BBC One "Balloon" idents

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The BBC One Balloon idents were a series of idents (station identifications) used on the British TV channel BBC One from 4 October 1997 to 28 March 2002. The balloon theme replaced the computer-generated spinning globe that had been used as the main ident on the channel since 1991, and marked a radical departure from the traditional spinning globe which had been the channel's primary identity since 1963.^[1] It launched on the same day as a BBC-wide rebrand, and thus the new idents also carried the new BBC logo. The channel's name also changed from BBC1 to BBC One. This was the last ident set used by the channel when it fully closed down; the last proper closedown took place in the evening hours of 8 November 1997. Starting the following evening, BBC News 24 (now the BBC News Channel) would broadcast on BBC One during closedown, which continues today.

The hot air balloon featured in the idents was filmed on location. The balloon was built by Cameron Balloons in 1997 and made its first flight that year, flying from the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta.^[2] It made its final flight in August 2002, also at the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, and was subsequently retired and placed into storage. The balloon's flight certificate from the Civil Aviation Authority^[3] expired on 17 July 2003.

In March 2023, the balloon was taken out of storage, restored and reinflated.^[4] On 2 June, it was inflated for its first public flight at the Midlands Air Festival in Warwickshire by the Bristol Balloon Collectors, the balloon's new caretaker.^[5]