0:00:14 > 0:00:17MUSIC BOX TINKLES
0:00:22 > 0:00:30The first edition of Blue Peter was broadcast on 16 October 1958 from the BBC's Lime Grove studios.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37ORIGINAL THEME MUSIC PLAYS
0:00:42 > 0:00:45It was aimed at five- to eight-year-olds.
0:00:45 > 0:00:51It was the brainchild of producer John Hunter Blair and Gilly Reilly.
0:00:51 > 0:00:56To present it they chose actor Christopher Trace.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58My father said that, at the audition,
0:00:58 > 0:01:05he was ready to talk about TV and children, but there was a train set.
0:01:05 > 0:01:10He and John Hunter Blair were enthusiasts and they got on famously.
0:01:10 > 0:01:14It was a foregone conclusion he'd get the job.
0:01:14 > 0:01:18Onto the water...and start up. MOTOR CHIRRS
0:01:18 > 0:01:22The programme was named after the flag raised
0:01:22 > 0:01:24as a ship is about to set sail.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28All the works are inside. MOTOR OFF
0:01:28 > 0:01:31Pretty good!
0:01:31 > 0:01:35Now it's time for 6-5's own popular discoveries, the Mudlarks,
0:01:35 > 0:01:38with My Grandfather's Clock.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42Chosen to join Chris was Leila Williams,
0:01:42 > 0:01:48already a TV presenter and famous for being Miss Great Britain 1957.
0:01:49 > 0:01:55I was told I was booked for a week definitely - possibly two weeks -
0:01:55 > 0:02:00and I was to act as assistant to Christopher Trace.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04It was more than we dared hope that it would last six months.
0:02:04 > 0:02:09I expected to hear I wasn't needed the following week, but I didn't,
0:02:09 > 0:02:16so I turned up to the next rehearsal and Gilly and John both met me
0:02:16 > 0:02:21and said, "It's a success! We're on the air!" It was absolutely superb.
0:02:21 > 0:02:25ANNETTE MILLS: # We want Muffin, Muffin the Mule
0:02:25 > 0:02:29# Dear old Muffin, playing the fool... #
0:02:29 > 0:02:34In the 1950s, programmes such as Muffin The Mule and Andy Pandy
0:02:34 > 0:02:38were the staple diet of children's programming.
0:02:38 > 0:02:44John Hunter Blair wanted Blue Peter to be completely different.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47He wanted it to be like a magazine,
0:02:47 > 0:02:52where you turned the page and there was something going on all the time.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55That was what he was aiming at.
0:02:55 > 0:03:01Also recruited in the early months was artist Tony Hart, whose cartoon strip,
0:03:01 > 0:03:05Packi The Elephant, was recreated on screen.
0:03:05 > 0:03:11I wrote the story, did the drawings and then I had to narrate it, you see.
0:03:11 > 0:03:16I remember in those old studios - black and white, of course, then -
0:03:16 > 0:03:19that I had a clock.
0:03:19 > 0:03:25The clock told me when to start and exactly when I had to come out.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29And Chris - dear old Chris - he was very naughty,
0:03:29 > 0:03:32and towards the end,
0:03:32 > 0:03:39he'd do this, which he wasn't supposed to do, because I could see my clock perfectly well,
0:03:39 > 0:03:42and he would try and make me laugh.
0:03:42 > 0:03:49Chris and I had a brother-sister relationship. That's the best way to explain it.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52That's how we were. We got on really well.
0:03:52 > 0:03:58And John gave me away at my wedding. It was just a little happy family.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02Blue Peter WAS a family,
0:04:02 > 0:04:07and I was extremely pleased to be allowed to be a cousin.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Two years later, Blue Peter was thriving.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14But John Hunter Blair had to take sick leave.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17One stand-in producer was Clive Parkhurst.
0:04:17 > 0:04:21The Blue Peter family was about to break up.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25We were like two raw wires and we just exploded.
0:04:25 > 0:04:31I had a monthly contract, so at the end of the month, that was it.
0:04:31 > 0:04:32What's on?
0:04:32 > 0:04:36Auditions were held to find Leila's replacement.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39- Hello, Caroline.- Hello, everyone.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44'I was interviewed by Christopher Trace.'
0:04:44 > 0:04:47Christopher asked if I'd come far,
0:04:47 > 0:04:52and I said, in a very high-pitched voice, "Only from Earl's Court."
0:04:52 > 0:04:56Only from Earl's Court, about ten minutes away.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00I didn't get it the first time. Someone else did.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03I believe you started in Hollywood.
0:05:03 > 0:05:09TONY HART: It was a most beautiful lady, and her name was Anita West.
0:05:09 > 0:05:14She was brought into the studio by the producer one day,
0:05:14 > 0:05:19and I remember all the men - there was a sort of move to get closer!
0:05:19 > 0:05:22She really was a dish!
0:05:25 > 0:05:28I was a Blue Peter presenter
0:05:28 > 0:05:35between Leila and Val Singleton, but not many people remember me.
0:05:35 > 0:05:41Anita West has never been publicly acknowledged as a BP presenter until now.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45'I was in it for about six and a half months.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49'You made your things, you told a story,'
0:05:49 > 0:05:53you introduced somebody - I had some wonderful interviews.
0:05:53 > 0:05:58One was the guy from Disney who drew The Sword In The Stone.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00I thoroughly enjoyed it.
0:06:00 > 0:06:04But her marriage to jazz musician Ray Ellington
0:06:04 > 0:06:09was ending in divorce proceedings and Anita felt forced to resign.
0:06:09 > 0:06:17I was upset, and I know they were with me, because they didn't know the background of why I was leaving.
0:06:17 > 0:06:21'I didn't know how the divorce would go.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25'A messy one could have embarrassed the programme.'
0:06:25 > 0:06:29And I wanted to be there for the children.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31I don't have any regrets.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34Professionally I do, if I'm honest.
0:06:34 > 0:06:41But privately I don't. My two children are the best thing I ever did in my life.
0:06:41 > 0:06:46Let's join Christopher Trace and Valerie Singleton for Blue Peter.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48THEME PLAYS
0:06:48 > 0:06:51Second choice Valerie Singleton was asked back.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54She stayed for ten years,
0:06:54 > 0:07:00becoming the programme's longest-serving female presenter.
0:07:00 > 0:07:06Decorating cakes isn't just a job for girls, as I found out last week.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09Some of them don't look like cakes,
0:07:09 > 0:07:11but believe me, it is all cake.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18Another appointment in 1962 was Biddy Baxter.
0:07:18 > 0:07:23This young radio studio manager was offered the job of editor
0:07:23 > 0:07:27over other staff in the Children's Department.
0:07:27 > 0:07:34I had a sleepless night, thinking, "I'm not capable of doing it.
0:07:34 > 0:07:37"I'll have to say I can't take the job."
0:07:37 > 0:07:41But in the morning, I thought, "If I do that,
0:07:41 > 0:07:45"bang goes my career with the BBC, so I'd better plunge in."
0:07:45 > 0:07:50We all had a terrible feeling Biddy would get it.
0:07:50 > 0:07:55We weren't best pleased about it. She had an idea
0:07:55 > 0:08:01about what children wanted before she was able to translate it into TV terms.
0:08:01 > 0:08:07At last, the weather is kind enough to let us come to Chessington Zoo
0:08:07 > 0:08:11to finish off our Blue Peter seal competition.
0:08:11 > 0:08:16We're waiting for the prizewinner, and I can see the car coming now.
0:08:16 > 0:08:21Edward and I wanted the programme to have a distinct identity.
0:08:21 > 0:08:26He came up with the idea of a logo. Of course now it's called branding.
0:08:26 > 0:08:32TONY HART: I thought perhaps a galleon shape, a simplified form.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34There we are.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37And now, in true Blue Peter style,
0:08:37 > 0:08:41let me show you one that I did earlier.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46That is the original Blue Peter ship
0:08:46 > 0:08:48which I drew in 1963.
0:08:48 > 0:08:54I put it to Biddy - "Could you see your way to letting me have a penny
0:08:54 > 0:08:56"every time it's used?"
0:09:04 > 0:09:08I think we paid him £100. If only he'd been on a royalty,
0:09:08 > 0:09:11he'd have been a millionaire!
0:09:11 > 0:09:18The logo led on to the famous Blue Peter badge, launched with a massive nationwide balloon release.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21The badge was for programme material.
0:09:21 > 0:09:26That's what children would win for sending in ideas for the programme,
0:09:26 > 0:09:31so it was a very good way of becoming interactive.
0:09:31 > 0:09:36And it rewarded children who were helping us, so everyone was happy.
0:09:36 > 0:09:40You were shot at dawn with a rusty bullet
0:09:40 > 0:09:46if you went out on location without a badge - it was a cardinal sin.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50- VAL:- You had to wear it. It annoyed us.
0:09:50 > 0:09:55We should have had them like little Indian marks on our brows.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58One should have seen it as the trademark.
0:09:58 > 0:10:05It was perfectly valid, and we were stupid to be annoyed by it.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09I never had any problem. I had badges on swimming costumes,
0:10:09 > 0:10:16hard hats and everything - wherever you are, you must have your badge.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18Even on pyjamas!
0:10:18 > 0:10:23She was such a Pollyanna - sorry, Anth! She was SO good.
0:10:23 > 0:10:28She'd WANT to wear her badge, like a good girl at school.
0:10:28 > 0:10:33Putting it on today, I just think, "Hey! Back with the badge on."
0:10:33 > 0:10:36It feels quite at home.
0:10:38 > 0:10:43My father nicked some and took them home, which he shouldn't have done.
0:10:43 > 0:10:48Unknown to him, I nicked a few and sold them in the playground.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51It started my entrepreneurial life!
0:10:51 > 0:10:55In 1963, Rosemary Gill joined Biddy and Edward Barnes,
0:10:55 > 0:10:59forming children's TV's most influential team ever.
0:10:59 > 0:11:06EDWARD BARNES: We all had something different to offer, yet we worked well as a team.
0:11:06 > 0:11:11Chris Trace said it was like having a three-headed monster coming at him.
0:11:11 > 0:11:15NEWSREEL FANFARE 'Commercial television is here.'
0:11:18 > 0:11:24In the early '60s, the arrival of ITV had serious consequences for the BBC.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28Ratings fell, and the BBC took drastic action.
0:11:28 > 0:11:34The Children's Department was left with Watch With Mother and Blue Peter.
0:11:34 > 0:11:36Those of us left
0:11:36 > 0:11:40were angry because we believed in children's programmes.
0:11:40 > 0:11:44There was a job to be done, and it needed people
0:11:44 > 0:11:47with a specialisation to do it.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50'And it obsessed us, you know.'
0:11:50 > 0:11:55I'm in one of the children's wards of the Mayday Hospital in London.
0:11:55 > 0:12:00We thought it would be fun to come down with the Blue Peter cameras
0:12:00 > 0:12:02and play records for the children.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06RECORD PLAYS: "Twist And Shout" by The Beatles
0:12:08 > 0:12:13The team's obsession paid off - Blue Peter's audience grew,
0:12:13 > 0:12:16and it was given a twice-weekly slot.
0:12:16 > 0:12:23Now some news. From now on, you won't have to wait a week for the next programme.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25Blue Peter will be on Thursdays
0:12:25 > 0:12:28as well as on Mondays.
0:12:28 > 0:12:33- BIDDY BAXTER:- It was absolutely crucifyingly hard work!
0:12:33 > 0:12:38Could I have some Extra Strong Mints, please, and some syrup?
0:12:41 > 0:12:46It's hard work, doing the shopping with a lion!
0:12:46 > 0:12:48- Five shillings.- Thank you.
0:12:48 > 0:12:50HE GROANS
0:12:50 > 0:12:53Phew! Well, we got that out.
0:12:53 > 0:13:00Today in Great Britain, we have some of the finest firefighters in the world.
0:13:00 > 0:13:05It was too much for two presenters. There was one moment on Camber Sands.
0:13:05 > 0:13:12They were filming. It was cold, and he'd been in swimming trunks, waist-deep in water all day.
0:13:12 > 0:13:18He'd had enough. He said to Biddy, "It's too much. You have to bring in a third."
0:13:20 > 0:13:23This is Steve.
0:13:23 > 0:13:28Steve is a dray horse. He works for a brewery. ..Round, boy, round.
0:13:28 > 0:13:33'I wasn't keen on horses because I'd never had anything to do with them.'
0:13:33 > 0:13:40I thought, "What happens if he starts to run? What do I do?"
0:13:40 > 0:13:43Of course I dried, but I got myself out of it.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46He was a disaster when he came.
0:13:46 > 0:13:51I've never known anybody dry so much on air as Noakie did to begin with!
0:13:51 > 0:13:56There's the complete kite, all ready for frying. ..FLYING.
0:13:56 > 0:14:03- BIDDY BAXTER:- I think John Noakes has to be the most charismatic presenter of all time.
0:14:03 > 0:14:07There's never been one like him before or since.
0:14:07 > 0:14:12MUSIC: Overture to "The Marriage Of Figaro" by Mozart
0:14:16 > 0:14:20Aaaaaaaaaaagh!
0:14:34 > 0:14:36Ooh! Ow!
0:14:44 > 0:14:46Grub is up.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56Suddenly I feel awfully alone up here!
0:14:56 > 0:15:02The hard thing for an actor is to be yourself and not put on a show.
0:15:02 > 0:15:08I'm not stepping on John's toes if I say he continued to put on a show.
0:15:08 > 0:15:13His invented character, John Noakes, was not really like John Noakes.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16This is a trunk call from Ceylon to England.
0:15:16 > 0:15:19I hope I don't get cut off!
0:15:19 > 0:15:24I was never frightened going on stage. I used to get excited.
0:15:24 > 0:15:28I used to laugh at folk who trembled in the wings on the first night.
0:15:28 > 0:15:33"Why are you in the business? Go on and be whoever you're going to be."
0:15:33 > 0:15:36But did I get my comeuppance!
0:15:36 > 0:15:42Because that thing - that lens, that piece of glass - stripped me naked.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45- Do you want a piece? - Steady!
0:15:45 > 0:15:49Whatever you do, don't drop this on your foot!
0:15:49 > 0:15:54- That's for you. - You don't do yourself justice. It's very light.
0:15:54 > 0:15:56- Anyone got an electric saw?- Let me...
0:15:56 > 0:16:04'I then invented this idiot who I called John Noakes, who was not really the real John Noakes.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06'I'm really a quiet person.'
0:16:06 > 0:16:09It's got no cheese and onion in it!
0:16:09 > 0:16:14Action Man's advent took away a bit of glory from Dad.
0:16:14 > 0:16:22There was a BP Special Assignment in Norway where my father had rather more than a special assignment.
0:16:22 > 0:16:26This got picked up. Not only did it sour the relationship with my mother,
0:16:26 > 0:16:34but it also didn't help his reputation within the BBC, and he felt it was time to move on.
0:16:34 > 0:16:36We weren't brokenhearted.
0:16:36 > 0:16:41He knew he'd had enough and we felt it was time he moved on.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45We made mistakes later, keeping on people for too long.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48Chris's replacement was actor Peter Purves.
0:16:48 > 0:16:51I saw it as a job for six months,
0:16:51 > 0:16:57and then I could go back to the serious business of acting...ho-ho.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01- Right in your ear'ole!- Thanks(!)
0:17:03 > 0:17:06You went all round the head, like this.
0:17:06 > 0:17:09- It's not self-raising flour!- Sorry.
0:17:09 > 0:17:12Oops! I blew instead of sucking.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17Special graded grains for you, Pete.
0:17:17 > 0:17:23Instead of bellows, you could use something like this.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27Holes in the top and flour inside and just sprinkle that on.
0:17:27 > 0:17:32- The holes are rather large, I'm afraid.- They are, aren't they? Oh!
0:17:34 > 0:17:37It's on your uniform now!
0:17:37 > 0:17:43We worked so well together and then they stopped us - we were getting too powerful.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46We were like Laurel and Hardy.
0:17:46 > 0:17:50- Keep an eye on him, Peter. - Yes.- Go to your tables.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54Whatever you do, keep your bottles upmost.
0:17:54 > 0:17:59- Here we go...to the woods... - He said keep it UPMOST!
0:17:59 > 0:18:00CUCKOO!
0:18:00 > 0:18:04- Right, Bunnies, are you ready? - WHISTLE PEEPS
0:18:04 > 0:18:07Go on, faster!
0:18:07 > 0:18:13Go... Oh, no, you don't! How dare you try it on me?! Wait, wait.
0:18:13 > 0:18:14CUCKOO! PEEP!
0:18:14 > 0:18:16Good. Next.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19Johnny and I thought it was funny.
0:18:19 > 0:18:26Self-indulgent, maybe, but funny. But that was when they decided not to make films like that any more.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29- VAL:- We re-name this locomotive
0:18:29 > 0:18:32the 532 Blue Peter.
0:18:33 > 0:18:41'The sad thing was that you worked FOR the Blue Peter production team rather than with them.'
0:18:41 > 0:18:45When I moved into grown-up telly, for want of a better word,
0:18:45 > 0:18:51you could talk to your editor like an adult about problems, or suggest ideas.
0:18:51 > 0:18:56It wasn't like that on Blue Peter. We were like schoolchildren, really.
0:18:56 > 0:19:02I didn't go to the office often. I tried to avoid it, to be honest.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04Biddy ruled the roost, no question.
0:19:04 > 0:19:11EDWARD BARNES: She'd resent "ruthless", but she was ruthless on behalf of the audience.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14She would die for the audience.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16Biddy never took "no" for an answer.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19Denied money to launch the BP badge,
0:19:19 > 0:19:23she confronted Assistant Controller Donald Baverstock.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26Everyone was terrified of him. He hit the roof.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30She said, "I've got something you need to know."
0:19:30 > 0:19:35After the interview, he called in Joanna Spicer, the planning person,
0:19:35 > 0:19:41and said, "Joanna, give her £500 for badges." She said, "You can't do that!"
0:19:41 > 0:19:48He said, "I've just done it!" Donald liked that. He liked someone who'd take him on.
0:19:48 > 0:19:53Was I frightened of Biddy? Most of the BBC was. It probably still is!
0:19:53 > 0:19:57Great respect for her, but she was very demanding.
0:19:57 > 0:20:03If people weren't living up to those standards or giving their very best,
0:20:03 > 0:20:06or were cynical, God help them!
0:20:06 > 0:20:10He doesn't need a monitor. He's looking at Jemima.
0:20:10 > 0:20:16NEW SPEAKER: I loved her - I thought she was a one-off. I thought she was terribly astute.
0:20:16 > 0:20:20I had a lovely relationship with her.
0:20:24 > 0:20:30If you were introduced to Biddy as "editor", you'd absolutely assume
0:20:30 > 0:20:35she edited Vogue or Harper's, or even Cosmo, actually.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38SHE LAUGHS
0:20:38 > 0:20:40Because that's what she looks like.
0:20:40 > 0:20:45I'd imagined Biddy Baxter to be a cardiganed, grey-haired person.
0:20:45 > 0:20:49Cardigan not on, but draped round her shoulders.
0:20:49 > 0:20:53She was very glamorous. Big earrings.
0:20:53 > 0:20:57- SARAH:- Wearing black tights that you just knew weren't tights -
0:20:57 > 0:20:59were stockings.
0:20:59 > 0:21:04Who thought nothing of showing a little too much decolletage -
0:21:04 > 0:21:08not for the scoutmasters, which was when she used it.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11She could persuade any scoutmaster
0:21:11 > 0:21:17to spend an extra hour in the cold in the garden to get the right shot.
0:21:17 > 0:21:22I thought, "She'll be a challenge, but I'll enjoy working with her."
0:21:22 > 0:21:25'My God, she taught me so much!'
0:21:25 > 0:21:28You read the script.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31- PETER:- The thing everyone remembers about Biddy
0:21:31 > 0:21:38is the sound of her - the sound of her approaching, for notes or to bollock somebody or whatever it was.
0:21:38 > 0:21:44The sound of Biddy is stilettos down the steps from the gallery.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46Click, click.
0:21:46 > 0:21:49- Click, click.- Down the metal steps.
0:21:49 > 0:21:54You knew by the pace how bad you'd been or what had gone wrong.
0:21:54 > 0:22:00We're knocking the Pompeii story on to another programme.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03CARON: There was no autocue. You had to learn it.
0:22:03 > 0:22:08At 4.50pm, Biddy would click down the steps and change it all anyway.
0:22:08 > 0:22:14You'd go on air thinking, "I've got no idea what I'm about to say!"
0:22:14 > 0:22:17"I'm cutting this. I'm changing that."
0:22:17 > 0:22:24It took me a couple of years to acquire a discipline to cope with those changes.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29'Initially, I didn't understand why there was this additional pressure.'
0:22:29 > 0:22:34Can we swap the order of handing round lava? Hand it to Peter first.
0:22:34 > 0:22:39- It's a bit odd...- But it's funnier if he gives the small bit to me. >
0:22:39 > 0:22:44- It's the way it works out... - It doesn't matter. Stop panicking.
0:22:44 > 0:22:52Because of the demands of the live programme, you would do all sorts of mischievous things.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56If he'd done a cracking innuendo, coming out of a film, say,
0:22:56 > 0:23:03those heels would be there, but he'd be out like a bat out of hell before she could catch him.
0:23:03 > 0:23:10- SIMON:- Hedges give the country a patchwork look, and it's good to know people are looking after them.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13There's a lot to it, isn't there?
0:23:13 > 0:23:15Yes. It's also the luck of the draw.
0:23:15 > 0:23:21One of them said if you have a good length, you can manage a good lay.
0:23:22 > 0:23:25Innuendo? What do you mean, matron?!
0:23:25 > 0:23:30We never ever saw the programme as a whole until the dress rehearsal.
0:23:30 > 0:23:35'You had this one time to put the thing together, to see if it gelled.
0:23:35 > 0:23:42'Some items wouldn't be as good as you thought. We'd expand some and cut others.'
0:23:42 > 0:23:45"Cut that page, darling..."
0:23:45 > 0:23:49'Suddenly, your whole brain had to be changed.'
0:23:50 > 0:23:57She was convinced...cos I used to back-comb my hair to keep it up, then spray masses of spray on it.
0:23:57 > 0:24:05She was certain, when she did notes in the make-up room before the show, that I sprayed it to keep her away,
0:24:05 > 0:24:09but I can't tell you if that was true or not!
0:24:09 > 0:24:16'It was the only way to produce a programme that was really going to deliver to the audience.'
0:24:16 > 0:24:20No, you get a cue to move, first of all.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24Since you can hear the drum roll finish, do it after that.
0:24:24 > 0:24:28- JANET:- I think I'm very unusual in this.
0:24:28 > 0:24:31I liked the last-minute changes -
0:24:31 > 0:24:36"Cut that item, take five seconds out of that." I got off on that.
0:24:36 > 0:24:40Janet Ellis could learn the telephone directory!
0:24:40 > 0:24:44Charlotte died on March 31st 1859,
0:24:44 > 0:24:51the last of the brilliant, tragic Bronte family who'd come to the Haworth parsonage 35 years before.
0:24:51 > 0:24:56Until recently, we knew what she looked like from pictures like this.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00But in 1984, the National Portrait Gallery made a discovery...
0:25:00 > 0:25:05'If the programme had gone well, you'd be thinking, "Yeah, great!"'
0:25:05 > 0:25:12She'd say, "What happened? It was 1848, darling. You said 1847. What happened?"
0:25:12 > 0:25:15"In the middle of it all, I forgot!"
0:25:15 > 0:25:21Um...now...where am I? I'm talking... Sorry.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24- SIMON:- 'I think, if they're honest,
0:25:24 > 0:25:28'all the presenters will admit
0:25:28 > 0:25:33'that, at one time or another, we moaned about not having autocue.'
0:25:33 > 0:25:37I'm completely lost. OK, let's start about darts again.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40Most studio programmes already used autocue.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44But it wasn't until 1987 that Biddy allowed it,
0:25:44 > 0:25:49finally putting an end to the studio memory test.
0:25:49 > 0:25:54There's just so much to learn, it's almost impossible not to have it.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58But it can really dampen spontaneity in the studio.
0:25:58 > 0:26:03That's why you tended to see more of the presenters' personality on film.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05Faster!
0:26:05 > 0:26:06Whoo!
0:26:07 > 0:26:09SCREAMING
0:26:09 > 0:26:12SHE SCREAMS
0:26:12 > 0:26:15Wow! That is the best!
0:26:15 > 0:26:18- Forget the fear.- Yes.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21What...? Oh!
0:26:21 > 0:26:24He won't strangle me, will he?
0:26:24 > 0:26:26- Keep your mouth shut. - I will!
0:26:28 > 0:26:33Blue Peter began travelling when Benidorm was considered a long haul.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37The Summer Expedition became a regular fixture.
0:26:37 > 0:26:44- VAL:- We didn't stop at the Raffles Hotel, because we'd heard a glass of squash there costs 3s 6d!
0:26:46 > 0:26:52'Showing them a new country and a new culture, meeting the people -
0:26:52 > 0:26:55'I think most people enjoyed it.'
0:26:55 > 0:26:57Can you guess what this is?
0:26:57 > 0:27:02MUSIC: Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto, Third Movement
0:27:02 > 0:27:04A detergent bottle.
0:27:04 > 0:27:09This one is cheap and easy to make. I'll show you what to do.
0:27:09 > 0:27:11CHRIS: Cut it off...
0:27:11 > 0:27:16- We need a base for our island... - The hat is an ice cream cone...
0:27:16 > 0:27:19- JANET:- Cut out a base from card.
0:27:19 > 0:27:24Then two circles of sticky-backed plastic stuck together...
0:27:24 > 0:27:27Here's some that I froze earlier.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31CARON: This is Margaret's idea for 1986...
0:27:31 > 0:27:37Mother-of-two Margaret Parnell first wrote to the programme over 30 years ago.
0:27:37 > 0:27:41I sent an idea for a dolls' house to Valerie Singleton.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44It was made out of crepe paper.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48I put together the stages and the different bits.
0:27:48 > 0:27:55She wrote back and said they were going to use it, much to my surprise, and had I got any more ideas?
0:27:55 > 0:28:00She became a fixture. She was brilliant and enormously inventive.
0:28:00 > 0:28:06I certainly didn't have any formal art training. I left school at 14.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10That was it. But it was just that I enjoyed making things.
0:28:10 > 0:28:13Terrible scissors!
0:28:13 > 0:28:16It takes about a week to work it out
0:28:16 > 0:28:19and try different ways to do it,
0:28:19 > 0:28:25a week to do the different stages and get it ready - a fortnight on average.
0:28:25 > 0:28:28Try it against your face...
0:28:28 > 0:28:33'I still find, if I go to the shops and see the new containers,
0:28:33 > 0:28:35'I get ideas like that.
0:28:35 > 0:28:40'I have to twist them round to see if they look like an animal or a mask.'
0:28:40 > 0:28:43I see the customers looking at me,
0:28:43 > 0:28:48but I've also had a security guard looking at me once.
0:28:48 > 0:28:52I decided to leave before it got too embarrassing,
0:28:52 > 0:28:54and he followed me out.
0:28:54 > 0:28:58So it is a bit dodgy sometimes!
0:28:58 > 0:29:02Reacting to Thunderbirds fever in 1993
0:29:02 > 0:29:06triggered Blue Peter's most famous make - Tracy Island.
0:29:06 > 0:29:10ANTHEA: We knew it was going to be a very good make,
0:29:10 > 0:29:15because everybody was so interested in Thunderbirds.
0:29:15 > 0:29:21But we didn't know HOW big it would be. It was the talking point of the nation!
0:29:21 > 0:29:25I haven't made a Tracy Island for five weeks!
0:29:25 > 0:29:31700 makes later, Margaret is still finding uses for detergent bottles.
0:29:31 > 0:29:38Live battles with sticky-backed plastic are not all the presenters have to contend with.
0:29:38 > 0:29:40There was no turning back.
0:29:40 > 0:29:48'I did the thing. I've got to say I was scared - no question about it. I'm proud that I didn't chicken out.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50'It was total stupidity not to.'
0:29:50 > 0:29:53Here I go!
0:29:56 > 0:30:02'That was scary. I reached nowhere near the cars to cushion the blow.'
0:30:02 > 0:30:06The second before you hit the ramp, you want to go back.
0:30:06 > 0:30:11'At that point you think, "I'm going to die now."
0:30:11 > 0:30:16'Then you didn't die and you think, "What am I moaning about?"'
0:30:16 > 0:30:20Danger money! Never heard of it!
0:30:20 > 0:30:23Not a penny!
0:30:23 > 0:30:30I had fear...twice. Once was a kid's swing, would you believe!
0:30:30 > 0:30:32Oh, dear!
0:30:32 > 0:30:36Ahhh! This is painful!
0:30:38 > 0:30:41I'm hitting the trees! Ahhh!
0:30:41 > 0:30:44'The worst one
0:30:44 > 0:30:49'was these three giant sway-poles, they usually went up to 80 feet
0:30:49 > 0:30:52'but these just had 60 feet.
0:30:52 > 0:30:58'Fear is probably the most terrifying emotion you can actually have.
0:30:58 > 0:31:03'You freeze up, you can't think straight, your muscles don't work.'
0:31:03 > 0:31:08At the bottom, there was a concrete block that was full of dirty water.
0:31:08 > 0:31:11SQUEAKING
0:31:11 > 0:31:14I was terrified! I really was!
0:31:14 > 0:31:20My mouth is so dry I can hardly talk. Hang on, there's some water here.
0:31:20 > 0:31:24I had to swill my mouth out in order to talk.
0:31:24 > 0:31:26'That is fear!'
0:31:26 > 0:31:30I would never like to go through it again.
0:31:30 > 0:31:35It was heading along and then I heard a terrific crash!
0:31:39 > 0:31:44I could only see a shattered hull - the remains of Val's boat.
0:31:44 > 0:31:52'Later, I was told that when the engine had broken, it had flipped back and torn my seat'
0:31:52 > 0:31:57to shreds - it was within that much of tearing my back to pieces!
0:31:57 > 0:32:01INSTRUCTOR: Ready! Set! Go!
0:32:05 > 0:32:10'I was hurtling earthwards at 120mph and it was fantastic!
0:32:10 > 0:32:15'I'm a great coward and I also don't like heights.'
0:32:16 > 0:32:22It was amusing to see me going, "How high? I'll go up!" because not in real life.
0:32:22 > 0:32:26The real Janet Ellis came down to Earth with a bump -
0:32:26 > 0:32:31she broke her leg while training for a record and wanted to give up.
0:32:31 > 0:32:37Biddy said, "We'd like you to carry on. How do you feel?" I explained that I was reluctant.
0:32:37 > 0:32:42She said, "I want to think of your courage like a ketchup bottle,
0:32:42 > 0:32:48if there's only a bit left, turn it upside down and shake it. I'm sure some'll come out!"
0:32:48 > 0:32:51It did, I suppose!
0:32:51 > 0:32:54Enough to jump into the records.
0:32:54 > 0:32:59She was the first civilian woman to freefall from 20,000 feet.
0:33:00 > 0:33:05'We jumped nearly four miles above the ground.'
0:33:06 > 0:33:11'I always felt, as a girl, that I wanted to do everything.'
0:33:11 > 0:33:17I didn't see why girls shouldn't do everything.
0:33:17 > 0:33:23We had role reversal on Blue Peter years before it became common in programmes.
0:33:23 > 0:33:28MUSICL: You've Got To Roll With It by Oasis.
0:33:44 > 0:33:46I'll give you the ingredients.
0:33:46 > 0:33:50Can you imagine the postmen delivering this!
0:33:50 > 0:33:51Careful!
0:33:51 > 0:33:54You don't have to put it through the blender.
0:33:54 > 0:33:57"Souflett" is what it's called!
0:33:57 > 0:34:04Probably the most extreme example of role reversal was when viewers gained a TV brother.
0:34:04 > 0:34:07'I thought it'd be a switch-off
0:34:07 > 0:34:12for boys if Valerie Singleton was holding a baby.
0:34:12 > 0:34:18So, the idea was that John and Peter would look after Daniel.
0:34:18 > 0:34:23Ahh! Fat, hairy thing! Daniel, send them away!
0:34:27 > 0:34:29But pioneering ideas
0:34:29 > 0:34:35didn't prevent criticisms that it was old-fashioned - unlike its ITV rival.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43Magpie was a show I watched as a kid.
0:34:43 > 0:34:49Blue Peter didn't say anything for me growing up in Leeds as a working class kid.
0:34:49 > 0:34:53It always seemed a little bit too middle class.
0:34:53 > 0:34:59They always said, "Go up into the loft and find some crepe paper."
0:34:59 > 0:35:04We didn't have a loft. I lived in a council house near Castleford.
0:35:04 > 0:35:10There aren't enough middle class children to make up the viewing figures. We know that's nonsense.
0:35:10 > 0:35:16That has been proved by the contact we've had from viewers.
0:35:16 > 0:35:20These were sent in after the garden was vandalised.
0:35:20 > 0:35:26Blue Peter wasn't above cashing in on other programmes' bright ideas - like the garden.
0:35:26 > 0:35:31'I nicked it from Magpie.
0:35:31 > 0:35:34'We always monitored the opposition.
0:35:34 > 0:35:36'One of our great strengths was
0:35:36 > 0:35:42that we saw things through - if we decided to do something, we did it.'
0:35:42 > 0:35:47The Correspondence Unit has always played a crucial role.
0:35:47 > 0:35:54A record is kept of every letter to avoid sending out identical replies if a child writes more than once.
0:35:54 > 0:36:02Biddy began the system to avoid the disappointment she'd felt after writing to Enid Blyton.
0:36:02 > 0:36:07'I remember going to my mother in tears.
0:36:07 > 0:36:12'It was an identical letter to the first one. It was simply awful.'
0:36:12 > 0:36:18Whenever a viewer writes, they receive a personal reply.
0:36:18 > 0:36:22It is a truly interactive programme, with the target audience,
0:36:22 > 0:36:28ie children, interactive before its time - before the word was used.
0:36:28 > 0:36:34I've got some news about your letters because we've got an unusual programme today.
0:36:34 > 0:36:39Nearly every item is hinged on your ideas and suggestions you've sent us.
0:36:39 > 0:36:41'About 70% of the ideas
0:36:41 > 0:36:47'in each programme came directly or indirectly from viewers' letters.'
0:36:51 > 0:36:54"Vogue" by Madonna
0:36:57 > 0:37:03When Caron Keating's desire to follow the '80s fashion trends brought in large numbers of letters,
0:37:03 > 0:37:09the programme turned the complaints to its advantage.
0:37:09 > 0:37:14They had a competition to design an outfit. They had 97,000 entries.
0:37:14 > 0:37:19I chose, I think, the most inventive one I could find.
0:37:19 > 0:37:24Most people who watch Blue Peter, at any point in their lives,
0:37:24 > 0:37:28have not only sat and watched it - they've been involved in it.
0:37:28 > 0:37:31They've contributed to an appeal,
0:37:31 > 0:37:37made something they've seen, they've visited a place they've seen.
0:37:37 > 0:37:41'The key to its success
0:37:41 > 0:37:45'is the involvement that everybody has in the programme.'
0:37:45 > 0:37:52We're calling it our Rags Appeal because that's what we want - rags. We want old wool and cotton.
0:37:52 > 0:37:59We want you to collect them and send them to us. Every can will turn into money.
0:38:00 > 0:38:08The philosophy of the Blue Peter appeals has always been for every viewer to take part,
0:38:08 > 0:38:13not just to raise the maximum amount of money.
0:38:13 > 0:38:15Years before TV appealery
0:38:15 > 0:38:21had become commonplace, Blue Peter had been raising millions of pounds.
0:38:23 > 0:38:31It had to be something where children could make a difference and have some sense of empowerment.
0:38:33 > 0:38:40The 1979 appeal reacted to the devastation in Cambodia
0:38:40 > 0:38:42caused by Pol Pot.
0:38:42 > 0:38:47I think we were the first people to film there since John Pilger.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50It was quite a struggle to get in.
0:38:50 > 0:38:57It obviously touched the hearts of the nation because we had a phenomenal response.
0:38:57 > 0:39:03An extraordinary £3 million was raised. It bought food, equipment and lorries.
0:39:03 > 0:39:07Nine years later,
0:39:07 > 0:39:12Blue Peter returned when more help was needed.
0:39:12 > 0:39:17'You could see what an enormous change a programme could make.
0:39:17 > 0:39:23'We got stuck in mud and people came out to dig the Land Rover out.
0:39:23 > 0:39:29'They had hoes from ten years ago still with the Blue Peter stickers.
0:39:29 > 0:39:31'I've been in Oxfam shops'
0:39:31 > 0:39:36where I've seen kids in tears, giving away their favourite toy.
0:39:36 > 0:39:40They didn't understand what was going on,
0:39:40 > 0:39:45but they realised that they could help another girl or boy.
0:39:45 > 0:39:50You've done it! You've made £1 million!
0:39:50 > 0:39:55Your bring-and-buy sales have raised this enormous amount. Well done.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58Blue Peter thrives on tradition.
0:39:58 > 0:40:03Its cyclical nature is not only demonstrated by the appeals
0:40:03 > 0:40:07but by the favourite items that return.
0:40:07 > 0:40:09Not coming in, Leslie?
0:40:09 > 0:40:14No! There's a rule saying ladies can't swim in the Serpentine in winter!
0:40:14 > 0:40:17'This was the moment of truth!
0:40:19 > 0:40:22'It was colder than I'd expected!
0:40:22 > 0:40:28'You had to be hardy to be a member of the Serpentine Swimming Club!'
0:40:28 > 0:40:34Biddy decided to do this film which had been done with John Noakes.
0:40:34 > 0:40:40"You'd like to do it, wouldn't you?" I said, "I can't think of anything worse!" She said, "It'll be great!"
0:40:40 > 0:40:45I just couldn't jump in. Caron jumped in.
0:40:45 > 0:40:51It was like instant frostbite on my foot. I thought, "What's that going to do to other parts?"
0:40:51 > 0:40:56Finally, I jump in. I couldn't breathe.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59I was just going, "Ahhh! Ahhhh!"
0:40:59 > 0:41:02When Biddy saw it,
0:41:02 > 0:41:06she said, "You stupid boy! What's the matter with you?
0:41:06 > 0:41:13"John Noakes went up and down." I said, "He would, that's typical! At least it's different, Biddy!"
0:41:13 > 0:41:16STARTING PISTOL
0:41:16 > 0:41:23A new challenge for the men began in 1981 with the first London Marathon.
0:41:26 > 0:41:32It was probably the first time I'd been out of the studio to see how the power of TV works -
0:41:32 > 0:41:38to run 26 miles through London and see those people cheering.
0:41:38 > 0:41:41It felt like my marathon. That was special.
0:41:41 > 0:41:48Outside of the studio, leaving TV Centre, you did want to take it all off -
0:41:48 > 0:41:52take off the guise of the Blue Peter presenter.
0:41:52 > 0:41:57There are things that happen to you where you were forced to do that.
0:41:57 > 0:42:02If you nearly get run over and you scream abuse at someone...
0:42:02 > 0:42:07It's a good feeling anyway, but when they look at you and think,
0:42:07 > 0:42:12"That was Sarah Greene, Blue Peter presenter, telling me to mmm off!"
0:42:12 > 0:42:15It has a double impact.
0:42:15 > 0:42:20One had to check that there wasn't a five-year-old standing in earshot,
0:42:20 > 0:42:23because you're kind of letting them down.
0:42:23 > 0:42:28My granny used to say you should always warm the pot first.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31'When children saw a presenter,
0:42:31 > 0:42:36'it was like an old friend. They'd start a conversation.'
0:42:36 > 0:42:39Those presenters were their friends.
0:42:39 > 0:42:44She said, "Whatever's going on in those children's lives,
0:42:44 > 0:42:49"whether their parents are fighting, or getting divorced -
0:42:49 > 0:42:56"I want you presenters there in their living rooms. You're going to be a stable influence."
0:42:56 > 0:43:04That stability was shaken periodically when a presenter decided to move on.
0:43:04 > 0:43:11'I left it too late, I should have left after seven years - I stayed ten and a half'
0:43:11 > 0:43:17It wasn't, "I've got to get away from this." It was, "I've stayed here too long.
0:43:17 > 0:43:22"I can't do a kids' programme all my life." I was 40!
0:43:22 > 0:43:27- What's in here? - It's to remind you. - Good heavens!
0:43:27 > 0:43:29LAUGHTER
0:43:29 > 0:43:32'Towards the end,'
0:43:32 > 0:43:35I was so tired, knackered.
0:43:35 > 0:43:42People used to say, "I wish I had your job!" I said, "You can have the bloomin' job - you can have it!"
0:43:42 > 0:43:44Percy Thrower!
0:43:44 > 0:43:52- Ohh, Percy!- You remember you gave me a surprise earlier in the year?
0:43:52 > 0:43:56Biddy couldn't accept that I would want to present any other programme.
0:43:56 > 0:43:59What more could somebody want?
0:43:59 > 0:44:04Then, when it transpired that it was another children's programme,
0:44:04 > 0:44:07that must have taken some getting over.
0:44:07 > 0:44:12Oh, dear. Look at this pink. Matches me hair!
0:44:12 > 0:44:17Blue Peter had shown that it could survive the loss of a presenter.
0:44:17 > 0:44:21But in 1988, Biddy herself decided to call it a day.
0:44:21 > 0:44:25Her deputy, Lewis Bronze, took over.
0:44:25 > 0:44:30- There you are. - You're so kind!
0:44:30 > 0:44:34It's a bit like, could we imagine life without Mrs Thatcher?
0:44:34 > 0:44:36Well, we could.
0:44:36 > 0:44:39We were all very nervous about it.
0:44:39 > 0:44:44I would have said it was on the verge of becoming a bit twee.
0:44:44 > 0:44:50And during my era there, with Lewis, it had more of an edge to it.
0:44:50 > 0:44:56- How long have these cracks been here?- A couple of weeks.
0:44:56 > 0:45:00I wanted to bring a slightly more topical, newsy...
0:45:00 > 0:45:06It's not a news programme, but I wanted a more topical edge.
0:45:06 > 0:45:11Nelson Mandela has claimed victory in South Africa's election.
0:45:11 > 0:45:15He tells his people they can now reclaim their country.
0:45:15 > 0:45:19..we can loudly proclaim from the rooftops...
0:45:19 > 0:45:22free at last.
0:45:23 > 0:45:28Under apartheid, Tim and I wouldn't be able to walk together.
0:45:28 > 0:45:32I would never have set foot in a black township like Soweto.
0:45:32 > 0:45:37We would have been forced to use separate buses and separate schools.
0:45:37 > 0:45:41Diane wouldn't have been able to go to a white town without permission.
0:45:41 > 0:45:47For a children's programme to do a trip, without being heavy about it,
0:45:47 > 0:45:51presenting the facts, to bring an issue up like that,
0:45:51 > 0:45:56in a way children can understand, is one of the strengths of Blue Peter.
0:45:56 > 0:46:00In a couple of weeks, there will be three Blue Peters a week.
0:46:00 > 0:46:05You can see from our clock which days they're going to be.
0:46:05 > 0:46:08The biggest change for Lewis came in 1995.
0:46:08 > 0:46:11It was a risk that paid off.
0:46:11 > 0:46:14Three times a week worked.
0:46:14 > 0:46:18The audience figures were fantastic for six months after we did it.
0:46:18 > 0:46:23When I left, I thought, "Go while you're ahead."
0:46:23 > 0:46:28During his eight years as editor, he's been known as "Funky Lou".
0:46:28 > 0:46:34Lewis Bronze is also credited with bringing in a more relaxed approach,
0:46:34 > 0:46:37behind and in front of the camera.
0:46:37 > 0:46:42- I'm going to miss the whole team. - 30 seconds on chat.
0:46:42 > 0:46:46- And, um... 30 seconds on chat?! - 30 seconds, Lewis!
0:46:46 > 0:46:49It's a great programme to work on, Tim.
0:46:49 > 0:46:53I love standing on telly with a pom-pom!
0:46:53 > 0:46:58His successor, Oliver MacFarlane, had also worked under Biddy Baxter.
0:46:58 > 0:47:03He had to face the challenge of cable and satellite channels.
0:47:03 > 0:47:08Can't the other three be a bit closer?
0:47:08 > 0:47:11PROMOTION: 'Digital television -
0:47:11 > 0:47:15'the biggest development in TV since the introduction of colour.'
0:47:17 > 0:47:23We'll need to adapt, but we're not going to rush along with the pack.
0:47:23 > 0:47:27Blue Peter has a website and its own CD-ROM.
0:47:27 > 0:47:32The programme can't dominate in a multi-channel world.
0:47:32 > 0:47:38But we can remain distinctive, and be a major voice for children.
0:47:38 > 0:47:43The days of one programme dominating the landscape are gone for ever.
0:47:43 > 0:47:46They'll never come back.
0:47:46 > 0:47:51No programme could become today, starting from scratch,
0:47:51 > 0:47:54what Blue Peter was in the '60s and '70s.
0:47:54 > 0:47:59I think, as long as BBC ONE exists, Blue Peter will exist.
0:47:59 > 0:48:02It may change its transmission times,
0:48:02 > 0:48:05or its shape, or its presenters.
0:48:05 > 0:48:08But there will always be Blue Peter.
0:48:08 > 0:48:12It will always provide that public service -
0:48:12 > 0:48:15informational cornerstone to BBC children's programmes.
0:48:37 > 0:48:40Subtitles by Red Bee Media