The story behind the iconic BBC Weather symbols

BBC News

a day ago

Fifty years ago, the BBC introduced new weather symbols that are still in use today on the website and app and on television by presenters like me.In this digital age it is hard to believe that the introduction of new designs marked a big development but they did.Weather maps became easier to understand. Although they were not animated, like they are today, these new magnetic weather symbols brought their own challenges. For example, while they mostly stayed where they were put, sometimes they would slide down the map or even fall off completely.
Out with the old....
Hugh Sheppard, who worked at the BBC from 1958 to 1993 on international broadcasting and weather forecasts, remembers the ground-breaking changes in the 1970s.He recalls how weather "smelled" before magnetic symbols: "Whoever was on TV duty that day used to arrive at the BBC clutching a roll of the latest pressure charts. The isobars were then drawn on a studio chart with marker ink, then wiped off after the broadcast with acetone - and the smell!"Hugh helped to bring about the change from hand-drawn charts to magnetic symbols using magnetic rubber sheets that could be cut into the Met Office symbols, such as an inverted triangle for rain. Acetone was no longer required and the weather smelled better.The big breakthrough came in 1975 when Mark Allen, a graduate of Norwich University, came to the BBC and presented a new suite of graphics. It was agreed by the BBC and Met Office that the audience would find these easier to understand. The BBC bought the copyright for the new BBC weather symbols for £200. Hugh remembers Mark being told that "the value of being the designer of the symbols would always mean more to him than the fee".
...in with the new
It was probably the mishaps with these new magnetic symbols that made them so memorable for BBC audiences.Tens of millions of people would tune in for the weather forecast, sometimes to see the forecaster struggling with the technology.Perhaps it is an urban myth, but I was led to the believe that BBC technicians would occasionally reverse the polarity of the magnets. Whether or not that is true, it would explain symbols slipping or falling off the map completely, and the frustrations of many a weather forecaster.I'm sure Michael Fish, and others, were delighted when the next "upgrade" came 10 years later. In 1985 magnets were no longer used and instead the symbols were put on the map using a marvellous thing called a "computer".
Still being used today
When I joined the BBC Weather team to launch News24 in 1998 we were still using the same computer symbols. It was a laborious process to click and drag them on to the weather maps, particularly if you were broadcasting to a worldwide audience as this would involve hundreds of symbols.A year after Michael Fish retired, this process ended. Animated graphics were introduced in 2005, powered by a new super-computer. That wasn't the end of the weather symbol, though. They continue to be used today in our TV broadcasts and of course you can see them online and on the BBC Weather app.With technology continuing to improve and evolve and a new partnership coming with the Met Office, you may see some changes in the way weather is presented but I think these well-loved weather symbols are set to stay a while yet, long after I slip off the map for good.