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BBC Parliament is a British

free-to-air Free-to-air (FTA) services are television (TV) and radio services broadcast in unencrypted form, allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring a subscripti ...

public broadcast television channel from the

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that broadcasts live and recorded coverage of the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

and

Select Committees Select or SELECT may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Select'' (album), an album by Kim Wilde * ''Select'' (magazine), a British music magazine * ''MTV Select'', a television program * ''Select Live'', New Zealand's C4 music program ...

of the

British Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...

, the Scottish Parliament, the London Assembly, the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Welsh Senedd. As of January 2022, the channel had a typical weekly peak of approximately 120,000 viewers, during

Prime Minister's Questions Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs, officially known as Questions to the Prime Minister, while colloquially known as Prime Minister's Question Time) is a constitutional convention in the United Kingdom, currently held as a single session every W ...

, representing a monthly reach of 5.41% of UK TV households and 0.06% overall share. When the channel is not broadcasting parliamentary content, it simulcasts the

BBC News channel BBC News (also known as the BBC News Channel) is a British free-to-air public broadcast television news channel for BBC News. It was launched as BBC News 24 on 9 November 1997 at 5:30 pm as part of the BBC's foray into digital domestic telev ...

History

Before being taken over by the BBC, the channel was known as the Parliamentary Channel, operated by United Artists Cable and funded by a consortium of British cable operators. The Parliamentary Channel launched as a cable-exclusive channel on 13 January 1992. The channel was purchased by the BBC in 1998, retitled BBC Parliament and relaunched on 23 September 1998. It now broadcasts on cable, satellite, and Freeview. The channel ran as an audio service via DAB from launch until 14 November 2000. Due to capacity limitations on the

digital terrestrial television Digital terrestrial television (DTTV or DTT, or DTTB with "broadcasting") is a technology for terrestrial television in which land-based (terrestrial) television stations broadcast television content by radio waves to televisions in consumers' ...

platform, now known as Freeview, from launch until 30 October 2002, the channel ran as "audio only". Then on Freeview from October 2002 until 13 November 2006 the channel was only able to broadcast a quarter-screen picture. After receiving "thousands of angry and perplexed

email Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages ("mail") between people using electronic devices. Email was thus conceived as the electronic ( digital) version of, or counterpart to, mail, at a time when "mail" mean ...

s and letters", not to mention questions asked by MPs in the House itself, the BBC eventually found the

bandwidth Bandwidth commonly refers to: * Bandwidth (signal processing) or ''analog bandwidth'', ''frequency bandwidth'', or ''radio bandwidth'', a measure of the width of a frequency range * Bandwidth (computing), the rate of data transfer, bit rate or thr ...

to make the channel full-screen. Until 2008, BBC Parliament was unique amongst the BBC channels in being broadcast using non-BBC facilities, with ITV's Millbank Studios in

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

supplying the engineering and

playout In broadcasting, channel playout is the generation of the source signal of a radio or television channel produced by a broadcaster, coupled with the transmission of this signal for primary distribution or direct-to-audience distribution via any ...

facilities. Production, editorial and journalism were, however, maintained by the BBC. The previous idents, also based on a Big Ben clock motif ran from 2009 to 2016. This replaced the channel's previous identity which was first introduced in 2002. BBC Parliament was taken off the air during the 2012 Summer Olympics on Freeview in post- digital switchover areas to enable BBC Three to broadcast 24 hours a day. The BBC had done the same during the 2008 Summer Olympics as it used the space to provide an additional

BBC Red Button BBC Red Button is a brand used for digital interactive television services provided by the BBC, and broadcast in the United Kingdom. The services replaced Ceefax, the BBC's analogue teletext service. BBC Red Button's text services were due to c ...

option for Freeview users. BBC Parliament HD has been confirmed as launching from 20 October 2021 and rolling out across various platforms at different times right up to the end of 2022, the standard definition service will continue on Freeview. This has been the case since 10 December 2013 when

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, cur ...

, BBC Four,

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

, CBBC, and

Cbeebies CBeebies is a British free-to-air public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 years and under. Its sister channel CBBC is aimed at older childr ...

began high definition

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simulta ...

s. On 5 September 2016 BBC Two began broadcasting BBC Parliament during BBC Two's overnight downtime. However this was short-lived and has subsequently been discontinued. On 14 October 2016, the channel received a new look and new idents, its first revamp since 2009. The channel's current identity went live on Monday 10 October 2016 with refreshed music and idents based on clock workings, with colours and images derived from the flags and assemblies of the British home countries and the European Parliament. In July 2018, the BBC announced that the output on the channel was to be cut back, discontinuing all programming produced for the channel other than parliamentary coverage, and closing the channel entirely during summer months when Parliament and the devolved assemblies are not sitting. The move has been criticised by many including the former House of Commons Speaker

John Bercow John Simon Bercow (; born 19 January 1963) is a British former politician who was Speaker of the House of Commons from 2009 to 2019, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Buckingham between 1997 and 2019. A member of the Conservative Party prior t ...

. In October 2018, the BBC announced that it had shelved these plans. From 26 July until 31 August 2021, BBC Parliament simulcast the

BBC News Channel BBC News (also known as the BBC News Channel) is a British free-to-air public broadcast television news channel for BBC News. It was launched as BBC News 24 on 9 November 1997 at 5:30 pm as part of the BBC's foray into digital domestic telev ...

during a parliamentary recess. This was the first time the channel had done this – previously, BBC Parliament broadcast highlights from the previous session during recesses. This is part of a range of cutbacks to the channel which also sees the end of coverage of party conferences as well as the ending of ''The Day in Parliament'' and ''The Week in Parliament'' and to all other programming made for the channel. Coverage of the

and Select committees is also significantly reduced. Also, the Sunday broadcasts of national political shows, C-SPAN and a repeat of ''

Question Time A question time in a parliament occurs when members of the parliament ask questions of government ministers (including the prime minister), which they are obliged to answer. It usually occurs daily while parliament is sitting, though it can be ca ...

'' have stopped. Consequently, the channel now operates a 24-hour schedule consisting of nothing other than live and recorded coverage from Westminster and the devolved chambers. The rebroadcasting of the BBC News Channel has taken place during subsequent recesses and it appears as though this will now be the case during the summer, Christmas and Easter recesses. In April 2022, BBC Parliament began broadcasting in high-definition, initially only on the Virgin Media platform. Following the death of Elizabeth II, the channel broadcast Queen Elizabeth's lying in state from 14 September 2022 for several days.

Programming

Regular programming

Whenever the House of Commons is sitting, BBC Parliament carries the chamber live without interruption, with any simultaneous House of Lords sitting being shown in full later the same day and the following morning, often in sections that fit around the sittings of the Commons. The House of Lords is broadcast live only on days when there is no House of Commons sitting scheduled. BBC Parliament also provides full, recorded coverage of the House of Commons' second chamber

Westminster Hall The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...

during weekends, when they will also broadcast selected evidence sessions from different

select committees Select or SELECT may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Select'' (album), an album by Kim Wilde * ''Select'' (magazine), a British music magazine * ''MTV Select'', a television program * ''Select Live'', New Zealand's C4 music program ...

of the House of Commons. Whenever both Westminster chambers are in recess, but a devolved assembly is constituted, the channel will provide live coverage of its work, while during Westminster sessions, coverage of the devolved assemblies usually takes the form of highlights at the weekend of the previous week's main debates and business. Thus, when taken together with both live and recorded coverage from the other bodies it covers, BBC Parliament's schedule is dominated by direct broadcasts of the legislative and political institutions, whether they be plenary, quasi-plenary (such as

), or in committees that affect British public life.

Election night

In the event of one of the devolved nations producing their own results programme on election night, normally the first Thursday in May, BBC Parliament will usually broadcast this telecast to the whole of the United Kingdom. On election night for the 2005, 2010, 2015 and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

general elections, BBC Parliament aired BBC Scotland's result night coverage. A few days afterwards, it would also broadcast a replay of election night coverage from BBC Wales and BBC Northern Ireland. It also took BBC Scotland's coverage of both the 2011 devolved assembly elections and Scottish Independence Referendum. In March 2011 BBC Parliament simulcast BBC Wales's results coverage of the nation's devolution referendum.

Original Programmes

Until July 2021, BBC Parliament had often broadcast its own original programmes. They were either be scheduled or used to fill any gaps in the billed programmes, especially when live coverage of a legislative chamber ends before the next programme is due to start. The programmes covered a variety of political and parliamentary subjects, including: *''A to Z of Westminster'' – A series of short programmes presented by BBC Parliament researchers that seek to explain some of the more common aspects of parliamentary protocol. *'' Britain's Best Buildings'' – Only the episode that features the Palace of Westminster is broadcast, usually edited down into short segments that focus on one specific feature of the palace. *''Election File'' – Short summaries of previous general election results, including short bursts of the BBC's original television coverage. These files are now rarely shown. *''In House'' – A new strand of programmes that replaced ''A-Z of Westminster'' in 2011. The programmes are similar in function to their predecessor series, seeking to explain some of the strange procedures that occur in Parliament. *''Laying Down the Law'' – A standalone programme that explains the parliamentary stages a bill must go through to become an Act of Parliament. *''MP Too!'' – A series of short programmes that look back at some eighteenth and nineteenth centuries

Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MPs) who were more famous for their work outside of the House of Commons or House of Lords. *''Village Idioms'' – Short examinations of modern-day

idioms An idiom is a phrase or expression that typically presents a figurative, non-literal meaning attached to the phrase; but some phrases become figurative idioms while retaining the literal meaning of the phrase. Categorized as formulaic language, ...

that were coined in Westminster, including 'reading the Riot Act' and 'flogging a dead horse'. * ''Laws and Ladies'' – A topical chat show, featuring a panel of peers discussing the political issues of the day. Those appearing are Baroness Boothroyd, Baroness Knight of Collingtree and Baroness Dean of Thornton-le-Fylde.

Archive and special programming

General election and referendum repeats

Between 2002 and 2020, the channel frequently showed recordings of BBC general election coverage, from the 1955 election, the first British election programme to be telerecorded as well as other events such as the 1975 EEC Referendum and the 2016 EU Referendum. Some have been broadcast on the anniversary of their original transmissions. The channel's editor has described this as adding "something of value" and says it helps the channel "reach a wider audience for our normal parliamentary schedule". ¹ – Only three hours of the programme is known to exist.
² – This was given a special introduction by

David Dimbleby David Dimbleby (born 28 October 1938) is an English journalist and former presenter of current affairs and political programmes, best known for having presented the BBC topical debate programme ''Question Time''. He is the son of broadcaster ...

, the son of Richard Dimbleby who presented the 1959 broadcast. Only the overnight footage was shown because the daytime coverage was not kept.
³ – Only two hours of coverage is known to exist with the surviving coverage originally broadcast in mid-afternoon.
⁴ – In addition, the overnight coverage of the 1979 election was broadcast on BBC Four on 12 June 2008.
⁵ – The 1983 coverage was originally scheduled to be shown on 10 October 2003, but was not broadcast.
⁶ _ The 1987 coverage was originally scheduled to be shown on 10 June 2017 for the 30th anniversary which was the following day 11 June but due to the 2017 General Election having taken place 2 days earlier the planned showing was cancelled and replaced by the re-run of Election 2017
⁷ – The 1997 coverage was originally scheduled to be shown on 1 May 2017 to coincide with its 20th anniversary but due to the surprise calling of the 2017 general election scheduled for 8 June it was postponed and eventually shown on 4 September 2017.
⁸ – The 1997 coverage is broadcast "clean"- without the original on-screen graphics, although they have been included on all other election reruns.

Special programming

From 2002 until 2019 BBC Parliament frequently broadcast programmes that have a historical or broader social significance, often encompassing major events both in the United Kingdom and in the world. They have also included a selection of programmes exploring issues of import and topicality in-depth, akin to BBC Four. They are generally shown on the anniversaries of major events. Programmes in this area have been diverse in character, such as the channel's first archive rerun, which was to celebrate the Golden Jubilee in June 2002 when BBC Parliament reran the coronation coverage. All special programming ended in 2020 due to cutbacks at the channel which saw it revert to schedule which only featured live and delayed coverage of the UK's Parliamentary bodies.

= 2005–2006

= In 2005, the channel marked the 40th anniversary of the death of Winston Churchill by broadcasting archive coverage of his funeral. Also in 2005, BBC Parliament also marked the 30th anniversary of the first referendum over Europe by reshowing interviews with the two main party leaders, and broadcasting the two hours of the Referendum results coverage which the BBC retains in its archives. The 50th anniversary of the Suez Crisis was commemorated in November 2006, with writer and broadcaster Anthony Howard introducing a special series of programmes on the channel. This included television broadcasts by the then-prime minister Anthony Eden and the then-Labour Leader of the Opposition Hugh Gaitskell, alongside a new documentary called ''Suez in Parliament: a Fine Hullabaloo''.

= 2007–2008

= On 1 April 2007, veteran BBC correspondent

Brian Hanrahan Brian Hanrahan (22 March 1949 – 20 December 2010) was a British television journalist, who was the Diplomatic News Editor for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Early life, education and early career Hanrahan was born in the cou ...

introduced ''Falklands Night'' to mark the 25th anniversary of the outbreak of the Falklands War. Programming included the BBC's original television news bulletins and reports from the period, alongside editions of ''

Newsnight ''Newsnight'' (or ''BBC Newsnight'') is BBC Two's news and current affairs programme, providing in-depth investigation and analysis of the stories behind the day's headlines. The programme is broadcast on weekdays at 22:30. and is also availa ...

'' and excerpts of debates from ''Question Time''. ''Falklands Night'' was shown twice during the spring of 2007 to mark the beginning and the end of the conflict. On 1 July 2007, the channel broadcast ''Hong Kong Night'', presented by Chris Patten, the last

Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. ...

, which reran coverage of the handover ceremony, to coincide with the tenth anniversary of the end of British rule, and the

transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong Sovereignty of Hong Kong was transferred from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China (PRC) at midnight on 1 July 1997. This event ended 156 years of British rule in the former colony. Hong Kong was established as a special admini ...

to China. The tenth anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales was marked on 1 September 2007 with a broadcast of the BBC coverage of her funeral. The rerun was shown at the precise broadcast times of the BBC's original coverage, running from 8:25 am until 4:00 pm.

, who anchored the BBC's coverage, said a few words at the beginning and end of the rerun.

Cliff Michelmore Arthur Clifford Michelmore (11 December 1919 – 16 March 2016) was an English television presenter and producer. He is best known for the BBC television programme '' Tonight'', which he presented from 1957 to 1965. He also hosted the BBC's t ...

came out of retirement on 18 November 2007 to present ''The Pound in Your Pocket'', a special strand of programming to mark forty years since the

devaluation In macroeconomics and modern monetary policy, a devaluation is an official lowering of the value of a country's currency within a fixed exchange-rate system, in which a monetary authority formally sets a lower exchange rate of the national curre ...

of the Pound by the British government on 18 November 1967. Editions of '' The Money Programme'' and '' 24 Hours'' were shown along with highlights from the 1968 Budget programme and ministerial broadcasts. The strand's title was taken from the famously misquoted television broadcast made by the then-prime minister Harold Wilson about the devaluation on 19 November 1967. Wilson said: "It does not mean that the pound here in Britain, in your pocket, in your purse or bank has been devalued." On 26 May 2008,

Joan Bakewell Joan Dawson Bakewell, Baroness Bakewell, (''née'' Rowlands; born 16 April 1933), is an English journalist, television presenter and Labour Party peer. Baroness Bakewell is president of Birkbeck, University of London; she is also an author a ...

introduced an archive evening called ''Permissive Night'' which examined the liberalising social reform legislation passed by Parliament in the late 1960s. Topics covered included changes to

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

law, the death penalty, the

Abortion Act 1967 The Abortion Act 1967 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom legalising abortions on certain grounds by registered practitioners, and regulating the tax-paid provision of such medical practices through the National Health Service (NHS ...

, the

Race Relations Act 1968 The Race Relations Act 1968 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom making it illegal to refuse housing, employment, or public services to a person on the grounds of colour, race, ethnic or national origins in Great Britain (although n ...

, the partial decriminalisation of homosexual acts (using editions of the documentary series '' Man Alive'') and the relaxation of

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

. The evening concluded with a special new edition of '' Late Night Line-Up'', the review programme that Joan Bakewell presented in the late 1960s. On 30 November 2008, BBC Parliament broadcast the 1958 State Opening of Parliament to mark 50 years since the event was first televised.

= 2009

= The fall of James Callaghan's Labour government was marked on its 30th anniversary – 28 March 2009.

Donald MacCormick Donald MacCormick (16 April 1939 – 12 July 2009)Veteran BBC newsman dies aged 70
...

, making what would prove to be his final television appearance before his death, presented ''The Night The Government Fell'', which included nearly three-and-a-half hours of audio highlights of the Commons debate that resulted in Callaghan's government losing a

vote of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

by 311 votes to 310. A documentary charting the evening's events was shown, as was McCormick's own live programme from Westminster on the night of the vote. On 28 June 2009, BBC Parliament reran BBC TV's coverage of the 1969 Investiture of Prince Charles as

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

to mark the 40th anniversary of this event. The channel also re-broadcast an interview which Prince Charles gave a few days before his Investiture. The anniversary of the BBC's own ''

'' series was marked on 25 September 2009 by re-broadcasting the first edition of the topical discussion programme from 30 years earlier.

Robin Day Sir Robin Day (24 October 1923 – 6 August 2000) was an English political journalist and television and radio broadcaster. Day's obituary in ''The Guardian'' by Dick Taverne stated that he was "the most outstanding television journalist of ...

presented alongside the inaugural panel of

Michael Foot Michael Mackintosh Foot (23 July 19133 March 2010) was a British Labour Party politician who served as Labour Leader from 1980 to 1983. Foot began his career as a journalist on ''Tribune'' and the ''Evening Standard''. He co-wrote the 1940 p ...

MP,

Teddy Taylor Sir Edward MacMillan Taylor (18 April 1937 – 20 September 2017) was a British Conservative Party politician who was a Member of Parliament (MP) for forty years, from 1964 to 1979 for Glasgow Cathcart and from 1980 to 2005 for Southend Eas ...

Edna O'Brien Josephine Edna O'Brien (born 15 December 1930) is an Irish novelist, memoirist, playwright, poet and short-story writer. Elected to Aosdána by her fellow artists, she was honoured with the title Saoi in 2015 and the "UK and Ireland Nobel" ...

and Archbishop Derek Worlock. The writer and broadcaster Anthony Howard presented an archive evening on 10 October 2009 entitled ''Never Had It So Good'', that looked back on 1959. This included television election broadcasts by the prime minister Harold Macmillan, Leader of the Opposition Hugh Gaitskell and Labour's Tony Benn; an edition of '' Tonight''; and other BBC current affairs programmes. The evening's title is taken from a phrase contained in a speech made by Harold Macmillan in 1957 when he optimistically said, "Let us be frank about it – most of our people have never had it so good".

= 2011

= At the

2011 Irish general election The 2011 Irish general election took place on Friday 25 February to elect 166 Teachtaí Dála across 43 constituencies to Dáil Éireann, the lower house of Ireland's parliament, the Oireachtas. The Dáil was dissolved and the general electi ...

, BBC Parliament simulcast Irish state broadcaster RTÉ's general election results programme on 26 February 2011. The election saw the incumbent Irish government fall to heavy defeat at the hands of the other parties. The channel also broadcast recorded coverage of the presentation of the Irish government's 2012 budget in the Dáil Éireann in December 2011.

= 2013

= On Thursday 14 February, BBC Parliament broadcast an evening of selected archive programmes under the title ''Harold Wilson Night''. Presented by

Peter Snow Peter John Snow (born 20 April 1938) is a British radio and television presenter and historian. Between 1969 and 2005, he was an analyst of general election results, first on ITV and later for the BBC. He presented ''Newsnight'' from its la ...

, the five-hour block of programming marked the 50th anniversary of the election of Harold Wilson as leader of the Labour Party on 14 February 1963, the longest serving and most electorally successful Labour prime minister of the 20th century. The sequence of programmes, which included Harold Wilson's famous "Pound in your Pocket" broadcast and the first airing of the once controversial '' Yesterday's Men'' documentary since its initial broadcast in June 1971, was repeated two days later. On Monday 18 March, BBC Parliament showed four hours of the House of Commons debate about whether to commit British troops to the invasion of Iraq. Titled ''Iraq – Ten Years On'', it was shown to mark the tenth anniversary of the debate. On Monday 8 April, BBC Parliament broadcast an evening of archive programming to mark the death of

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

, the first female to serve as prime minister. The schedule included three interviews conducted by

Sir Robin Day Sir Robin Day (24 October 1923 – 6 August 2000) was an English political journalist and television and radio broadcaster. Day's obituary in ''The Guardian'' by Dick Taverne stated that he was "the most outstanding television journalist of ...

, Mrs Thatcher's speeches to the 1980 and 1984 Conservative Party Conferences, her last speech in the House of Commons in November 1990 and her maiden speech in the House of Lords in 1992. On the 60th anniversary of the

Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II The coronation of Elizabeth II took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. She acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, being proclaimed queen by her privy and executive ...

(2 June), the channel showed BBC Television's original coverage of the event. The footage was shown "as live" and included the State Procession which followed the Coronation service. On Sunday 9 June, BBC Parliament broadcast ''Beeching Night'' to mark the 50th anniversary of The

Beeching Report Beeching is an English surname. Either a derivative of the old English ''bece'', ''bæce'' "stream", hence "dweller by the stream" or of the old English ''bece'' "beech-tree" hence "dweller by the beech tree".''Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames' ...

on the future of Britain's railways, which recommended closing 3,000 miles of track and 2,000 stations to help stem massive losses. The evening was presented by Nicholas Owen. The strand featured railway-themed editions of various BBC current affairs programmes, including two editions of '' Panorama'', as well as news reports and two interviews with Dr Beeching. Also included was a new programme looking at the relationship between the railways and politicians. On Saturday 19 October, BBC Parliament marked the 50th anniversary of the appointment of Alec Douglas-Home as prime minister following the resignation of Harold Macmillan. Titled ''Home at the Top'' the sequence included the edition of ''Panorama'' broadcast on the night of the hand-over and an address to the nation by the new prime minister.

= 2014

= Following the death of Tony Benn on 14 March 2014, BBC Parliament broadcast a special evening of programming which included his 1959 Labour Party election broadcast from the General Election campaign; Mr Benn's 1990 House of Commons speech from the vote of confidence debate on Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher; his final speech in Parliament in 2001; his 1995 documentary Behind Closed Doors which took viewers behind the scenes in Parliament; and Labour MP Tristan Hunt's 2011 Speaker's lecture on the career of Tony Benn.

= 2015

= To mark the 50th anniversary of the funeral of

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

, BBC Parliament replayed the black-and-white funeral coverage, commentated by Richard Dimbleby, and at the same time as the original broadcast. The broadcast was introduced by

Nicholas Soames Arthur Nicholas Winston Soames, Baron Soames of Fletching, (born 12 February 1948) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Sussex from 1997 to 2019, having previously served as the MP for ...

, Churchill's grandson, who was in attendance that day. On Sunday 26 July, BBC Parliament showed an evening of programmes to mark the 50th anniversary of Ted Heath becoming the leader of the Conservative Party. On Saturday 28 November, BBC Parliament broadcast ''Tebbit on Thatcher'', an evening of programmes to mark the 25th anniversary of

's resignation as prime minister and leader the Conservative Party. The programmes were introduced by Norman Tebbit and the items shown included her 1980 speech to the Conservative Party Conference, news reports about vital events in her time as prime minister and two editions of ''Panorama''.

= 2016

= On 3 April, BBC Parliament broadcast ''Callaghan Night'' to mark the 40th anniversary of James Callaghan replacing Harold Wilson as prime minister and leader of the Labour Party. Three editions of ''Panorama'' and two editions of ''Tonight'' were shown, which covered significant moments of Mr Callaghan's time as prime minister, including the UK's financial bailout by the IMF, the 1977 Lib-Lab pact and the result of the 1979 vote of no confidence against the government of James Callaghan which signalled the end of the Labour Government. On 5 June to mark both the 41st anniversary of the 1975 EEC Referendum in the run-up to the 2016 EU Referendum the channel broadcast a night of current and archive programmes under the banner of "75: Not Out." The opening programme (of the same name) was presented by

Angela Rippon Angela May Rippon (born 12 October 1944)"Angela Rippon," ''Contemporary Authors Online'', Detroit: Gale, (2008) ''Gale Biography In Context'' is an English television journalist, newsreader, writer and presenter. Rippon presented radio and tele ...

and featured the "1975 Oxford Union Debate" in two parts, a 1975 ''Panorama'' EEC debate which was presented by a young

, BBC news clips, the original 1975 EEC Referendum party political broadcasts and the surviving results programme.

= 2017

= On 12 May, to mark the 80th anniversary of the coronation of King George VI, BBC Parliament showed Pathe's original coverage of the coronation and Pathe's colour film of the coronation processions to and from

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

. In addition, the channel showed a brief programme looking at BBC Television's coverage of the day.

= 2019

= On 3 June 2019, BBC Parliament showed the BBC's coverage of the results of the

2016 United States presidential election The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...

which saw

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

elected as

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

. The coverage was timed to coincide with his state visit to Britain. This is the first time that BBC Parliament has shown a rerun of the BBC's coverage of an American election. On 1 July 2019, BBC Parliament reran BBC TV's coverage of the 1969 Investiture of Prince Charles as

to mark the 50th anniversary of the event.

Former programming

Until 2021, BBC Parliament had broadcast a range of political and current affairs programmes from across the BBC, including: * ''BOOKtalk'' – face-to-face discussion with authors about recently released political books, presented by Mark D'Arcy. A summer special is also produced featuring several 'beach books'. * ''Briefings'' – a strand of programmes, usually broadcast weekend evenings, containing recorded coverage of major press briefings and conferences given by politicians in the previous week. * ''

Dateline London ''Dateline London'' is a weekly BBC News discussion programme. A panel of four leading journalists, lecturers, and foreign correspondents discussed top news stories from an international perspective. The last episode made was on the 15th Octobe ...

'' – a roundtable panel of foreign correspondents in London discussing the week's news. Dateline is now only shown on the

and on

BBC World News BBC World News is an international English-language pay television network, operated under the ''BBC Global News Limited'' division of the BBC, which is a public corporation of the UK government's Department for Digital, Culture, Media and ...

. * ''Dragon's Eye'' (produced by BBC Wales) – presented by

Adrian Masters Adrian Masters is a Welsh journalist, presenter, author and political moderator. He is currently the Political Editor at ITV Cymru Wales. He previously worked for the BBC, contributing to BBC Radio 4's Yesterday In Parliament, most BBC Wales ...

or Rhun ap Iorwerth, providing a weekly roundup of Welsh political developments (since replaced by the Welsh section of ''Sunday Politics''). * '' Eòrpa'' (produced by BBC Gàidhlig) – current affairs series which covers political and social developments covering Europe, transmitted in Gaelic with English subtitles. * ''Hearts and Minds'' (produced by BBC Northern Ireland) – weekly programme covering the latest issues in the politics of Northern Ireland (since replaced by the Northern Irish section of ''Sunday Politics''). *''Lords Questions'' – recorded coverage of the most recent session of Questions in the House of Lords. * ''Mayor's Question Time'' – recorded coverage of the monthly question period in the London Assembly to the

Mayor of London The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The current m ...

. *'' Politics Europe'' – monthly programme usually broadcast on a Friday which covers the latest political news across Europe, analysing both the situation in Brussels as well as within individual European nations. Filmed in exactly the same format as the

Daily Politics ''Daily Politics'' was a BBC Television programme which aired between 6 January, 2003 and 24 July, 2018, presented by Andrew Neil and Jo Coburn. ''Daily Politics'' took an in-depth review of the daily events in both Westminster and other areas ...

, presented by

Andrew Neil Andrew Ferguson Neil (born 21 May 1949) is a Scottish former journalist and broadcaster who is chairman of ''The Spectator'' and presenter of '' The Andrew Neil Show'' on Channel 4. He was editor of ''The Sunday Times'' from 1983 to 1994. He f ...

Jo Coburn Joanne Dawn Coburn (born 12 November 1967) is a British journalist with BBC News, a regular presenter of '' Politics Live'' (and formerly also '' Sunday Politics'' along with Andrew Neil) and previously had special responsibility for ''BBC Brea ...

. Also broadcast on

. * ''

Politics Live ''Politics Live'' is a BBC News political programme which launched on 3 September 2018. It is presented by Jo Coburn and features at least four guests debating the political stories of the day, as well as reports and other content. It is broadca ...

'' – a daily political programme broadcast live weekdays on BBC Two at 12:15 pm during parliamentary sessions and presented by

and

. ''Politics Live'' discusses the latest political guests and talk about the day events across the United Kingdom, and is repeated on BBC Parliament every night at midnight. The ''Sunday Politics'' from BBC One (including the London region opt-out section) is also repeated at midnight on the day of broadcast. *''

'' – recorded coverage of the most recent session of Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons. Live coverage is also provided on the channel without comment or interruption as part of the channel's live coverage of the House of Commons' sittings. * ''

'' (repeated from

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

) – a topical debate programme based on

Any Questions? ''Any Questions?'' is a British topical discussion programme "in which a panel of personalities from the worlds of politics, media, and elsewhere are posed questions by the audience". It is typically broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Fridays at 8 p ...

which typically features politicians from at least the three major political parties as well as other public figures who answer questions put to them by the audience. Repeated on BBC Parliament every Sunday at 6 pm. *'' Scottish First Minister's Questions'' – recorded coverage of the most recent session of Questions to the First Minister of Scotland in the Scottish Parliament. Scottish First Minister's Questions is broadcast on Thursday evenings at 11:30 pm, and is repeated throughout the week. * ''Straight Talk'' – a weekly political talk show in which presenter

discusses the motivations, ideas and politics of leading figures in UK public life using the 1960s classic '' Face to Face'' format. ''Straight Talk'' is no longer produced. * '' Sunday Politics Scotland'' (produced by BBC Scotland) – the Scottish section of '' The Sunday Politics'', presented by

Gordon Brewer Gordon Brewer is a Scottish news and current affairs broadcaster, who worked for BBC Scotland. He presented the flagship ''Newsnight Scotland'' programme from 1999. Early Life He was educated St Modan's High School in Stirling, followed by th ...

and transmitted on

BBC One Scotland BBC One Scotland is a Scottish free-to-air television channel owned and operated by BBC Scotland and is a Scottish variation of the UK-wide BBC One. For all of the time the channel is referred to on screen as ''BBC One Scotland'', sometimes us ...

. *'' Ten Minute Rule Bill'' – Recorded coverage of a backbench MP seeking the leave of the House of Commons to introduce a piece of legislation on a specific topic under the rules of Standing Order 23. * ''The Day in Parliament'' – nightly programme, broadcast at 11 pm, or following the adjournment of the House of Commons if it sits after that time, that rounds up the day's headlines from across all of the UK's legislative chambers. ''The Record'' is usually presented by Keith McDougall, Alicia McCarthy, David Cornock, Mandy Baker or Kristina Cooper. * ''The Record Europe'' – a weekly review of the work of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

, and the other European Union institutions, with debate and analysis of current European political issues. Presented by Shirin Wheeler. Ended mid-2012 and replaced by '' Politics Europe'', presented by Andrew Neil. * ''The Week in Parliament'' – a weekly 30-minute-long analysis and discussion of major events in the UK's legislative chambers. Special editions of the record are produced during Westminster recesses reviewing the preceding session, and at the end of the calendar year reviewing the previous 12 months. The weekly edition is presented by either Keith McDougall, David Cornock, Mandy Baker, Kristina Cooper and Alicia McCarthy, and the special editions are often presented jointly by McDougall and McCarthy. * ''The World Debate'' – part of a selection of programmes originally transmitted on

, that are broadcast exclusively on BBC Parliament to UK audiences, such as the 2009 London Intelligence Squared debates. * '' This Week'' – repeated from

and presented by

. An often-witty look at developments on the UK and international political scene, with a variety of guest contributions and discussions. The programme ended in July 2019. * '' Washington Journal'' (from C-SPAN) – providing a lookback at the week in American politics, and providing the opportunity for UK viewers to contribute to a phone-in debate. *'' Welsh First Minister's Questions'' – recorded coverage of the most recent session of Questions to the First Minister of Wales in the

Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gove ...

. Welsh First Minister's Questions is always broadcast on Tuesday evenings at 11:30 pm, and is then repeated throughout the week. Until 2019, BBC Parliament also broadcast the annual party conferences of the UK's major political parties in full and highlights of the smaller party conferences. In the past, the channel also aired highlights of the

General Synod of the Church of England The General Synod is the tricameral deliberative and legislative organ of the Church of England. The synod was instituted in 1970, replacing the Church Assembly, and is the culmination of a process of rediscovering self-government for the Church ...

, live coverage of the annual chamber sitting of the

UK Youth Parliament The UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, consisting of democratically elected members aged between 11 and 18. Formed in 2000, the parliament has 369 members, who are elected to represent the views of young ...

in the House of Commons, oral evidence sessions from the

British Youth Council The British Youth Council, known informally as BYC, is a UK charity that works to empower young people and promote their interests. The national charity, run by young people, exists to represent the views of young people to government and decisi ...

's Youth Select Committee, and the annual

Chamber Event.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bbc Parliament 1992 establishments in the United Kingdom BBC television channels in the United Kingdom BBC News channels Legislature broadcasters Parliament of the United Kingdom Television channels and stations established in 1992 Television channels in the United Kingdom