The Open University

2020: an award winning year for OU/BBC TV and Radio

21 December 2020

It’s been another award-winning year for OU/BBC co-productions. Our co-produced content received four nominations at the BAFTAs, with Blue Planet Live winning the ‘Live Event’ category, BBC Ideas won a Webby and we had five nominations at the Broadcast Awards. Here we look back at some of the highlights of the OU/BBC co-productions from the […]

A Perfect Planet: far reaching series set to air in New Year

19 December 2020

Can we really live in a perfect world? A Perfect Planet is a new, five-part natural history series co-produced by The Open University and the BBC, which explains why the Earth is just right for life, so long as we look after it. The series, set to air from Sunday 3 January 2021 at 8pm […]

Bees, birdsong and butterflies: public connects with nature during lockdown

1 December 2020

Whether it’s listening to birdsong, strolling along leafy paths or just staring upwards at a cloud arrangement, many of us have become struck by nature’s beauty in 2020. OU Pollinator Watch is a citizen science social project which ran on the award-winning nQuire platform as part of BBC2’s Springwatch and went live during the first […]

Hospital returns to our screens with a first-hand experience of the pandemic

9 November 2020

Tonight, sees the return of the award-winning Hospital, the eye-opening, fly-on-the-wall series that follows the heroic men and women on the COVID-19 pandemic frontline. Co-produced by the BBC and The Open University’s Broadcast and Partnerships team, the five-week series airs at 9pm on BBC Two and focuses on London’s Royal Free Trust, a world-leader in the […]

OU takes home gold at the 2020 BAFTA TV Awards

4 August 2020

Blue Planet Live, a co-production between The Open University (OU) and the BBC, took home gold at the first virtual British Academy Television Awards (BAFTA). Up against stiff competition, including Glastonbury 2019 and last year’s televised election results, the marine life series triumphed and received the award for Best Live Event. Blue Planet Live, a […]

OU and BBC launch BAME mental health campaign

3 August 2020

The Open University has partnered with the BBC to co-produce another digital series, similar to the mental health campaign from earlier in the year, but this time focusing on supporting mental health within Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic communities. Throughout August, content will be released on the OU and BBC’s social media and online platforms. […]

OU partners with BBC to support the nation in maintaining good mental health

15 May 2020

The Open University has partnered with the BBC to co-produce a digital series to support maintaining good mental health during the pandemic lockdown. New content – featuring clips and illustrations – will be released daily to mark Mental Health Awareness Week (18-24 May), covering topics from toxic productivity to relationship tips. OU academics, Will Murcott, […]

Turning 20 – final episode of ‘Child of Our Time’ airs tonight

11 March 2020

Child of Our Time, the ground-breaking series that began 20 years ago filming a group of babies from the moment they were born, returns to our screens on Wednesday 11 March at 9pm on BBC Two. Co-produced by the BBC and The Open University’s Broadcast and Partnerships team, the one-off episode draws on hours of archive […]

Series puts images into focus

3 March 2020

A fascinating look at how the image has developed across the ages and transformed our lives comes to television screens in March 2020. The Age of the Image, a BBC/Open University co-production, tells the chronological and thematic history of the image right from the early 20th century, through commercialisation and up to today’s digitalised world. […]

Hospital is back on our screens for another powerful series

12 February 2020

Hospital, the fly-on-the-wall series that documents the incredible work and hardship faced by seven hospitals in Liverpool, is back for its fifth series. Co-produced by the BBC and The Open University’s Broadcast and Partnerships team, over eight weeks the series follows the extraordinary work of some of the region’s 20,000 NHS hospital staff, as they […]

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Category: TV and radio