BBC Archive
Welcome to the BBC Archive.
Hop aboard an audiovisual time machine, that will transport you back to the golden age of TV.
Whether you are looking for some childhood nostalgia (clackers - remember them?), interviews with legends from the worlds of cinema, music and sport, or want to discover how revolutions in technology, science, art and politics shaped our modern world, we've got you covered.
Perhaps you just want to see a funny skateboarding duck? You've come to the right place.
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1989: With VHS sales increasing rapidly, Barry Norman asked whether people would want to own their favourite films on video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4g48...
1 week ago | [YT] | 348
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1976 David Hockney was profiled on The Book Programme - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pp7E...
1 week ago | [YT] | 129
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1986 Ian Botham faced a barrage of no-holds barred questions from a group of young people in Scotland. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak9mM...
2 weeks ago | [YT] | 162
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1972 we learned about the novel methods of communication between the keepers of the Longships Lighthouse off the coast of Cornwall, and their wives on the nearby shore - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6R5l...
3 weeks ago | [YT] | 365
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1973 we visited the Uplands Allotment in Handsworth, on the northwestern edge of Birmingham - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wci-...
3 weeks ago | [YT] | 167
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1949 BBC Newsreel first broadcast this beautiful film showing the potato harvest on the Isle of Arran off the west coast of Scotland - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wsMn...
3 weeks ago | [YT] | 424
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1974 we first met radio DJ Deke Duncan who broadcast from his shed radio to his audience of one, his wife! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUNwD...
*Deke Duncan did eventually go on to fulfil his "ultimate ambition to broadcast to the rest of Stevenage".
BBC Three Counties Radio tracked him down after this Nationwide clip was posted on social media by BBC Archive, which led to him presenting a one-hour special on the station during Christmas in 2018: www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-463…
3 weeks ago | [YT] | 237
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BBC Archive
Conservationist Dame Jane Goodall, a world-leading expert on chimpanzees, has died aged 91.
In 1986 she spoke to Terry Wogan about how similar chimps and humans really are: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ohQC...
1 month ago | [YT] | 630
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BBC Archive
Actress Julie Andrews famous for her roles in My Fair Lady, Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music to name but a few, celebrates her 90th birthday on 1 October 2025. The BBC image archive holds photographs from throughout her career which has spanned more than 70 years.
Image details...
1. A young Julie Andrews performing in Radiolympia Showtime, broadcast on BBC television, 8 October 1949.
2. Julie Andrews singing whilst accompanied by the Ray Terry Orchestra and the George Mitchell Mariners for ‘Let’s All Go Down The Thames’, broadcast on the Light Programme, 5 June 1953.
3. Julie Andrews performing in Top of the Town, broadcast on The Light Programme, 8 November 1953.
4. Julie Andrews (far left) starring in ‘The Gentle Flame’, a Christmas Eve musical playlet written for television and broadcast on BBC One, 24 December 1959.
5. Desert Island Discs host Sue Lawley with Julie Andrews in 1992. Andrews talked about her life and career and chose the eight records she would take with her to a desert island. First broadcast on Radio 4, 18 October 1992. This episode is available to listen to on BBC Sounds.
6. Dame Julie Andrews being interviewed by Sophie Raworth for the Andrew Marr Show, broadcast on BBC 1, 31 January 2010.
1 month ago | [YT] | 796
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay in 1976 Baroness Floella Benjamin first appeared on Play School.
Now 49 years later, the iconic children’s TV presenter is back! A new generation of children will get to know Floella’s warmth and charm as she guests on CBeebies House: Time to Play with Evie Pickerill.
This digital-first series is available on CBeebies iPlayer and YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhw_X...
1 month ago | [YT] | 852
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