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BBC1 Schools (1974) Colour came to BBC Schools in 1974, and with it the much-loved BBC Schools Diamond which captivated pupils with a mesmerising 2-minute performance. Firstly, the diamond formed from the middle, and remained static for a while. One minute in, it pulsated constantly before breaking up into smaller diamonds at 30 seconds, then petering out.

BBC1 Schools Primary (1975) When the BBC1 logo changed, the diamond survived but adopted the new colours. Note the BBC1 logo was in yellow and not the usual white. Two pieces of music were used with the Diamond, depending on whether the following programme was for secondary or primary-age audiences. The track used before primary series was "Sara's Tune" by David Lord, which can be heard here.

BBC1 Schools Secondary (1975) And this is "A Tune For Lucy", the more sombre tune heard before programmes aimed at older pupils. It was composed by Inigo Kilborn. This longer clip dates from 1977.

BBC1 Schools Clock (1975) During Schools transmissions the ident on the clock was yellow, not white as usual. Presumably to maintain a sense of uniformity.

BBC1 Announcement For Teachers A (1977) A few seconds in hand before the next programme; so John Glover tells us about a new series coming soon to BBC2. One of several slides used for such announcements.

BBC1 Schools (1977) The diamond was ditched altogether in September 1977 and replaced by a countdown clock, affectionately known as "the dots" for obvious reasons. Initially the centre ident revolved, as seen here. The music is "Justine" by the Bruno Nicolai Orchestra.

BBC1 Schools (1978) By Summer Term 1978 the centre ident became static. Did the model break, or were teachers complaining about mass hypnosis of pupils? Left: One of the best-known Schools tunes accompanies this, "Bart" from Ruby. Right: swing vibes arrangement of the "Gardening Time" theme

BBC1 Schools (1981) From 1977, standard BBC1 programme captions filled the intervals until there was a minute to go. Enjoy this example which leads into the clock; the delightful music is "Fascinating Rhythm" by George and Ira Gershwin.

BBC1 Schools (1981)  In 1981 BBC1 changed its logo, and the dots altered accordingly. The music is from the synthesisers of legendary French bandleader, Roger Roger.

BBC1 Schools (1982) Just three months after the previous dots made their debut, this computer-generated version (the final one used) sported a new ident and dots which faded to black rather than disappeared.

BBC2 Schools (1983) Occasionally, schools programmes moved to BBC2 because of events such as elections and the State Opening of Parliament. This provided an opportunity to see the rarely-shown BBC2 version of the schools dots! Basically the BBC1 version with a =2= logo overlaid - only here someone forgets to key it on...

BBC Schools Is Moving (1983) From September 1983, schools would move permanently to BBC2 and this promo advises teachers of the move. The new interval sequence sounds confusing - whose idea was it to get rid of the countdown?

Daytime on 2 (1983) And so, schools switched to BBC2 under the banner "Daytime on 2". Despite our protests the dots didn't survive, instead was this special version of the BBC2 logo.

Daytime on Two (1988) BBC2's upmarket new look in April 1986 marked the end of special presentation for schools programmes. From now on, the usual logo would introduce programmes. But around 1988 a 15-second countdown was introduced - sometimes (as here) not seen in its entirety.

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