In Pictures: 50 landmark BBC Two shows

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BBC Two is celebrating its 50th anniversary on Sunday, 20 April, having been home to many landmark programmes over the decades.

THE 1960s

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Children's show Play School was the first full programme to be broadcast on BBC Two, on 21 April 1964
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The Likely Lads, starring Rodney Bewes (left) and James Bolam, was the first comedy on the channel
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Music programme Jazz 625 first aired in 1965, coinciding with a boom in the British jazz scene
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Dudley Moore and Peter Cook starred in Not Only But Also. Three series were made, beginning in 1966
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Match of the Day began life on BBC Two in August 1964. Liverpool v Arsenal was the first featured game
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Wordy quiz show Call My Bluff began in 1965 before returning in 1996
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The memorable Forsyte Saga won Susan Hampshire a best actress Emmy Award in 1970 (actress Nyree Dawn Porter is pictured here)
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Gardener's World was launched in 1969, with presenters including Percy Thrower. It is still going strong
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Kenneth Clark fronted the epic documentary series Civilisation in 1969. The BBC is now bringing it back
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BBC Two was the first channel in Europe to broadcast in colour, including snooker programme Pot Black

THE 1970s

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Chef Delia Smith began her TV career with Family Fare in 1973
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Just two series of seminal sitcom Fawlty Towers were made, with the 12 episodes airing in 1975 and '79
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I, Claudius, starring Derek Jacobi, came 12th in the BFI's list of the 100 best ever TV shows in 2000
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The Old Grey Whistle Test ran from 1971 to '87, featuring performances by stars like Meat Loaf (pictured)
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Dennis Potter's 1978 musical drama Pennies From Heaven established Bob Hoskins as a leading man
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Not the Nine O'Clock News introduced Griff Rhys Jones, Rowan Atkinson, Pamela Stephenson & Mel Smith
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Alec Guinness starred in the tense 1979 adaptation of John le Carre's spy novel Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
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David Attenborough's groundbreaking natural history programme Life On Earth was first transmitted in 1979

THE 1980s

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Satirical sitcom Yes Minister ran for three series between 1980 and 1984, followed by Yes, Prime Minister
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The fierce Barbara Woodhouse started her TV career on BBC Two on Training Dogs the Woodhouse Way
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Liverpool drama Boys From The Blackstuff, penned by Alan Bleasdale, captured the mood of the early '80s
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The Young Ones, co-written by Ben Elton, was the first sitcom of the alternative comedy generation
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Flamboyant restaurateur and chef Keith Floyd's first TV series was Floyd on Fish in 1985
Image source, Getty Images
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BBC Two's highest ever ratings came during the 1985 snooker final between Dennis Taylor and Steve Davis
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Crime drama and political thriller Edge of Darkness, broadcast in 1985, won six Bafta Awards
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Sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf blasted off in 1988. It ran until 1999 before being resurrected by TV channel Dave
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Newsnight started life in 1980, and Jeremy Paxman (pictured during a moment off air) joined in 1989
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An adaptation of Jeanette Winterson's novel Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit proved controversial

THE 1990s

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Have I Got News For You has used guest hosts since original compere Angus Deayton was fired in 2002
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Music show Later... with Jools Holland (pictured with PJ Harvey in 1993) is now into its 44th series
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Chris Morris satirised and subverted mainstream news programmes on The Day Today
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The Day Today's sport reporter Alan Partridge was given his own chat show, Knowing Me, Knowing You
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Johnny Depp dropped in to be measured up by Mark Williams and Paul Whitehouse on The Fast Show
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The stars of Goodness Gracious Me have reunited for a one-off episode to celebrate BBC Two's anniversary
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Clarissa Dickson Wright (left) and Jennifer Paterson broke the cookery show mould as Two Fat Ladies
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Our Friends in the North made stars of Christopher Eccleston, Gina McKee, Mark Strong and Daniel Craig
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House share saga This Life was another of the decade's landmark dramas
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Sister Wendy was one of TV's unlikeliest stars, but her Odyssey art appreciation show achieved cult status
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Garden makeover series Ground Force proved a hit after launching in 1997, later moving to BBC One
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The Royle Family, which arrived in 1998, turned the minutiae of mundane family life into comedy gold
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The League of Gentlemen took their black comedy to BBC Two after making their debut on BBC Radio 4

THE 2000s

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Anne Robinson was the wicked queen of the Weakest Link in both the UK and US
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Simon Schama attempted to cover 5,000 years in 15 episodes of A History of Britain
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Top Gear went on the air in 1976, but has picked up speed since Jeremy Clarkson and co took over
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Ricky Gervais' mockumentary The Office won six Baftas and two Golden Globes and spawned a US remake
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Little Britain moved to BBC Two after its initial success on BBC Three
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Miranda Hart made her name with her sitcom on BBC Two in 2009 before transferring to BBC One

THE 2010s

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Professor Brian Cox became a household name thanks to documentaries like Wonders of the Solar System
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Hugh Bonneville and Jessica Hynes sent up the Olympics and then the BBC in Twenty Twelve and W1A
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Line of Duty, starring Keeley Hawes, is one of BBC Two's most talked-about dramas of recent years