand New BBC World Service Theme by David Lowe.
As an astronomer, I have spent many nights on mountain top observatories around the world, often with the BBC World Service as my only company. These idents bring back lots of memories. Thanks for posting.
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Sounds like quite the interesting life!
It was a remarkable broadcast service.
@@jonthebru and it still is
1:07 1984, I'm in high school in Soviet Tashkent, some 300 miles away from Afghanistan, listening at night to this tune and BBC reports, not comprehending a word of it. Secretively as it was banned and jammed for the most. That's how I began to learn English ("real English" lol). One of my favorite tunes ever, thanks for sharing!
That's a wonderful story, Rachid. All the best to you from the West of England . . !
When I was ill in bed in the Middle East (1989) I tuned into the BBC World Service to hear this wonderful indent, it made me feel so much better and closer to home
Nothing can compete with "This is London" and the Lilibulero theme
Absolutely right...terrible decision to stop that and the Sportsroundup theme ...should be reinstated by someone with some sense hopefully!
Have to move with the time, if the bbc won’t to loose audiences, then rebranding was the only way.
I entirely agree with you.
yes it can
Well said old boy, well said indeed, what!👍
I wake up to my dad's shortwave radio's BBC station id music every morning when I was a little boy in Africa in the 1960's. Hearing this music (plus the VOA station id) brings me right back to that era. Thank you for posting this piece of nostalgia.
For me too, ironically Lilliburlero evokes Nigeria!
Same here! Evokes Ghana for me.
Good old Apartheid! Really brings back memories!
Trinidad and Tobago as a child waking up for school in the 70's and 80's
Same here- we listened to World Service in Kuwait and Libya in the 1960’s and 70’s- it was the only avenue for current news. Listening to Lilliburlero is like a time machine for me. I love that music, really I love the memories it evolves.
BBC World Service was and is an iconic international brand. A noble, peaceful, entertaining and informative successor to the Empire (along with the Commonwealth). Liliburlero made it easy to identify which station you were listening to, and part of its charm was how old fashioned and unchanging it was but some do-gooder had to make his mark by getting rid of it because he thought it was outdated, triumphalist and imperialist. I bet not a single listener living in any of the world’s oppressive totalitarian tyrannies thought it needed to be changed.
Not necessarily a good gooder just a new broom wanting to sweep clean what had gone before and make their mark when they've been put in charge
Sooner they bring back Lilliburlero full blast the better..Iconic worldwide....the latest theme is generic tosh..could be any broadcaster!
Hear Hear. The World Service is so Americanised ( Yes Yanks it is spelt with an S not a ZEE or a ZED) The World Service that had Sports commentaries, Drama, comedy, music both classical and popular. Now it's just news, comments, specualtion, business and interviews.
No fun. No excitement. No entertainment. The BBC World Service has become one huge bore. A HUGE SHAME for a once great advertisement for British Public Service broadcasting.
no it's not
Except IRA throws a bomb whenever they play it ;).
@@grahamnancledra7036 I think when they moved from Bush House they just became another part of the BBC!
@@ceplma Still worth playing😊
The announcer usually left a few seconds silence before announcing "This is London". It seems that this commands devotion most effectively, when compared with the war-time signal like "This is London calling". Liliburlero is definitely superior and 100 times more effective than the jingling carillon.
"Now this is London Calling"
TO THE FARAWAY TOWNS
NOW WAR IS DECLARED
AND BATTLE COME DOWN
I lived in the Netherlands from 2006 to 2010 and listened to the BBC World Service on medium wave radio every waking hour. Almost everything I learned in that period I learned from the World Service. These intros bring back memories of standing in my kitchen. Hearing Lilliburlero every morning was a delight. I'm back in Canada and the CBC is pretty good but the BBC World Service is without peer.
BBC was best short wave new service
and canadian coast guard had best morse stations and operators
....and thats coming from a yank
WAS without peer.
I did this in reverse. I used to listen to the Radio Netherlands English service (Jonathan Marks) and they had a superb way of handling the news. First the "bare facts" headlines and nothing else and then the journalistic and discussion stuff.
Fact and opinion were clearly separated, this is not the way the BBC does things now!
As a veteran of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) and also one who was brought up listening to the BBC World Service, Lilliburlero is really music to my ears.
Wondrous!
I agree with you, the BBC should bring back the lilliburlero. It's by far the most liked World Service theme, and it's very recognisable.
This evokes breakfast with my father, listening to the BBC on his shortwave radio, back in the 1970s...
Hard to believe as it may sound, when I started tuning to the BBC by the Straits of Magellan, in 1963, I spoke no English at all. In the beginning I could only catch words like general, pope, London, etc. In 1967 I sailed to London and returned in 1995. Then I lived in Cape Town where I had som programmes for radio SABC. Finally, in 1990 I qualified as a teacher of English. BBC, I love thee.
I learnt to improve my English through listening to these compelling BBC bulletins that my Uncle was always tuned to. The tunes send me right back to those times in 1970s. I adopted a shirtwave radio till late 1990s listening to BBC, VOA, Radio Deutchevella both English and Swahili broadcasts.Having gone to study in London in the late 1970s I must say those church bells do bring back those old dreary days but still nostalgic memories that are so dear to my heart.The BBC theme as well as the bells and Big Ben strikes defined Great Britain and London! melodically
Well, I am an American and I miss it too! It said "BBC/London." What tries to say it now defeats me - and I don't now know what the BBC stands for. I used to work in public radio here - we NEVER had anything as memorable as that. Bring back Lilli and the pips!
BBC - British broadcasting corporation
@1:28 I remember being on holiday in Jamaica when this ident was used, I'd got back to my holiday room turned radio on ( maybe a little louder then it should have been)and put it on my patio when I came back out just as the ident finished there were a number of Americans stood listening nobody said a word until after news report finished and then it was thank you and walking away
On the bbc world service my favourite part is when they say , this is London and then they play lillibulero , lovely and just some great memories for me (including their waveguide programme aswell) , lovely stuff and some lovely memories too.
I remember being a child in the late 70s and my father listening to the BBC World Service on a short wave radio. This song brings back memories!
i remember the ident that starts at 1:10 when i first started listening to the bbc. it came on at midnight in the states and i always made sure i was up to listen to it before going to bed. it's still my favourite and i wish they would bring it back.
That is "lilliburlero" if you were wondering
I used to listen to the world service living in the Netherlands in the 80s, and after I moved to the UK, I ended up working for them. Played out “Lili” many a time. Thanks for the memories!
"Afther that is Lilliburlero, the world famous ident of the BBC World Service as played from the 90s till 2008"
Lilliburlero has been played on the BBC for a lot longer than that. It was played during WW2 as the theme song to the radio programme Into Battle and I recall hearing it as the World Service ident in the late 60's and early 70's.
I remember the theme from 1.09 to 1.27 - this was probably the best known music to the time signal. It always started at precisely 59 minutes and 35 seconds past each hour. I can also remember the BBC Radio 1 DJ Dave Lee Travis presenting his programme called 'A Jolly Good Show' back in the 1970s/early 1980s. A wonderful service when the BBC was probably at its finest.
That theme is "lilliburlero" if you were wondering.
There is also a string version of it at 1:47. The strings are more relaxing.
I remember when they had service to North America on Shortwave. 5975. "This Is London..." followed by Lilliburlero and then the time tones.
Thank you very much for posting this!
The time toned at 1:00 actually would follow the theme that is heard after. Before the top of the hour, they would say "This is London", that theme would play, followed by the time tones, current GMT time and the news. Talking late 90s.
One of the high points of the day when I was able to receive the BBC World Service when in the MN in the '70s .
I remember 'This is London' and Lillibulero on the World Service from the early 1960s in Malawi.
What a tune to wake us up in those anxious days
just in case we did not get it, we are with the BBC. I so miss the BBC World Service and the commanding style of the news broadcasts.
@Hi acintoli, How are you doing?
when i was a little child in the late 1970s and early 80s, I had an old Philips transistor radio and used to listen to sports round up at 11:15pm and the news at 11:30pm Indian Standard time every night (yes, Dad allowed me to sit up late tuning into radio stations as he thought shortwave radio Dx-ing was a good hobby and listening to the BBC would make me good at English). I will never forget the Jingles of both these programs. Brought back some great memories.
Oh the memories, not heard The Bells of St. Clements for many a year, bloody marvelous !
The current peal of 10 bells at St Clement Danes in the Strand has an electric chiming machine that plays Oranges and Lemons on them. The bells heard in the first recording are from the old peal of 12 (although 10 are ringing) at St Mary le Bow which were replaced in the 1930’s. The 1930’s peal where then bombed after being in the tower for 7 years
The General Overseas Service of the BBC (as it then was, it became the BBC World Service in 1965) first started to use Lillibullero as far back as 1943, having initially been used on the Chinese Service.
Thanks for the upload. It is so nostalgic to listen to the news signature tune.
Lilliburlero accompanied me into battle in 1982.
It was played every hour on the hour, almost every hour, over the main broadcast on my ship during the Falklands war.
It is synonymous with all that happened to me during that time, and will be played at my funeral. It is a reminder of the most acutely life changing time of my existence. It seems [welcomely] to be something which my mind hums when I am challenged even now.
Brings back memories of being a military observer on the Suez Canal after the Six Day War .It was our first radio call in the morning calling all OP
@Hello James Murphy, How are you doing?
Remember getting my first shortwave radio in High school and the thrill of hearing This is London.
@Hi Jack Spencer, How are you doing?
This brings back so many memories.
That old Oranges and Lemons sign-on sure brings back memories. The bells and Lilleburlero do as well, but Oranges and Lemons played when I was a young man and tuning intently.
Jolly good show
Carry on, chaps
Cheers
Saludos from Honduras
Thanx 4 this !!! :-)
Memories.How time passes.
Now this was shortwave broadcasting at its best! The Old days were the best days!Winter evenings in a warm but lovingly cluttered radio shack and hearing, "This is London!", at the top of the hour! Shortwave will come back! It will show it's worth to humanity again! The internet is a house of cards built on a foundation of sand!
That's the point: the idea that there are people tuning in at all times of the day - in a hut in Kenya, in a crowded flat in Beijing, maybe a schoolgirl in India - to listen to London should make you more proud than anything.
To me, 1:08 carries the most weight. You can almost feel the Crown.
Wonderful stuff. Thanks so much for posting. There is a BBC in Barnsley uk. The Barnsley bathroom company. LOL .
If correct by mid 2012 the last BBC world service radio theme on this video had been changed to a rather mundane one after the loss of many regular personalities n voices I'd grown so fond to hear for many years had made redundant.
I wake up morning 5 .30 am . when my dad hear BBC news with this theme music. Nostalgia.
I remember my dad would bring his radio with him when we went to the Canary Islands in the early 80s. I always remember hearing lilybulero.
I remember it something like this: "Wherever you are, however you listen: THISSSS is the BBC". Epic. Am I mistaken? Used to listen to 648AM when I was a kid back in Holland. Sometimes I needed to get out of bed and ajust the antenna. Memories.
'In tears after hearing the the older rodents again. Well done and Thankyou.
'In tears after hearing the older identity signals again. Well done and Thankyou. I agree with the comments above the modern World Service. When I used to listen to world service on both medium and short wave, in the 1970's, it was so totally different from now, it' beggars belief that the BBC., think of it as better.
By that, I mean I cannot see how the BBC., can think that World service is better Now. I too can recall the great diversity of programmes, sadly now discontinued.
I remember hearing the Lillibulero march opening theme on an SW radio I found in the trash in the 1970s, followed by the latest on the "Watergate Affair" which no one called it over here. It made it obvious that what I was hearing was from England. Now they carry the BBC WS news on NPR, but it's got this depressing Afro-Beat theme and it's barely recognizable as British.
@RuinStudios Gawd bless you guvnor! Nice to see such a towering intellect as yours on teh Interwebs!
@PA10403: In communism hearing the signal BBC it means , for Romanians citiziens , "The Great Expectations"... God Bless Britons forever !
Lilliburlero reminds me of skipping out of study hall in HS going to the ham shack and tuning around out the ham bands on a Heath SB102
Yes we used to listen to it in Japan. 1980's classic from 1:07
A different era! I remember when you heard breaking news on any other station then immediately tuned in to the BBC to check if the story was real? Has it lost it’s high regard and worldwide appeal?
I did the same!
It is lost. That's for sure.
This is London calling!!
Lillibulero was definitely being used in the late seventies btw, followed by 'this is London...' - I remember it crackling over the the airwaves in Panama City :)
Brings back memories!
A huge part of British culture is our self-deprecation and subtlety. We're not American, we don't shout our name out every five minutes and wave the flag; we show our patriotism through our actions and opinions, not some superficial flag waving and vulgar display of nationalism.
Grew up overseas listening to the world service, woke up every morning to the pips and lillibullero. The new ident just isn't the same (but it's still my alarm in the morning!)
Brings back such marvellous memories 648 kHz
Every evening, my father with the radio on full blast because the reception so poor, in spite of a long antenna on top of the roof. First Big Ben, and then 'This is London', the Lilliburlero, the beeps, and he'd wind the clock that sat on top of the radio. And then it was a twisting/twirling/crackling reception for the 'Seven o'clock p.m., Greenwich mean time, BBC World Service. The news, read by XX.' (Maybe got the order wrong. It's more than sixty years ago.)
I've got Lillibulero on cassette tape, but can't find it. The music is just brilliant.
Love that Lillibulero tune! Who composed? Jolly good!
They still play it as a filler on short wave when not broadcasting. I can pick it up late at night here in the far east :)
I was saddened to see the world service go...
The BBC remains the worlds biggest broadcaster but the London intro was integral to our national pride...
Reminds me of growing up in Hong Kong before 1997, when BBC World Service was relayed by RTHK
Of course, the announcement of the hour in GMT is also very important -- many people are either busy with housework or laying in bed half-sleep when leaving the radio on. And they don't usually have a copy of the programme guide. Not knowing the hour could cause listeners to miss out on certain shows whose hours to be played have been announced in teasers, but they have lost track of time since.
Hmmm Id like to update it, but youtube doesnt really allow tacking on or modifying the video. I would have to upload an entirely new one. Plus I dont have the time I used to, so it would be a lot harder for me to record the latest theme.
"Good show, what, old boy, well done!
Really enjoyed this. Does the World Service even have a theme anymore ??
The BBC WS also goes by the branding "The World's Radio Station" Pah! How can it be "The World's Radio Station" if much of it on shortwave is heard in Africa and Asia, and the rest is heard on the World Wide Web? I read in article that by the time the BBC reaches its 100th anniversary it will be all digital.
And your point is?
the last one on the track is what i hear every hour at night while im sleeping, I like the radio on for background sound lol
'Sorry to go on so, although I had to change some typographical errors. The re-branding of the World Service, came about because of changes to funding and editorial control. These used to be mainly provided by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The "modern" world service, is a result of funds and policy being switched to BBC management.
Eighteen hours, Greenwich Mean Time. BBC, World Service. The news, read by Michael Ashby. All gone ! As was posted earlier, now it could be any network.
Liilibullero can still be heard in its abbreviated form on the World Service i.e. 1:49 to 1:59, albeit sporadically (I've mostly heard it while an insomniac in the small hours, but its there nonetheless)
Can anyone remember a three beat drum interval signal on World service short wave, in the mid 1970's ?
Does anyone know where to get a full version of this part in particular? As Sam said above it's Lilliburlero but its with strings/violins instead of the usual orchestra/orchestral pieces. I think it's a fantastic rendition on the original and would love to listen to the full piece! If anyone knows hmu! Thanks in advance! :)
Thanks for this collection.
Does nobody have a clip of Lilliburlero followed by SIX SHORT PIPS? (-:
as far as I remember the pips come before the TOTH, counting down from 5 seconds to the hour,
Lilliburlero incicates start of the news, so I doubt there are pips after. I certainly never heard it
@@shriramvenu See for example ruclips.net/video/ssw7cn2TbF0/видео.html - Lilli was started about 30 seconds before the hour, and ended with the pips.
(I was actually asking if anyone had it with six identical pips; the sixth pip was ony lengthened - I'm not sure when, but within my awareness of such things, so probably after about 1970.)
Can anybody direct me to a longer version of the instrumental "Oranges and Lemons" played at around 0:37?
+blobbert912 There were two full versions of it available on CD called British light music there are quite a few so check which one they appear on I hope this helps any difficulty let me know I might be able to email you a copy
Oldtyke Smith Thank you very much!
+Oldtyke Smith you know, I would really appreciate a copy of you could.
Raphael Franks my email is mompitus@aol.com send me your email address i will send back to you the tow full versions by attachtment kind regards
unfortunately I've lost my recording of the full Oranges and Lemons, but I hope you can find it somewhere!
BBC World Service went into the toilet after they stopped having announcers speak only RP.
True and when they dropped "This is London" and a Full blast of Lilliburlero!
I dont even like rp at all really but it's kinda true.
1:10 and 1:50 , I searched to listen to this classic and it reminds me of my late dad who used to listen to BBC radio 📻 back in the day in Cameroon 🇨🇲. The nostalgia and missing my dad are just making me cry 😢. Please where can I find the full version?
It's called Lilliburlero and is an old English folk song. It's a famous part of The Beggar's Opera written by John Gay in 1728.
It's a dig at the rich and has been painted by Hogarth and there've been at least two films in 53 and 83.
Your / my favourite tune is only about a minute so be careful what you wish for. I've found that hearing slightly different versions can be a little off-putting!
The best ones are the early 20thC recordings, I think at least.
Hope this opens up more happy memories for you. I remember the day when the BBC WS ditched it. A presenter said there'll be no more of that, obviously embarrassed and I think under a misplaced new-broom mentality too.
A couple of days ago on the hundredth birthday of the BBC, finally the BBC WS deigned to play "THIS IS LONDON" and then the first dozen notes only.
I shouted with joy.
Happy memories of Cyprus up to the invasion.
I must play this tune to my Dad😊
The clash brought me here
@eddiewillers1 BBC World service- very different from the BBC Home Service- "This is the British Broadcasting Corporation from London. It is now 12 hours Greenwich Mean Time." - what happened is its now history and appears as a nostalgia post on RUclips- Just like the shellack disc made the wax cylinder history, the vinyl LP made shellack history, compact cassettes made vinyl history, CDs made cassettes history, digital files made cds and dvds history and all this change in my lifetime.!!WOW
if you want to put it that way, i cant argue with what you say. However it is called the World SERVICE for a reason ;)
@eddiewillers1 they still say "BBC news from London" (or something like that). gotta understand though the BBC world service has a special place in the heart for many people around the world. i guess the new approach is to embrace the international nature of the channel - bbc world service belongs to the whole world not just britain :)
they embrace globalism and hate democracy
Why don't they say This is London, anymore?! This is a classic!
Because politically correct dumb dumbs now run it!
Memories.....❤️
unfortunately that would mean id have to stay up late at night to record that!...if anyone else would be so kind to do so ill be happy to put it on
1.07 was this composed by Henry Purcell ? What is the name of it please ?
the then new theme sounds like a BBC1 ident
Wish I knew what years each were used
Shortwave radio is eternal!
The thing with "This is London" is that it might have invited envy from certain people who are not fans of Britain. "This is London" had heavy religious overtones, as it conjured up sort of imperial commanding of respect from wherever the service could be received. It was kind of mystical centralising of the spirit to that single place, and that is Britain. Also, the announcer left a few seconds' silence prior to saying that to heighten the devotional mood at the listeners' end.
Let's hope the BBC put the full version of the Liliburlero back every hour when many of its programming and news departments move to Broadcasting House in 2012. And the terse "This is London" should be restored because it is more intimate and effective than the random picking of any four cities, particularly when people place their radio sets by their bed and leave it on overnight.
I guess it's time for an update... BBC WS is branded at top of hour as "The Worlds' Radio Station" and features snippets of recent news reports. It is as far away as "This is London" as you can get, and actually I'm glad that it is. Shortwave is dying... it's local distribution on FM - either in whole or in part... or satellite services... or Internet streaming.
“This is the BBC”
Sometimes "progress" is no such thing. The band-played version of Lillibulero of the 1980s and 90s was utterly iconic and no matter where in the world you were (I used to listen to it in Hong Kong), it was instantly identifiable and an instant reminder of home. The current offering is a politically correct attempt at multi-cultural blather. Frankly, I would bring the original ident back tomorrow if it were up to me.
Amen to that. I listened to the BBC in New York on shortwave, and the Lilliburlero ident was the best of all the idents of any SW station.
Anthony Dunn You are so right. Today's World Service is a shadow of its former self in my opinión.
Anthony Dunn You are so right. Today's World Service is a shadow of its former self in my opinión.
What about 'Imperial Echoes'?
I totally agree. Please, BBC World Service, bring back Lillibulero.
This is London calling should be brought back definately cos that is what it is !
Oranges and lemons - said the bells of saint Clemens