BBC2 | Closedown | Engineering Test | 4th / 5th December 1987

Manhattan slide
Saturday menu
BBC2 clock and closedown
Following a couple of minutes of black level and tone there is part of an engineering test

[@nowster]

This is one of the early scrambling tests for what was eventually going to be BBC Select. If you apply a ring modulator at approx 13kHz you might be able to decode the audio.

[@AIOctober]

This is an amazing discovery. Can't even imagine how weirded out a younger viewer who may of woken up in the middle of the night and put the TV on at this time out of curiosity must of thought... x)

[@duncanpriestley964]

I was a young viewer who did EXACTLY that. Yes, I WAS weirded out by this! Can't believe I'm actually watching it all these years later.

[@brucedanton3669]

Thank you for this. I vaguely now remember around this time, in Autumn 1987 late at night on BBC2 (I am not sure about BBC1 though) that they would have these scrambled engineering tests on after Closedown, of course. I did not see this one at the time for sure, but I am sure I remember one from either October or November that year (not of course too sure of the date though) which featured these sort of odd goings on. If you notice closely, the time is featured underneath the Engineering Tests on the screen. I must have recorded it at the time I guess (I am sure I would not have seen it on then as I guess I would have been in bed asleep surely), and then seen it in the daytime I guess too. But of course these were shown at night time; also they were not listed in the Radio Times, the papers or elsewhere at the time too oddly. Well done!!

[@brucedanton3669]

Also, I remember on the old computer I had some years ago (I now have a newer one) I am sure there was another film or video on You Tube then (perhaps not now though) by a Victoria someone (don't remember the surname) which had a similar film from the time and I am sure I left a comment on that one at the time too. I don't know too whether that one is still on You Tube or perhaps by now it has been deleted though.Thank you!!

[@j0hnf_uk]

I remember watching this back in the day. I also took some still photos of it, (during the parts when it wasn't encoded), but still had the, 'ENGINEERING TEST', superimposed over the top of it.

[@paulsawtell3991]

Good to hear Peter Bolgar. A true BBC voice.

[@TheBadfighta]

The 70s dancers might be The Young Generation.

[@brucedanton3669]

The odd thing here too was that all this as I said before was not mentioned by the announcer at closedown, nor was it listed in the Radio Times or papers then either. I guess of course it was presumed that people would have turned off and been asleep in bed anyway! I think I vaguely remember I may have been watching if at all then Night Network, a series that was then on ITV at the time, so I may have switched over and seen this too-but I am not sure though too? Thank you!

[@brucedanton3669]

As it was when ITV had started at least in London night time tv as well as in the daytime, and they were the first channel in Britain really to do so then. BBC1, BBC2, Channel 4, Channel 5, S4C as the other channels did not do so until much later on in time of course so too then.

[@timg5tm941]

I used to wake up at 6am for my paper round about then and saw these test transmissions on bbc2

[@GeoNeilUK]

It looks and sounds a bit like scrambled Canal+. I wonder if it might have been a test of their system over PAL instead of SECAM. I wondered at the time why the BBC didn't just use VideoCrypt as used by Sky at the time, but Sky/News Corporation oend the patents on VideoCrypt, so I guess licensing fees and just now anting to be associated with Rupert Murdoch might have had something to do with it.

[@steeviebops]

Discret was the scrambling system used here. Horribly insecure even by 1987 - it was hacked within months of Canal+ introducing it in 1984. I believe the BBC did use Discret for some programming in the late 80s, before BBC Select. Select used VideoCrypt-S which was a line-shuffle variant of VideoCrypt. which was consider better for terrestrial transmission than the standard line cut-and-rotate version used on satellite - that didn't stop Sky NZ using the cut-and-rotate version on terrestrial though.

[@johnjohn-op1mo]

it was for British medical TV and of course BBC select

[@AntonFanify]

Peter Bolgar on announcing duty.

[@JoeScaramanga]

That well known director "Lewis Bunwell"...

[@GeoNeilUK]

Don Jew-On

[@CherryTerrier]

I understand what this is supposed to be but man this is one cursed clip. The nature documentary sounds like a robot dog sniffing, then later on it sounds like cartoon alien noises. Interesting find though.

[@rogerdarthwell5393]

Nice recording

[@homemediaandcoinsgalore]

8:14 Wait what?! 😨