Â鶹Éç

The Â鶹Éç Heritage website, now called The Â鶹Éç Story, will relaunch in September and offer users a richer experience in terms of new content and design.

The new site will give audiences a greater insight into the Â鶹Éç and provide a range of dynamic routes into the unique history of the corporation.

The site was soft launched in June 2009, and has already proved very popular with users; during its first feature on the Â鶹Éç homepage the site generated more than 3,000 page impressions.

The official site launch will be in September 2009 to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War on 3 September 1939 – a seminal moment in Â鶹Éç's history which transformed the corporation's profile and its public impact.

Other Â鶹Éç "great moments" to be celebrated on the site will include the appearance of Elizabeth Cowell, the first female TV announcer in 1936 (with behind-the-scenes footage including her wardrobe test – never before broadcast on the Â鶹Éç), the 40th anniversary of Monty Python's Flying Circus, the info text innovation that was Ceefax, and the 25th anniversary of the Â鶹Éç's most popular soap ever, EastEnders.

Robert Seatter, Head of Â鶹Éç History, said: "The history of the Â鶹Éç is the nation's history, and we wanted to reflect that in the new site, offering topical stories as well as a chance for audiences to tell us how the Â鶹Éç has touched their lives.

"We hope that everyone will find something to engage with in the new site – whether they are looking for in-depth media history, access to our many historical collections, or simply the opportunity to find out something more about their Â鶹Éç."

The site aims to:

• Make Â鶹Éç History relevant and engaging by connecting the past to the present and future
• Enable audiences to reflect on what the Â鶹Éç has meant to them
• Offer wider access to the corporation's unique collection of objects, artefacts, photos and artworks
• Provide a learning resource for users who want to find out more about broadcast history
• Deliver a future platform for enhanced partnership with other broadcast history agencies, such as the National Media Museum and the BFI

New features of the site include:

• Interactive History Of Innovation timeline that takes you on a journey through the Â鶹Éç's pioneering work from 1922 right up to the present day and the corporation's latest creative and technological innovations
• Weekly Great Moments celebration, highlighting key Â鶹Éç anniversaries with TV/audio clips with short interpretation texts which explain their legacy in terms of contemporary broadcasting
• Direct link to Memory Share, the interactive part of the site where people can read, upload, or comment on the most memorable moments in their lives as well as research events that are linked to relevant material dating back as far as the 1900s
• Access to Â鶹Éç Collections via a weekly feature on an object from the Â鶹Éç's range of props, technological artefacts and artworks
• Changing online photo galleries from the Â鶹Éç's unique stills library including many photos that have never been previously released to the general public
• Video tours of the Â鶹Éç's most significant historical buildings: Broadcasting House, the iconic home of Â鶹Éç Radio, and Â鶹Éç Television Centre, the first ever purpose-built television studio complex in the world
• Range of learning articles, from case studies of the Â鶹Éç's editorial independence to the Â鶹Éç at war
• An improved look and feel, with enhanced graphics and a new page layout that makes it easier to navigate

The site is a valuable resource for licence fee payers and can be used by:

• Anyone who is interested in finding out more about the Â鶹Éç
• Teachers/students (any age) to support learning programmes
• Historians/heritage enthusiasts
• Other agencies, eg museums

Notes to Editors

The Â鶹Éç Story site is part of a wider Â鶹Éç History strategy, which is led by Robert Seatter, Head of Â鶹Éç History.

Forthcoming activities include Â鶹Éç anniversary seasons on and off-air, an enhanced partnership with the National Media Museum, interpretation tours of Â鶹Éç buildings, and new history publications.

The newly launched website can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/historyofthebbc/.

Â鶹Éç Press Office