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Agence France-Presse

The BBC on Wednesday celebrates 100 years of a weather forecast for sailors in British waters that has inspired musicians and poets and become an immovable fixture on UK radio.
The Shipping Forecast, providing predictions by the Met Office on expected wind speeds, sea state, weather and visibility, began as a vital service to sailors and sea captains who may be in peril at sea.
Modern seafarers can now rely on sophisticated forecasting technology but the calm, rhythmic delivery of the forecast by one of BBC Radio 4’s silky-voiced continuity announcers has turned the forecast into something of a beloved British institution.
Radio 4 controller Mohit Bakaya described The Shipping Forecast as a “cherished ritual” and “one of our national treasures”.


He said the centenary would be marked with a day-long series of programmes on Wednesday.
Historian Jerry Brotton will explore how Britain has been shaped by its maritime past, while famous names including Ellen MacArthur, the record-breaking solo round-the-world yachtswoman, will re-read bulletins from dates linked to their achievements.
I thought this is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard on radio
Continuity announcer Viji Alles
The service was set up in 1867 in response to a storm off north Wales eight years earlier that led to the deaths of 800 people and the loss of 133 ships, according to the Met Office.
It was initially transmitted by telegraph before being first broadcast on radio on January 1, 1924 and taken over by the BBC in October 1925.
Sea areas around the British Isles with mysterious names such as Viking, Dogger, Sole, Lundy and Fastnet are covered in the forecast, which is peppered with phrases such as “rain at times, moderate or good”, “becoming cyclonic” and “falling slowly”.
The poetic-sounding names of coastal weather stations such as Tiree, Ronaldsway and Sandettie Light Vessel Automatic also feature, adding to its appeal.
Poets who have drawn creative inspiration from it include Carol Ann Duffy and Seamus Heaney, who called it “verbal music”.

Bands like Radiohead, Blur and The Prodigy have also been stirred by the shipping forecast in their songs, and a 2016 book of the same name celebrated the programme for “inspiring imaginations” worldwide.
The first of the two daily forecasts – three at weekends – hits the airwaves at 5.21am.
The last, at 12.48am, is credited as an aid to lull insomniacs to sleep or just provide a reassuring end to the day for others.
The late-night bulletin is always preceded by the equally soothing piece of music Sailing By.
The music by Ronald Binge was originally chosen to be a signal to sailors that they had tuned into the correct station for the forecast.

Continuity announcer Viji Alles, who hails from Sri Lanka, has said he was “immediately and utterly captivated” after first hearing the forecast in 2005.
“I thought this is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard on radio,” he said on a radio programme last year.
“Its utility, I know, has declined over the years, but its value as a late-night piece of poetry is just unparalleled,” he added.


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A trawler off the coast of Wales. The BBC is celebrating 100 years of broadcasts of The Shipping Forecast, which helped generations of sailors navigate the sometimes rough seas around Britain, and has inspired numerous artists. Photo: AP

British yachtswoman Dame Ellen MacArthur at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club in 2006. She is helping the BBC celebrate 100 years of The Shipping Forecast by rereading bulletins linked to her achievements. Photo: SCMP

Poet Seamus Heaney at the opening of the 2006 Man Hong Kong International Literary Festival: The Nobel laureate is among artists to have been inspired by The Shipping Forecast, calling it “verbal music”. Photo: SCMP

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(From left) Beyond members Yip Sai-wing, Wong Ka-keung, Wong Ka-kui and Paul Wong Koon-chung in 1990. The Hong Kong rock band formed in 1983 and were popular across Asia.

Wong Ka-Kui died in 1993 aged 31 due to an accident while filming a gameshow in Tokyo, Japan. Photo: SCMP / TVB Weekly

Edmond Tsang is a music professor at Hong Kong Baptist University and a Cantopop songwriter. Photo: Edmond Tsang

Beyond in the band’s early years. Photo: M. Chan

Beyond’s music “provided a sense of freshness” to the music landscape in Hong Kong at the time, Edmond Tsang says. Photo: SCMP / TVB Weekly

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Professor Brian Cox and film crew in Alaska, during the making of BBC Earth series Solar System. Photo: BBC

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Viking, Dogger, Sole, Lundy and Fastnet have become household names through the BBC’s shipping forecast, a guide for generations of sailors


Viking, Dogger, Sole, Lundy and Fastnet have become household names through the BBC’s shipping forecast, a guide for generations of sailors.


Britain

History