BBC One is the BBC’s main channel, broadcasting mainstream comedy, drama, documentaries, films and the home of their television news, sport and children’s programmes. BBC One is the oldest television station in the United Kingdom, and indeed, the world.
It is the primary channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation, and was first broadcast as the ‘BBC Television Service’ on November 2, 1936, although the BBC had been broadcasting experimental and test transmissions in a variety of formats since 1929.
The station held a complete monopoly on television broadcasting in the United Kingdom until ITV was launched in 1955.
BBC One’s history goes hand in hand with that of the history and development of television as a whole.
BBC One was from its launch in 1936 until 1964 known as The BBC Television Service, the worlds first regular television service.
BBC One began broadcasting on digital satellite in 1998 on the Sky Digital platform, the station was encrypted until 2003, when all BBC channels began broadcasting free-to-air.
There are 18 variations of BBC One available in Standard Definition:
BBC One Scotland
BBC One Wales
BBC One Northern Ireland
BBC One London
BBC One West Midlands
BBC One East Midlands
BBC One North West
BBC One East Yorkshire & Lincolnshire
BBC One Yorkshire & North Midlands
BBC One East
BBC One West
BBC One South East
BBC One South
BBC One South West
BBC One North East & Cumbria
BBC One Oxford
BBC One Cambridge
BBC One Channel Islands
BBC One HD
There are national variations of BBC One HD available:
BBC One England
BBC One Scotland
BBC One Wales
BBC One Northern Ireland.
Most of BBC One HD’s output is ‘National BBC One’.
BBC One HD is available on Freeview, Freesat, Sky and cable.
See the BBC One website for more information.
