 | |
| Country | Spain |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Nationwide,Andorra,Gibraltar, also parts of France and Portugal |
| Network | Televisión Española (TVE) |
| Headquarters | Prado del Rey,Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid) |
| Programming | |
| Language | Spanish |
| Picture format | 1080iHDTV |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE) |
| Sister channels | La 1 Clan 24h Teledeporte |
| History | |
| Launched | 15 November 1966; 59 years ago (1966-11-15) |
| Former names | TVE-UHF (1965–1966) Segunda Cadena (1966–1976) TVE 2 (1976–1991) |
| Links | |
| Website | La 2 |
| Availability | |
| Terrestrial | |
| Digital terrestrial television | Spain: Depends on each province Andorra: 45 |
| Streaming media | |
| RTVE.es | Live (Only in Spain) |
La 2 (Spanish pronunciation:[laˈðos],The Two) is a Spanishfree-to-air television channel owned and operated byTelevisión Española (TVE), the television division of state-ownedpublic broadcasterRadiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is the corporation's second television channel, and is known for broadcastingcultural andpublic service programming, including documentaries, concerts, theatre and independent,Ibero-American and classic cinema.
It was launched on 15 November 1966 as the secondregular television service in Spain right after TVE'sfirst channel launched on 28 October 1956. As TVE held amonopoly on television broadcasting in the country, they were the only television channels until the first regional public television station was launched on 16 February 1983, whenEuskal Telebista started broadcasting in theBasque Country.Commercial television was launched on 25 January 1990, whenAntena 3 started broadcasting nationwide.
As it started broadcasting onUHF frequencies the channel was initially simply referred to as "UHF". It received other names, such as "Cadena II", "Segunda Cadena", "Segundo Programa" or "TVE2" until it adopted its current name "La 2" (La dos) during the 1990s. Its headquarters and main production center isPrado del Rey inPozuelo de Alarcón with some programs produced in TVE's production center inSan Cugat del Vallés. Although almost all its programming is in Spanish and is the same for all of Spain, TVE has territorial centers in everyautonomous community and produces and broadcasts some local programming inregional variations in each of them in the correspondingco-official language.
In the 1960s, theSpanish minister of Information and Tourism,Manuel Fraga Iribarne, decided that Televisión Española should start broadcasting a second television channel on the UHF band, following other European broadcasters that did the same.[1] On 1 January 1965, TVE's second television service was launched inMadrid as a test broadcast,[2] with programming limited to 4 hours at night that consisted of musical slots and re-airings of TV shows from Primera Cadena, mostlyTelediario newscasts andEstudio 1.[2]
Regular broadcasts started on 15 November 1966.[3][4] TVE started producing original programming for the channel, mainly produced at the broadcaster's headquarters in Barcelona. UHF's first director was Salvador Pons Muñoz. In its first years, the channel could only be received in Madrid,Zaragoza andBarcelona,[2] cities in which the UHF technology was implemented; it only aired at night and not all TV sets could tune in. Most TVs could not receive UHF broadcasts, so a UHF converter was needed.
As TVE's strategy evolved into turning thefirst channel into a generalist channel, niche programming was moved to UHF. Under the Salvador Pons administration, the second channel received artists from the country'sOfficial Film School (Spanish:Escuela Oficial de Cine), such asClaudio Guerin,Pedro Olea orAntonio Mercero, people who would use the channel as a test zone to air alternative programming, such as documentaries or fiction shows.[5] There was a high share of cultural programmes, likeclassical music blocks ortheatre slots.[1]
During the '70s, the channel's programming was restricted to air at night (from 20:00 to 00:00), with an extension in the weekends.[1] Coverage reached the main cities of Spain, but although TVE pointed out that only "three years" would pass before UHF could be tuned in all Spain,[2] the second channel could not get it until 1982.[1][6] For this reason it was not strange that successful programs on UHF passed tothe first channel.
The UHF station continued to develop a minority programming, with a strong cultural emphasis, which did not compete directly with TVE-1.[1] In addition to documentaries, theater broadcasts and dramas, the second channel also was at time broadcasting sports events and educational programming. At that time, the second channel was colloquially dubbed "el canalillo."[7]
During theSpanish transition, the programming of the second channel received a small boost. In January 1976 debuted the program of debateLa Clave (1976-1985), which addressed current issues from different points of view, something very complicated during theFrancoism, preceded by a film related to the subject.[8] Another important program wasA fondo (In depth) (1976-1981), a talk show presented byJoaquín Soler Serrano which discussed with personalities from the artistic, literary and scientific fields of the time.[9] On the other hand, the new artistic and musical trends were reflected inEncuentros con las artes y las letras (Encounters with the arts and the lyrics) (1976-1981) andPopgrama (1979-1981).[10]
Another important aspect was the consolidation of the station's regional broadcasting centres, most importantly inCatalonia and theCanary Islands. TVE Cataluña started producing and broadcasting regional programming in opt-outs through theCircuit Català (Catalan circuit), while continuing to produce content for nationwide broadcasts.[11] On the eve of the1982 World Cup held in Spain, the Canary Islands regional broadcasting centre erected a new production office that, in addition to broadcasting the Second channel, allowed to develop dedicated programming for the archipelago.[6]
In 1983, the second channel was renamed "TVE-2" with a new corporate image. The schedule was not consolidated until the end of the decade.[12]
In the mandates ofJosé María Calviño [es] andPilar Miró, TVE-2 continued to be a cultural channel that accommodated spaces not appropriate forthe first channel. In the midst of theMovida Madrileña phenomenon, it premieredLa Edad de Oro (The Golden Age) (1983), directed and presented byPaloma Chamorro [es], that with time it turned into acult classic.[13] The 1980s also marked the premiere of emblematic programs such as the cultural magazineMetropoli (1985),[13] the game showEl tiempo es oro (Time is money) (1987) presented byConstantino Romero[14] andCon las manos en la masa (Hands on the bat) (1984), directed and presented byElena Santonja, considered the firstcooking show in Spanish television history.[15]
On the other hand, TVE-2 retained the broadcast of special events live, some of which exceeded in the audiencethe first channel: the European football competitions (UEFA Champions League,UEFA Cup andCup Winners' Cup), theSpanish First Division in communities withoutautonomic television, the qualifying matches of theSpain national football team, and theEurovision Song Contest from 1984 to 1992.[16]
In 1984, it premieredEstadio 2, specializing in sports broadcasts, information, and a live results service during the weekends.[17]
The channel strategy of TVE changed with the emergence and sudden popularity of private television in 1989, with the first airing ofAntena 3 andTele 5[18] As of 1991, TVE-2 was renamed asLa 2 and assumed a new alternative programming, whose spirit was included in the slogan «La 2, para una inmensa minoría» (La 2, for a huge minority).[19] The following director of TVE,Ramón Colom, would redefine the concept towards a smaller target audience aged 30 years old.[19]
In the 90s there was a significant increase in own programming, giving La 2 its personality. All documentaries, includingDocumentos TV, presented byPedro Erquicia, were moved to that signal. In addition, TVE promoted an alternative newsletter toTelediario with the creation ofLa 2 Noticias, specialized in the news of human, social, and ecological interest in exchange for reducing the weight of the policy in the blocks. The new format was premiered on 7 November 1994 and thanks to it two journalists rose to fame:Lorenzo Milá (presenter) andFran Llorente (news director).[20]
In addition, La 2 issued US series with no place on La Primera:The Simpsons (until 1993),[18]Northern Exposure,Married... with Children andHangin' with Mr. Cooper. As for sports broadcasts, football was transferred to the first channel while the second was left with the rights of theLiga ACB ofbasketball, theLiga Asobal ofhandball and theLNFS. Although the channel's audience fell by private competition, these changes served to improve its reputation and turn it into an alternative to conventional programming.[19]The strategy remained unchanged until 2004, with new programs that have been part of the backbone of La 2. In 1996 began the space of scientific disclosureRedes, directed byEduard Punset, and in 1997 premieredSaber y ganar, presented byJordi Hurtado, who became the longest-running game show in Spanish television.[21] One year later was launchedVersión española (Spanish version), Spanish film program presented byCayetana Guillén Cuervo and that offered films without advertising breaks.[22] Other important spaces wereLa noche temática (The thematic night) (documentary block of the pan-European channelArte), the literary spaceNegro sobre blanco (Black on white), the informativeEscuela del deporte (School of sport) and the containers of infantile programming, among themCon mucha marcha (With a lot of march),TPH Club,Hyakutake andLos Lunnis, the latter one of his greatest commercial successes.[23]
In 2004, changes were made in the strategy of La 2: information services are remodeled becauseFran Llorente, presenter ofLa 2 Noticias, is chosen news director of TVE, while Lorenzo Milá became the host ofTelediario ofLa 1.[24] The new direction redirects the offer to the young public, with the advance ofprimetime at 9:30 p.m.,[25] the gradual disappearance of regional programming (except for a few blocks inCatalonia andCanary Islands) and the entry of seriesAmerican asSix Feet Under,Two and a Half Men,The OC orGilmore Girls.
On 1 June 2010, the Board of Directors ofRTVE made La 2 into a strictly cultural channel,[26] positioning it as the reference for creativity and talent. From that same month, La 2 stopped broadcasting its sports programming (which moved toLa 1 andTeledeporte) and infantile (which continued exclusively onClan). Instead, it introduced cultural programming from the channelCultural·es.[26] In addition, an address was created for the channel, and its management was moved from Torrespaña to the center of TVE Cataluña inSan Cugat del Vallés,Barcelona.[27] Since 2014, primetime is covered by Spanish cinema cycles from Monday to Friday, and European films on weekends. The audience of La 2 has dropped to 2.6% audience share, similar to the children's channelClan.[28]
On 7 September 2017, during the presentation of the new season of the channel,Televisión Española announced the launch of thehigh definition signal of La 2,[29] which started issuing 31 October 2017 inMadrid, 7 November 2017 in the rest of Spain (exceptCatalonia andCanary Islands), 14 November 2017 inCatalonia and 21 November 2017 inCanary Islands.[30] With standard-definition feed discontinued on 11 February 2024, it has only been available in HD ever since.[31]
On 29 January 2025, a joint Junts-PSOE agreement paved way for La 2 to broadcast entirely in Catalan from 2027 in Catalonia.[32][33] On 28 March 2025, the RTVE Administrative Council unanimously approved the creation of the new channel, named2CAT, with Laura Folguera appointed as director.[34] The move comes as part of RTVE's growing commitment towards regional languages to reflect "a plural Spain and multilingualism", with sister channelClan seeing a 25% increase in Catalan-language content in local opt-outs.[35]
On 1 April, the RTVE board announced that it would increase opt-outs for the channel, which as of the time of the decision, were limited to Madrid, Catalonia and the Canary Islands. For this end, talks withCellnex regarding the feasibility of the project were held, aiming to increase it to the remaining autonomous communities. La 2, on a national scale, initiated a plan to potentiate its possibilities in order to give a "new impulse", claiming that its programming was largely disconnected from each other, as if it were "a big box full of little boxes". The network already premieredMalas lenguas in March, but plans a wider revamp in September, with the beginning of the new television season.[36]
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| Management |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Televisión Española | ||
| Radio Nacional de España | ||
| Interactives | ||
| Other | ||
| Defunct | ||
