UKTV History channel Rebrands as Yesterday

Today, the past has become present:  UKTV History channel has rebranded as Yesterday, culminating in the last of UKTV’s factual channels to be renamed and rebranded. Yesterday targets upmarket 30 plus couples, placing serious history in the form of Andrew Marr’s History of Modern Britain and Auschwitz in the same schedule as The Alan Clark Diaries, House of Cards and Antiques Roadshow.

In other big UKTV news, the whole company got into spirit and dressed up in 80’s gear to celebrate the launch of the channel.  I’ve managed to get my hands on some photographic evidence. Extra thanks to my super-secret inside source! Don’t they look cute? I’m digging the pink. (btw, what’s Hugh Jackman doing working at UKTV?)

Click for Full 80's Effect

**Updated**

2:05pm Added more pictures
12:36 Added Idents:Wright Brothers, Suffragettes, and Debutantes
09:18 Added Ident: Hoodies
09:15 Added Ident: War
09:05 Added Ident: Football

Yesterday Ident: Football

The site http://www.visityesterday.co.uk has also launched.

Yesterday Ident: War

Yesterday’s Channel Head, Richard Kingsbury, adds, “Alongside classic history content which continues to be hugely popular there will be a new emphasis on living history. Our programming will cover everything from world changing events to fondly remembered moments of popular culture. The whole point of Yesterday is to make history feel more immediate and more personal.”

The new channel proposition and name was developed in-house at UKTV following a process that first began by identifying the channel’s target audiences before devising a positioning and creating the content offering.  The pay TV broadcaster’s marketing team worked closely with Red Bee to develop Yesterday’s on-screen identity, which includes 15 different variations on its logo and will be unveiled shortly.

Yesterday Ident: Hoodies

Matthew Littleford, UKTV’s controller, explains: “We realized that because we had strong content we needed to have kick-ass brands that would stand out,” he says, stressing the importance of UKTV’s access to BBC programming.” The figures are impressive: six months of research, 32 focus groups, consultation with 120 staff members and 3,500 online respondents, £250,000 spent. Littleford adds, “All of the research about History was that people who came to watch it would be interested in 20th-century history and war. The history channel isn’t just about that,” he says. “We wanted a brand that stretched wider.”

Yesterday Ident: Wright Brothers

Yesterday Ident: Suffragettes

Yesterday Ident: Debutantes

Check back soon for more updates from today’s launch.