| The Sky at Night | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Presented by | Sir Patrick Moore Chris Lintott Lucie Green Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock Pete Lawrence Dr George Dransfield |
| Theme music composer | Jean Sibelius |
| Opening theme | "At the Castle Gate" |
| Ending theme | "At the Castle Gate" |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 825 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | BBC Birmingham (until 2013) BBC Science (2014–2015) BBC Studios Science Unit (2015–present) |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC One (1957–2013) BBC Four (2014–) |
| Release | 24 April 1957 (1957-04-24) – present |
The Sky at Night is adocumentarytelevision programme onastronomy produced by theBBC. The show had the same permanent presenter,Sir Patrick Moore, from its first monthly broadcast on 24 April 1957 until 7 January 2013. The latter date was a posthumous broadcast, following Moore's death[1] on 9 December 2012. This made it the longest-running programme with the same presenter in television history.[2] Many early episodes are missing, either because the tapes were wiped or discarded, or because the episode was broadcast live and never recorded in the first place.[3]
The programme was shown monthly up until 2023.
Beginning with the 3 February 2013 edition, the show was co-presented byLucie Green andChris Lintott.[4] Since December 2013Maggie Aderin-Pocock has also been a presenter.[5] In April 2023, Dr George Dransfield joined the show as a presenter.[6]
Pete Lawrence has presented an observing section on the programme since 2004 as well as producing an online monthly star Guide on the BBC Sky at Night webpage.[7]
The programme's opening and closing theme music is "At the Castle Gate", from the incidental music toPelléas et Mélisande, written in 1905 byJean Sibelius, performed by theRoyal Philharmonic Orchestra and conducted bySir Thomas Beecham.
The programme covers a wide range of general astronomical and space-related topics. Topics includestellar life cycles,radio astronomy, artificialsatellites,black holes,neutron stars and many others. The programme also covers events happening in the night sky at the time of broadcast, such as a brightcomet or ameteor shower, and recent developments in space and astronomy, such as theRosetta space mission andthe detection of phosphine in Venus' atmosphere.
Explaining the show's enduring appeal, Moore said: "Astronomy's a fascinating subject. You look up... you can't help getting interested and it's there. We've tried to bring it to the people.. it's not me, it's the appeal of the subject."[8]
| Years | Presenter |
|---|---|
| 24 April 1957 – 7 January 2013 | Sir Patrick Moore |
| 3 February 2013 – present | Lucie Green |
| 3 February 2013 – present | Chris Lintott |
| December 2013 – present | Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock |
| November 2004 – present | Pete Lawrence |
| April 2023 – present | George Dransfield |
Many of the world's leading astronomers have appeared on the show through the years, includingHarlow Shapley (the first to measure the size of theMilky Way galaxy),Fred Hoyle,Carl Sagan,[9]Jocelyn Bell Burnell,Samuel Tolansky,Harold Spencer Jones,Martin Ryle,Richard Ellis,Carlos Frenk andBart Bok.[10] Other guests have includedArthur C. Clarke,[3]Astronomer Royal SirMartin Rees,Arnold Wolfendale,Allan Chapman,Sir Bernard Lovell,Michael Bentine andWernher von Braun.[citation needed]
Many well-known astronauts have also appeared on the programme, such asPiers Sellers,Eugene Cernan,Buzz Aldrin andNeil Armstrong.[11]
In July 2004, Moore was unable to make the broadcast owing to a severe bout ofsalmonellosis.[12] He was replaced for this one occasion by the cosmologistChris Lintott ofOxford University, who had been co-presenting for several years. Moore returned for the August programme, this was the only occasion in the 55 years of Moore's tenure that he did not host the programme.
Brian May, theQueen guitarist andastrophysicist, has occasionally been a guest on the show.[13]
On 1 April 2007, Moore presented the 50th Anniversary edition of the show, a special "time travel" edition which included the appearance ofJon Culshaw as Moore's younger self. The 50th anniversary programme was filmed atTeddington Studios as the 1957 home of the programme,Lime Grove Studios, had been demolished in 1992.[citation needed]
On 6 March 2011, Moore presented the 700th edition of the show, a special retrospective episode which includedJon Culshaw once again appearing as Moore's younger self, as well as Brian May.
In September 2013 the BBC announced that the programme's future after December 2013 was under review, prompting speculation that the corporation would end it, and a petition asking for the show to be retained.[14] On 29 October it was announced that the programme would continue, but would only be shown onBBC Four, ending a 54-year run on the BBC's flagship channel.[15]
TheInternational Astronomical Union celebrated the 50th anniversary of the show by naming an asteroid57424 Caelumnoctu, the number referring to the first broadcast date and the name being Latin for "The Sky at Night".
In February 2007, theRoyal Mail issued a set of six astronomy stamps to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the programme.[16]
In theGuinness Book of World Records, Patrick Moore is listed as the most prolific TV presenter in the world, having hosted all but one episode of the programme between 1957 and January 2013.[17]
A DVD of the special commemorativeSky at Night filmApollo 11: A Night to Remember was released on 6 July 2009 to coincide with the 40th anniversary of thefirst man on the Moon.
