Sky One gets a new look
With a new season of television programmes imminent, Sky One have decided that the time is right to change their style. Peter Moore explains more
Just as September heralds the start of a new academic year, it also ushers in the beginning of a new wave of television programming. The nation’s most prominent channels frequently use the autumnal season to promote their latest series and, of course, with the full fanfare of an elephant parade the top sports providers unveil their all-new coverage of the new sporting seasons.
Along with the barrage of new programmes, new presenters and new action, one of the leading digital channels, Sky One, has undergone a thorough makeover. Traditionally considered an afterthought in Sky’s programming selection, suffering in the shadows of Sky Movies and Sky Sports, Sky One has undergone something of a renaissance during the past eighteen months.
The catalyst for this change seems to have been the appointment of Richard Woolfe, the former controller of Living TV, as the channel’s boss in early 2006. During his tenure, Woolfe has re-organised the rather cluttered schedule of Sky One, which traditionally hid behind thousands of Simpson repeats, and encouraged a rich blend of new programming: from the return of the clinging lycra of The Gladiators, to the exploits of Ross Kemp with the British Army in Afghanistan.
Woolfe’s achievements at Sky One were recently recognised that the ‘Broadcast Digital Channel Awards’ where they received the winning accolade as the top digital channel. As a reward, it seems that Sky bosses have bestowed a thorough paint-job on the Sky One image, which has seen the website and logo disappear under a new colour scheme of midnight blue and black and punctuated by floating airborne ice cubes.
So, times look exciting at Sky One, and a cursory look over their programming schedule reveals a host of autumnal treats just waiting to be dispatched. There is a second series of The Gladiators, a new series of Ross Kemp on Gangs, a new series of Lost and the musical Hairspray. All in all, it seems that the return to the office, the school or the university can be stomached much better with the return of quality British broadcasting.
Keep up the good work.