Happy 100 Shipping Forecast
The BBC's Shipping Forecast is 100 years old this week, and it still is being broadcasted late night on BBC Radio 4.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0h2m59v
The shipping forecast on radio is 100 years old. The forecast was first broadcast on BBC radio back in 1924. At the time, it was called “weather shipping” and was relayed from the powerful Air Ministry transmitter in London and reached up to 2,400 miles in the west and 2,000 miles in the south.
Ronald Binge - Sailing By
This is "Sailing By" composed by Ronald Binge in 1963, and performed by the Alan Perry/William Gardner Orchestra, and is the version used by the BBC for its late night shipping forecast.
Sailing By is played every night on BBC Radio 4 at around 00:45hrs before the late Shipping Forecast. Its tune is repetitive, assisting in its role of serving as a signal for sailors tuning in to be able to easily identify the radio station. It also functions as a buffer - depending on when the final programme before closedown finishes, Sailing By (or part of it) is played as a 'filler' as the shipping forecast starts at 00:48hrs precisely. The initial reason for its introduction was because of the indeterminate finish time for the preceding Midnight News, leading to filling music being played until the Shipping Forecast was due to start. Sailing By was added to allow for a clear break between the end of the music and the start of the forecast.
Shipping Forecast read by Peter Jefferson
Peter Jefferson reads the shipping forecast on BBC Radio 4 on 12 March 1998.
ENJOY
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0h2m59v
The shipping forecast on radio is 100 years old. The forecast was first broadcast on BBC radio back in 1924. At the time, it was called “weather shipping” and was relayed from the powerful Air Ministry transmitter in London and reached up to 2,400 miles in the west and 2,000 miles in the south.
Ronald Binge - Sailing By
Click to viewThis is "Sailing By" composed by Ronald Binge in 1963, and performed by the Alan Perry/William Gardner Orchestra, and is the version used by the BBC for its late night shipping forecast.
Sailing By is played every night on BBC Radio 4 at around 00:45hrs before the late Shipping Forecast. Its tune is repetitive, assisting in its role of serving as a signal for sailors tuning in to be able to easily identify the radio station. It also functions as a buffer - depending on when the final programme before closedown finishes, Sailing By (or part of it) is played as a 'filler' as the shipping forecast starts at 00:48hrs precisely. The initial reason for its introduction was because of the indeterminate finish time for the preceding Midnight News, leading to filling music being played until the Shipping Forecast was due to start. Sailing By was added to allow for a clear break between the end of the music and the start of the forecast.
Shipping Forecast read by Peter Jefferson
Peter Jefferson reads the shipping forecast on BBC Radio 4 on 12 March 1998.
ENJOY