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246-632: Mark Fowler is a fictional character in the BBC soap opera EastEnders . Mark, an original regular character when the series started in February 1985, became a semi-regular after his original portrayer David Scarboro was written out of the role in April 1985. Scarboro made brief returns to the role in 1986 and 1987. Scarboro died by suicide in April 1988 and subsequently Mark was recast two years later on his return, with former Grange Hill regular Todd Carty taking on

492-544: A Scottish woman named Ruth Aitken ( Caroline Paterson ); she is there visiting a friend. After a brief conversation, the two decide to go for a drink together. They start dating and Ruth copes with his HIV status but her father, a strict Presbyterian minister, refuses to give his blessing to her relationship with Mark and disowns her when she announces her plans to marry Mark. They marry in Scotland but problems surface in their marriage. She persuades Mark – and herself – that she

738-484: A "pivotal figure" on Albert Square, but the character had finally run its course. Campaigners have since suggested that Mark's HIV storyline could have been handled better in the latter years. Lisa Power , head of policy at the Terrence Higgins Trust , said "in some ways the storyline was not reflective of what was happening at the time as the condition was more common among the gay community". She also said "he

984-467: A ball in the hotel assembly room in honour of Lord Nelson . The visit of Princess Caroline boosted Southend's popularity with tourists. Travellers would often arrive by sailing boat or later by Thames steamer , which presented problems as boats could only dock during high tide. The Southend coast consists of mudflats that extend far from the shore, with a high tide depth that seldom exceeds 5.5 metres (18 ft). Large boats were unable to port near to

1230-552: A brain haemorrhage in May 1996 - after being injured in a prison riot several weeks earlier and the Fowlers are in mourning. During this time, Mark's HIV issues escalates when Kathy's infant child Ben (Matthew Silver) becomes seriously ill and Grant informs his brother Phil ( Steve McFadden ) – the child's father – about the situation. Grant blackmails Ruth, telling her that she has until Arthur's funeral to give up babysitting Ben or he will tell

1476-508: A brick works for the development. The first house in Grove Terrace was completed by January 1792 and it was reported that the hotel had been roofed and 60 dwellings had been started on. By the summer two public houses, the Duke of York and the Duke of Clarence had opened. However, by September that year The Times was reporting that the resort was likely to attract the lower and middle classes, not

1722-693: A censorship apparatus for the inevitability of war. Due to the BBC's advancements in shortwave radio technology, the corporation could broadcast across the world during the Second World War. Within Europe, the BBC European Service would gather intelligence and information regarding the current events of the war in English. Regional BBC workers, based on their regional geo-political climate, would then further censor

1968-433: A changed man. He is more caring and stable, having grown out of his rebellious stage. His new maturity is due to the fact that he has contracted HIV , which has forced him to become more responsible. Mark develops a close friendship with Diane Butcher ( Sophie Lawrence ) and initially does not tell anyone about his HIV status. However, as he and Diane grow closer, he finally tells her the truth. He believes that he contracted

2214-455: A child's injury prompted a survey, leading to repairs and replacement to much of the pier railway throughout the decade. In response, the council allocated £370,000 over two years, starting in 1972, to ensure the pier remained maintained, however the pier head burnt down in 1976 and in 1978 the pier railway was closed due to its poor condition. Prior to the pier railway closure, the Kursaal closed

2460-539: A delinquent teenager from his early stint on the show, he later became a changed man upon returning to Albert Square as a 22-year-old in 1990. Following his return, Mark became one of the show's central protagonists was featured in some of the most prominent storylines during his tenure on the soap. Arguably Mark's most significant and most high-profile storyline saw the character announce that he had been diagnosed with HIV, which forced him to grow up fast and accept his responsibilities. He frequently found it difficult to accept

2706-512: A dormitory town for the capital. On 14 April 1955, Air Charter inaugurated its first vehicle ferry service between Southend and Calais using a Bristol 170 Mark 32 Super Freighter. It was the sign of the future for tourism in the town, with the British public moving from UK holidays to foreign vacations that saw the start of the downturn on for the British seaside towns, though Southend still had strong numbers visiting. Between 1948 and 1962, it

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2952-559: A dumping ground for their bomb loads during the war if their primary target was not possible to hit. In 1942, the area along the seafront from the Pier to Chalkwell was transformed into HMS Westcliff , a huge naval transit and training camp run by Combined Operations . The police helped the Combined Operations Service find the owners of the empty properties so they could requisition properties to billet their staff. HMS Westcliff

3198-484: A few facts about his illness in The Queen Victoria ; firstly by telling them that he does not have AIDS but is HIV positive, which is a non-contagious virus, forcing them to acknowledge their bigotry. Grant speaks to Mark the next day and tells him that no one is barred from The Queen Victoria unless he says so. Peggy remains uncertain, but is forced to realise that Mark might appreciate some support when she herself

3444-504: A further 33 deaths. When peace was confirmed in 1919, official celebrations were organised by the town. A large Naval review off the Southend shore took place, with a twenty-one gun salute being fired on Peace Day on the 23 July. The town organised a carnival, fetes and a firework display. After the war Southend continued to grow in both residents and visitors, with many moving out of London to live in better conditions. Its population in 1921

3690-536: A growing population. Southend's development as a resort however seem to stall, until the Bank Holidays Act of 1871 with holidays becoming available to more of the population. The growth in visitor numbers due to the new bill saw the Local Board purchase the pier in 1873, construct Marine Parade in 1878, while the cliffs west of the pier were purchased and transformed into tree lined walkways during 1886. In 1889,

3936-463: A knife. Mark overpowers Nick, who then blurts out that he should've been the one on the motorbike instead of Ashley – thus exposing his involvement in his son's death. Mark berates Nick for causing his own son's death, then leaves him to be disowned by his mother Dot ( June Brown ) – who had just overheard Nick confess to his role in Ashley's death. At the end of Ashley's funeral, Mark watches as Nick leaves

4182-470: A large house was built, which by 1764 had become the Ship Inn. The area was further developed by the building of oystermen cottages called Pleasant Row in 1767, and a year later the settlement was recorded in the parishes records for taxation purposes for the first time. The records also recorded a salt works and a lime kiln. A visitor to the settlement in 1780 said "not anything in the worth place notice" , but

4428-461: A larger brand: in 2003, BBC Choice was replaced by BBC Three , with programming for younger adults and shocking real-life documentaries, BBC News 24 became the BBC News Channel in 2008, and BBC Radio 7 became BBC Radio 4 Extra in 2011, with new programmes to supplement those broadcast on Radio 4. In 2008, another channel was launched, BBC Alba , a Scottish Gaelic service. During this decade,

4674-469: A long-time supporter of city status for the borough, who was murdered on 15 October 2021. Southend was granted city status by letters patent dated 26 January 2022. On 1 March 2022, the letters patent were presented to Southend Borough Council by Charles, Prince of Wales . Southend was first recorded in 1309 as Stratende , a small piece of land in the Manor of Milton (now known as Westcliff-on-Sea ), within

4920-471: A much-friendlier relationship with Nick's beloved mother Dot ( June Brown ), a close companionship with Michelle's best friend Sharon Watts ( Letitia Dean ), helping his family keep secret that Sharon's adopted father Den ( Leslie Grantham ) is the father of Michelle's baby Vicki (Emma Herry/Samantha Leigh Martin/ Scarlett Alice Johnson ), becoming a suspect in the Who Shot Phil? enquiries, coping with

5166-550: A new road towards in Rochford in 1937. The London Taxi Drivers Charity for Children completed their first taxi drive to Southend in 1931, with 40 Hackney Carriages bringing children to the town, who were given 6d to spend on the seafront. At the 1931 Census the population of Southend was recorded at 110,790, however the town would grow further by absorbing South Shoebury district and parts of Rochford district in 1933. Southend tried their first autumn illuminations during 1935, following

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5412-599: A news and information service. In 1978, BBC staff went on strike just before the Christmas, thus blocking out the transmission of both channels and amalgamating all four radio stations into one. Since the deregulation of the UK television and radio market in the 1980s, the BBC has faced increased competition from the commercial sector (and from the advertiser-funded public service broadcaster Channel 4 ), especially on satellite television, cable television, and digital television services. In

5658-524: A noisy fashionable seaside town, with Benjamin Disraeli visiting regularly between 1833 and 1884, Prince Arthur visiting in 1868, while the Empress of France, Eugénie and her son, Louis-Napoléon, Prince Imperial also came to the town. However the growth of Southend saw a Local Board of Health be created in 1866, and the large steam powered Middleton brewery was opened by Henry Luker & Co in 1869 to serve

5904-489: A number of additional channels and radio stations have been launched: Radio 5 was launched in 1990, as a sports and educational station, but was replaced in 1994, with BBC Radio 5 Live to become a live radio station, following the success of the Radio 4 service to cover the 1991 Gulf War . The new station would be a news and sport station. In 1997, BBC News 24 , a rolling news channel, launched on digital television services, and

6150-563: A peak of 7 million the following year. Southend would use the Kursaal and Pier as nodal attractions to promote the town to tourists during the 50s and 60s. On 31 January 1953, Southend seafront was affected by the North Sea flood , with Peter Pan's Playground left underwater. However the town was not affected as badly as other parts of Essex. The town however was more joyous in June, with the town holding

6396-516: A potential AIDS victim, but later feels the benefits of the counselling. Mark loves Diane for keeping his secret and he asks her to marry him but she gently refuses and leaves Walford to live in France . Later that year, following the example of a friend Joe Wallace (Jason Rush) who had told his parents about being gay and HIV-positive, Mark decides to tell his parents. By now, he is dating Rachel Kominski ( Jacquetta May ), who advises him not to but Mark

6642-732: A proposal to cut 4,000 jobs, and to privatise parts of the BBC, disrupted much of the BBC's regular programming. In 2006, BBC HD launched as an experimental service and became official in December 2007. The channel broadcast HD simulcasts of programmes on BBC One , BBC Two , BBC Three and BBC Four as well as repeats of some older programmes in HD. In 2010, an HD simulcast of BBC One launched: BBC One HD . The channel uses HD versions of BBC One's schedule and uses upscaled versions of programmes not currently produced in HD. The BBC HD channel closed in March 2013 and

6888-455: A rank of 32,482). Victoria and Milton wards have the highest proportion of ethnic minority residents – at the 2011 Census these figures were 24.2% and 26.5% respectively. Southend has the highest percentage of residents receiving housing benefits (19%) and the third highest percentage of residents receiving council tax benefits in Essex. As of May 2024, The Office of National Statistics have recorded

7134-539: A series of strikes; however, the BBC stated that the cuts were essential to move the organisation forward and concentrate on increasing the quality of programming. On 20 October 2010, the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced that the television licence fee would be frozen at its current level until the end of the current charter in 2016. The same announcement revealed that the BBC would take on

7380-455: A story approximately a year before it had been originally intended – "Wicksy" had originally been scheduled to join the series around the same time as his mother Pat , who arrived in June 1986. Scarboro returned to the show briefly in December 1985 in a storyline that saw Mark's parents, Pauline ( Wendy Richard ) and Arthur ( Bill Treacher ) search for him in Southend . The storyline's intention

7626-516: A telephone call from Mark's nurse, informing him that Mark has died from an AIDS-related form of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma . His body is returned to Walford and he is given a heartfelt send-off by the residents. Following his death, Mark would be referenced by his own family and friends during the subsequent years that go on in the square; particularly in 2011 when Mandy returns and reminisces about their friendship in conversation with Ian Beale, and again in 2015 when Nick returns and, after recalling to Dot

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7872-460: A visit from the Princess of Wales , Caroline of Brunswick , and the construction of both the pier and railway, allowing easier access from London. From the 1960s onwards, the city declined as a holiday destination. After the 1960s, much of the city centre was developed for commerce and retail, and many original structures were lost to redevelopment. As part of its reinvention, Southend became the home of

8118-527: A week of celebrations to commemorate the Coronation of Elizabeth II . This included an air race at the airport featuring aerobatic displays by supersonic jets, a military tattoo, a coronation ball at the Kursaal featuring Ted Heath and his Music and a grand fireworks display on the seafront. In 1956, the Great Eastern line was electrified which encouraged more Londoners move to the town, further making it into

8364-405: A while. He later proposes to Lisa, shortly after her baby Louise is born. However, Mark is devastated to learn that Phil is actually the child's biological father. Eventually, Phil discovers the truth when Grant's former wife Sharon ( Letitia Dean ) informs him about Louise's true parentage, and Phil vows to take an active role in his daughter's upbringing. Mark and Lisa marry, but their happiness

8610-426: A witness. He asks Steve to help, but Steve is not willing to help due to fear of repercussions with the two gangsters who organised the game. Arthur spends a stretch in prison, leaving Mark devastated. Steve eventually decides to help, but is then forced to leave Albert Square when he is threatened by the criminal firm. Arthur is eventually released. To add to his problems, Mark is further devastated when Arthur dies of

8856-474: A year later the first bathing machine was brought to the hamlet. By 1785, the Chelmsford Chronicle were reporting that plans were being contemplated to build a hotel with the plan to make South-end, equal, if not rival any of the watering places to which the genteelest company usually resort; there being nothing wanted but a place of accommodation, where the agreeable distance from the metropolis, and

9102-405: Is a unitary authority , performing the functions of both a county and district council. There is one civil parish within the city at Leigh-on-Sea , which has a Town Council that was established in 1996. The rest of the city is an unparished area . The city is split into seventeen wards, with each ward returning three councillors. The 51 councillors serve four years and one third of the council

9348-467: Is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in south-eastern Essex , England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary , 40 miles (64 km) east of central London . It is bordered to the north by Rochford and to the west by Castle Point . The city is one of the most densely populated places in the country outside of London. It is home to the longest pleasure pier in

9594-496: Is a key issue – the earlier an HIV diagnosis is made, the greater the likelihood of staying well on treatments. Our concern with the Mark Fowler storyline is that it will increase the fear associated with HIV, potentially discouraging people from being tested at all or from starting on drug treatments if they feel there is little hope for the future." A real-life HIV victim had been on a variety of combination therapy treatments since he

9840-667: Is diagnosed with breast cancer . It is then Mark and Ruth foster a six-year-old girl named Jessie Moore (Chelsey Paden), but returning her to her mother proves too heartbreaking and their marriage goes into crisis. When his cousin Conor Flaherty ( Seán Gleeson ) shows a romantic interest in Ruth, who secretly comes to question her marriage by this stage, Mark becomes jealous and the relationship falls apart. After they divorce, Ruth succumbs to Conor's charms and becomes pregnant by him. Ruth subsequently leaves Walford after realizing she had to put

10086-448: Is diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and goes into a hospice . Mark realises that he is in love with her and asks her to marry him. Mark and Gill marry, and their honeymoon consists of one night in a hotel, before Gill returns to the hospice and dies. Mark later befriends local teenage tearaway Mandy Salter ( Nicola Stapleton ), but their friendship is severely tested when she becomes obsessed with him. Mark, still grieving for Gill,

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10332-438: Is elected each year, followed by one year without election. As of the 2024 local elections a coalition led by Labour run the council. Southend's first elected council was a local board , which held its first meeting on 29 August 1866. Prior to that the town was administered by the vestry for the wider parish of Prittlewell . The local board district was enlarged in 1877 to cover the whole parish of Prittlewell. The town

10578-434: Is fairly certain to be joining his dad in the dole queue. Mark is a very tough little lad, and at a very dodgy stage in his development...There's a kind of amoral streak in his nature...The area does have a brutalising effect on a lot of its youngsters (page 55) Several young actors were seen and read for the part of Mark (including Gary Hailes , who would later play the gay barrow boy, Barry Clark ). On paper, David Scarboro

10824-615: Is forced to separate them. When Phil is shot on the night his nemesis Steve Owen ( Martin Kemp ) and Lisa's best friend Mel Healy ( Tamzin Outhwaite ) get married, Mark becomes a prime suspect as the police gather information on his hatred for Phil – which leads his godson Jamie ( Jack Ryder ) and cousin Billy ( Perry Fenwick ) to each separately accuse Mark of shooting Phil. One month later, Mark learns that Phil has recovered and checked himself out of

11070-541: Is happy about not having children (due to the inevitable spread of the AIDS virus to herself and the baby), but it is soon clear that she is fooling herself. Mark is injured in a pub brawl during which he saved the square's local hardman, Grant Mitchell ( Ross Kemp ), from getting glassed by a punter. However, after calling the ambulance, Grant overhears Ruth telling the paramedics about Mark's HIV status. Around this time, Mark wins money at an illegal poker match that takes place at

11316-449: Is hesitant to kill Mark himself, Nick takes matters into his own hands and drains the brake fluid on his motorbike. The next day, Ashley – not knowing that his father had done – steals Mark's motorbike and attempts to run him over in a last-ditch attempt to impress his father, but is killed after he ends up crashing into the launderette. On the eve of Ashley's funeral, Mark and Nick have their final showdown when Nick attempts to kill Mark with

11562-495: Is horrified when he discovers that Mandy has been reading his late wife's diary and has dressed up in her clothes. Despite this, he invites Mandy to live with him after Den's friend Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ) throws her out. On Christmas Day, Mandy goes to visit her mother but is attacked by her stepfather; Mark arrives just in time to rescue her and invites her for Christmas dinner at the Fowler household. Mark takes over running

11808-457: Is not seen again until eight months later when he contacts his parents through a runaways' agency; Pauline and Arthur eventually locate him in Southend-on-Sea . Mark is living with an older Swedish woman named Ingrid ( Sally Faulkner ) and her two children, John (Anthony Short) and Melanie (Vanessa Short) - who call Mark "Daddy". He and Ingrid split up soon afterwards and Mark moves around

12054-500: Is obviously of paramount importance." Reith succeeded in building a high wall against an American-style free-for-all in radio in which the goal was to attract the largest audiences and thereby secure the greatest advertising revenue. There was no paid advertising on the BBC; all the revenue came from a tax on receiving sets. Highbrow audiences, however, greatly enjoyed it. At a time when American, Australian and Canadian stations were drawing huge audiences cheering for their local teams with

12300-606: Is one of Essex's most deprived areas. Out of 32,482 Lower Super Output Areas in England, area 014D in the Kursaal ward is 99th, area 015B in Milton ward is 108th, area 010A in Victoria ward is 542nd, and area 009D in Southchurch ward is 995th, as well as an additional 5 areas all within the top 10% most deprived areas in England (with the most deprived area having a rank of 1 and the least deprived

12546-403: Is rejecting the medication that will prolong his life and slow down the onset of AIDS. Accepting that he will not live for much longer, he decides to leave rather than let his family see him endure a slow, painful death. On 14 February 2003, he makes a tearful farewell to his family and friends and rides off on his motorbike, although he remains in contact with family. In April 2004, Martin receives

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12792-501: Is responsible for operational management and delivery of services within a framework set by the board, and is chaired by the director-general , currently Tim Davie , who is chief executive and (from 1994) editor-in-chief. The corporation has the following in-house divisions covering the BBC's output and operations: Southend-on-Sea Southend-on-Sea ( / ˌ s aʊ θ ɛ n d ɒ n ˈ s iː / ), commonly referred to as Southend ( / s aʊ ˈ θ ɛ n d / ),

13038-446: Is short-lived: Lisa is still very much in love with Phil, who then decides to use this to his advantage by seducing her in order to get more access to Louise. After Sharon discovers Phil's intentions, she talks him out of his plan and he ends the affair with Lisa; but this later becomes meaningless when Mark finds out, and after just five months of marriage, Lisa leaves Mark and resumes her affair with Phil. This causes Mark to break down by

13284-530: Is tired of the pretence. On Boxing Day Mark tells Pauline and Arthur that he is HIV-positive. They sit in stunned silence while he scatters helpful leaflets around the house and then goes away for a while. On his return, he faces Pauline's irrational terror and Arthur's hostility. Arthur's ignorance is apparent initially as he fears that Mark will pass HIV on to him; he even bleaches everything Mark touches to avoid infection. Pauline and Michelle are understandably distraught, so they managed to help Arthur to understand

13530-452: The 2011 census , it had a population of 295,310. Save the Children 's research data shows that for 2008–09, Southend had 4,000 children living in poverty, a rate of 12%, the same as Thurrock , but above the 11% child poverty rate of Essex as a whole. The Department for Communities and Local Government 's 2010 Indices of Multiple Deprivation Deprivation Indices data showed that Southend

13776-399: The 2024 United Kingdom general election , Bayo Alaba of Labour won 38.8% of the vote to win the seat of Southend East and Rochford, with a 57% turnout. The new MP for Southend West and Leigh is David Burton-Sampson of Labour, who won 35.6% of the vote on a turnover of 63%. This was the first time since the initial seat in parliament was created in 1918, that Labour have been elected, as

14022-514: The Access credit card , due to its having one of the UK's first electronic telephone exchanges . An annual seafront airshow, which started in 1986 and featured a flypast by Concorde , used to take place each May until 2012. On 18 October 2021, it was announced that Southend would be granted city status , in memorial to the Conservative Member of Parliament for Southend West, Sir David Amess ,

14268-626: The Archbishops of Canterbury and York came to St Paul's to broadcast to the UK and the world on the National Day of Prayer. BBC employees during the war included George Orwell who spent two years with the broadcaster. During his role as prime minister during the war, Winston Churchill delivered 33 major wartime speeches by radio, all of which were carried by the BBC within the UK. On 18 June 1940, French general Charles de Gaulle , in exile in London as

14514-577: The BBC Television Service ) started from Alexandra Palace in November 1936, alternating between an improved Baird mechanical 240-line system and the all-electronic 405-line Marconi-EMI system which had been developed by an EMI research team led by Sir Isaac Shoenberg . The superiority of the electronic system saw the mechanical system dropped early the following year, with the Marconi-EMI system

14760-495: The Countess of Warwick a year later. The site had previously been planned to be home to a new joint town hall, library and school but spiraling costs had seen the town hall and library being dropped. In 1903, it was reported that around 1 million people had paid admission to use the pier, while 250,000 passengers had alighted from pleasure steamboats. Further facilities were built for the growing visitor numbers, including extending

15006-529: The Dunkirk evacuation . The town itself was first hit by German bombing in May 1940, when the Nore Yacht club was hit while 10 soldiers were killed near the airport. Southend High School for Boys was hit in a raid in June 1940. By June 1940, much of the town was sealed off, with all bar 10% of the population that were engaged in essential services, evacuated and only military personnel remaining. A cordon of 20 miles

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15252-485: The Great Eastern Railway opened its station at Southend Victoria, and a new iron built replacement for the pier opened. The town was officially incorporated in 1892, with the Local Board of Health being replaced by a municipal corporation, and a year later added the on-sea to the town's name. During 1892, the famous Southend department store Keddies opened its doors for the first time. Between 1871 and 1901

15498-447: The Ice age by sand, gravel and river alluvium. The cliffs have been affected by slip planes affected by groundwater, with major slips having occurred in 1956, 1962, 1964 and 1969. In 2001, a small slippage occurred, which was followed by a major slippage in November 2002, which irreparably damaged the cliffs bandstand and restaurant. At a later date, a report came to light from a month before

15744-936: The MediaCityUK development in Salford , with BBC Three moving online only in 2016, the sharing of more programmes between stations and channels, sharing of radio news bulletins, more repeats in schedules, including the whole of BBC Two daytime and for some original programming to be reduced. BBC HD was closed on 26 March 2013, and replaced with an HD simulcast of BBC Two; however, flagship programmes, other channels and full funding for CBBC and CBeebies would be retained. Numerous BBC facilities have been sold off, including New Broadcasting House on Wilmslow Road in Manchester. Many major departments have been relocated to Broadcasting House in central London and MediaCityUK in Salford, particularly since

15990-517: The Western Front . The pier was frequently used to reach troop ships, with the Admiralty stationing a war signal station at the pierhead, and Southchurch Park was taken over as an army training ground. During the war, the public could still walk the length of the pier. As the war drew on, Southend also became an evacuation point for casualties and several hotels were converted to hospitals, including

16236-500: The 1st July 1793, and most of Grove Terrace was available to let. Later that year New South-End was listed for the first time by the parish for the annual rate, and by the summer of 1794 the Terrace, Grove Terrace, the Mews and Library had finally been completed. However, by February 1795, Thomas Holland had been declared bankrupt, and the property he owned was not sold by auction until 1797, with

16482-586: The 2024 election. Paul Channon , son of Henry replaced his father as the MP for Southend West from 1959 until he stepped down in 1997. He was replaced by Sir David Amess, who served from 1997 until his murder in 2021. Anna Firth of the Conservatives had replaced Amess at the by-election in January 2022 with 86% of the vote but lost her seat at the 2024 election. Southend is the seventh most densely populated area in

16728-514: The 2025–26 season of the Women's Super League campaign. The BBC is a statutory corporation , independent from direct government intervention, with its activities being overseen from April 2017 by the BBC Board and regulated by Ofcom . The chairman is Samir Shah. The BBC is a state owned public broadcasting company and operates under a royal charter . The charter is the constitutional basis for

16974-467: The BBC announced a BBC News savings target of £80 million per year by 2022, involving about 520 staff reductions. The BBC's director of news and current affairs Fran Unsworth said there would be further moves toward digital broadcasting, in part to attract back a youth audience, and more pooling of reporters to stop separate teams covering the same news. In 2020, the BBC reported a £119 million deficit because of delays to cost reduction plans, and

17220-537: The BBC employs over 21,000 staff in total, of whom approximately 17,200 are in public-sector broadcasting. The BBC was established under a royal charter , and operates under an agreement with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport . Its work is funded principally by an annual television licence fee which is charged to all British households, companies, and organisations using any type of equipment to receive or record live television broadcasts or to use

17466-456: The BBC has played a prominent role in British life and culture. It is sometimes informally referred to as the Beeb or Auntie . In 1923 it launched Radio Times (subtitled "The official organ of the BBC"), the first broadcast listings magazine; the 1988 Christmas edition sold 11 million copies, the biggest-selling edition of any British magazine in history. Britain's first live public broadcast

17712-565: The BBC is subject to an additional 'Agreement' between it and the Culture Secretary , and that its operating licence is to be set by Ofcom, an external regulatory body . It used to be that the Home Secretary be departmental to both Agreement as well as Licence, and regulatory duties fall to the BBC Trust , but the 2017 charter changed those 2007 arrangements. The charter, too, outlines

17958-741: The BBC released minutes of the board meeting which led to Greg Dyke's resignation. Unlike the other departments of the BBC, the BBC World Service was funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office . The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, more commonly known as the Foreign Office or the FCO, is the British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom abroad. A strike in 2005 by more than 11,000 BBC workers, over

18204-440: The BBC suddenly became the primary source of news for the duration of the crisis. The crisis placed the BBC in a delicate position. On the one hand Reith was acutely aware that the government might exercise its right to commandeer the BBC at any time as a mouthpiece of the government if the BBC were to step out of line, but on the other he was anxious to maintain public trust by appearing to be acting independently. The government

18450-407: The BBC was accused of "killing" HIV victims' hopes. Edinburgh -based HIV charity Waverley Care reacted negatively to scriptwriters for "scaring" victims away from seeking treatment by "painting a bleak picture". Real-life HIV survivors also hit out at the BBC for destroying their hope by failing to give an accurate view of the range of treatment now available. However, soap bosses hit back and defended

18696-477: The BBC was granted sufficient leeway to pursue the government's objectives largely in a manner of its own choosing. Supporters of the strike nicknamed the BBC the BFC for British Falsehood Company. Reith personally announced the end of the strike which he marked by reciting from Blake's " Jerusalem " signifying that England had been saved. While the BBC tends to characterise its coverage of the general strike by emphasising

18942-531: The BBC", was priced at tuppence (two pence ) on newsstands, and quickly sold out its run of a quarter of a million copies. Mid-1925 found the future of broadcasting under further consideration, this time by the Crawford committee. By now, the BBC, under Reith's leadership, had forged a consensus favouring a continuation of the unified (monopoly) broadcasting service, but more money was still required to finance rapid expansion. Wireless manufacturers were anxious to exit

19188-459: The BBC's airwaves. In 1937, a MI5 security officer was given a permanent office within the organisation. This officer would examine the files of potential political subversives and mark the files of those deemed a security risk to the organisation, blacklisting them. This was often done on spurious grounds; even so, the practice would continue and expand during the years of the Cold War. There

19434-535: The BBC's censorship office, which surveilled and edited American coverage of British affairs. By 1940, across all BBC broadcasts, music by composers from enemy nations was censored. In total, 99 German, 38 Austrian and 38 Italian composers were censored. The BBC argued that like the Italian or German languages, listeners would be irritated by the inclusion of enemy composers. Any potential broadcasters said to have pacifist, communist or fascist ideologies were not allowed on

19680-512: The BBC's revenue comes from its commercial subsidiary BBC Studios (formerly BBC Worldwide ), which sells BBC programmes and services internationally and also distributes the BBC's international 24-hour English-language news services BBC News , and from BBC.com, provided by BBC Global News Ltd. In 2009, the company was awarded the Queen's Award for Enterprise in recognition of its international achievements in business. Since its formation in 1922,

19926-679: The BBC's streaming service, iPlayer . The fee is set by the British Government , agreed by Parliament , and is used to fund the BBC's radio, TV, and online services covering the nations and regions of the UK. Since 1 April 2014, it has also funded the BBC World Service (launched in 1932 as the BBC Empire Service), which broadcasts in 28 languages and provides comprehensive TV, radio, and online services in Arabic and Persian . Some of

20172-510: The BBC, and sets out the BBC's Object, Mission and Public Purposes. It emphasises public service , (limited) editorial independence , prohibits advertising on domestic services and proclaims the BBC is to "seek to avoid adverse impacts on competition which are not necessary for the effective fulfilment of the Mission and the promotion of the Public Purposes". The charter also sets out that

20418-794: The Best EastEnders characters of all time, writing how he was "at the centre of one of the soap's most controversial storylines after he contracted the HIV virus". BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation ( BBC ) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London , England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company , it evolved into its current state with its current name on New Year's Day 1927. The oldest and largest local and global broadcaster by stature and by number of employees,

20664-457: The Bill and it received Royal Assent on the 14 May. By July, Lord Mayor of London, Sir William Thompson laid the foundation stone, and the first section of the pier opened a year later. However, Southend was still a quiet health resort, as the pier did not extend far enough out and visitors had issues disembarking. In June 1852, after several attempts at building a railway to Southend, Royal Assent

20910-469: The Bridge Street Cafe run by Steve Elliot ( Mark Monero ) and gives the money to Arthur to put towards his Wilderness Flowering Fund. However, problems emerged when Arthur is arrested and charged with embezzlement after being framed for the crime by his old friend Willy Roper (Michael Tudor-Barnes). Realising that he needed to account for his share towards the fund, Mark tells the police but he needs

21156-575: The British government's asylum policy on social media. Lineker was suspended from his position on Match of the Day before being re-instated after receiving overwhelming support from his colleagues. The scandal was made worse due to the connections between BBC's chairman, Richard Sharp, and the Conservative Party. In April 2023, Richard Sharp resigned as chairman after a report found he did not disclose potential perceived conflicts of interest in his role in

21402-695: The British war machine. In 1939, the Royal Navy had commandeered Southend Pier, renaming it HMS Leigh , with the army building a concrete platform on the Prince George extension to house anti-aircraft guns. The navy also took over the Royal Terrace for its personnel. The pier was used by the navy to help control the River Thames , along with the Thames Estuary boom that was built at Shoebury Garrison during 1939, and organised over 3,000 East Coast convoys by

21648-500: The CBBC Channel and CBeebies Channel. In addition to the television channels, new digital radio stations were created: 1Xtra , 6 Music and Radio 4 Extra . BBC 1Xtra was a sister station to Radio 1 and specialised in modern black music, BBC 6 Music specialised in alternative music genres and BBC7 specialised in archive, speech and children's programming. The following few years resulted in repositioning of some channels to conform to

21894-512: The Central Museum and Beecroft Art Gallery, but in 2018 it was abandoned due to rising costs. The town's commercial growth during the 60s and 70s, declined with the departure of many of their former tenants, including HM Revenue and Customs in 2022, and many of the former offices have been converted to apartments. On 15 October 2021, the Member of Parliament for Southend West, Sir David Amess,

22140-628: The Corporation's governance and regulatory arrangements as a statutory corporation, including the role and composition of the BBC Board. The current Charter began on 1 January 2017 and ends on 31 December 2027; the Agreement being coterminous. The BBC Board was formed in April 2017. It replaced the previous governing body, the BBC Trust, which itself had replaced the board of governors in 2007. The board sets

22386-462: The Fowlers for some time afterwards. In November, Pauline receives news that Mark is in Borstal detention centre for drug offences as well as burglary and assaulting a policeman. Visiting him, Pauline finds him unrepentant but due for release in a few weeks. After his release, he briefly comes back to Walford; but eventually he wants to leave despite Pauline's pleas. Mark is not seen again until Christmas

22632-642: The GPO and the BBC had become deadlocked and the Postmaster General commissioned a review of broadcasting by the Sykes Committee. The committee recommended a short-term reorganisation of licence fees with improved enforcement in order to address the BBC's immediate financial distress, and an increased share of the licence revenue split between it and the GPO. This was to be followed by a simple 10 shillings licence fee to fund broadcasts. The BBC's broadcasting monopoly

22878-567: The Guinness connection, the seat became known in the media as "Guinness-on-Sea". In 1950, the one seat was split into two, Southend East and Southend West due to the growth in the town. Sir Stephen McAdden served as the MP for Southend East from 1950 until his death in 1979. His replacement Sir Teddy Taylor served Southend East, then its replacement seat Rochford and Southend East from 1980 until he retired in 2005. James Duddridge served as Sir Teddy's replacement from 2005 until stepping down at

23124-555: The Heygate family purchasing the buildings. John Sanderson, the other developer was also declared bankrupt, with only Grove House built, and his estate was not sold until 1802, with much of the site still open land. In contrast, Old South-end doubled in size during the same period including two public houses, the Ship Inn and the Anchor and Hope Inn, five shops and the Caroline baths. A large house

23370-605: The Metropole into the Queen Mary Naval Hospital. Arthur Maitland Keddie, from the Keddies department store organised day trips for wounded soldiers from the Queen Mary Naval Hospital to Thundersley and Runwell . The town was first bombed by German Zeppelins on 10 May 1915 with the death of one woman, while a second attack happened on the 26 May again with one death. Another bombing raid by Gothas took place in 1917 with

23616-531: The Parish of Prittlewell . Its next recorded mention was in a will from 1408, where the area south of Prittlewell was called Sowthende . In March 1665, the British naval ship, The London, blew up while moored just of South-end on its way to fight in the Second Anglo-Dutch War . The hamlet of South-end, a few fishermen's huts and Thames Farm farmhouse stayed this way until the mid 18th century, when in 1758

23862-608: The Pavilion on the pier. In 1944, while towing a Mulberry harbour caisson to Goole in Hampshire, it was found to be leaking so it was brought into the Thames Estuary off Thorpe Bay to be checked, but after being left by the tugs, it moved partially into the channel, and without support of the mudflat snapped in half and remains there to this day. Further disaster happened when in August 1944,

24108-498: The Prime Minister, maintained the censorship of editorial opinions on public policy, but allowed the BBC to address matters of religious, political or industrial controversy. The resulting political "talk series", designed to inform England on political issues, were criticised by members of parliament, including Winston Churchill, David Lloyd George and Sir Austen Chamberlain . Those who opposed these chats claimed that they silence

24354-492: The UK's first Independent local radio station, LBC came on-air in the London area. As a result of the Pilkington Committee report of 1962, in which the BBC was praised for the quality and range of its output, and ITV was very heavily criticised for not providing enough quality programming, the decision was taken to award the BBC a second television channel, BBC2 , in 1964, renaming the existing service BBC1 . BBC2 used

24600-463: The United Kingdom outside of the London Boroughs, with 38.8 people per hectare compared to a national average of 3.77. The greater urban area of Southend spills outside of the borough boundaries into the neighbouring Castle Point and Rochford districts, including the towns of Hadleigh , Benfleet , Rayleigh and Rochford , as well as the villages of Hockley and Hullbridge . According to

24846-573: The United States, the GPO proposed that it would issue a single broadcasting licence to a company jointly owned by a consortium of leading wireless receiver manufacturers, to be known as the British Broadcasting Company Ltd , which was formed on 18 October 1922. John Reith , a Scottish Calvinist , was appointed its general manager in December 1922 a few weeks after the company made its first official broadcast. L. Stanton Jefferies

25092-459: The actors became difficult for him to cope with. He became unhappy with the schedule and his scripts and refused to play Mark as a racist as was intended. Holland and Smith decided to write the character out of the show to allow the actor to come to terms with the situation better. On-screen, Mark was being implicated in the murder of Reg Cox (Johnnie Clayton) and was being tempted into heroin by Nick Cotton ( John Altman ). Fearing Nick Cotton and

25338-622: The air and forced the British government finally to regulate radio services to permit nationally based advertising-financed services. In response, the BBC reorganised and renamed their radio channels. On 30 September 1967, the Light Programme was split into Radio 1 offering continuous "Popular" music and Radio 2 more "Easy Listening". The "Third" programme became Radio 3 offering classical music and cultural programming. The Home Service became Radio 4 offering news, and non-musical content such as quiz shows, readings, dramas and plays. As well as

25584-480: The baby first and could not do so while still in Walford, so she leaves alone without Mark or Conor; henceforth Mark is left heartbroken once more. In 2000, Mark's past troubles resurface when Nick returns to the square and the two embark on a longstanding feud. This soon gets Martin (now played by James Alexandrou ) involved when Nick attempts to ensnare him with drugs in a similar manner as he once did with Mark. Towards

25830-500: The beach and no boats could approach at low tide. Many potential visitors would travel beyond Southend on to Margate or other resorts with better docking facilities. Due to this, local dignitaries led by the former Lord Mayor of the City of London Sir William Heygate , campaigned in the early 1820s to gain permission from parliament to build a pier. On the 7 May 1829, the House of Lords passed

26076-458: The broadcast of baseball, rugby and hockey, the BBC emphasised service for a national rather than a regional audience. Boat races were well covered along with tennis and horse racing, but the BBC was reluctant to spend its severely limited air time on long football or cricket games, regardless of their popularity. John Reith and the BBC, with support from the Crown , determined the universal needs of

26322-405: The cast and crew and everyone involved on the show." EastEnders executive producer Louise Berridge said that Carty had made a "fantastic contribution" to the soap and Mark had been a "pivotal figure" on Albert Square, but the character had finally run its course. She went on to say "Todd and I have discussed this at some length and agreed that it was time for Mark to hang up his leather jacket for

26568-505: The cemetery. He believes that he was the one who caused Arthur's death. Mark's HIV status becomes public knowledge after an argument in the Queen Victoria between Pauline and fellow punter Ted Hills ( Brian Croucher ) is overheard by Phil and Grant's mother Peggy ( Barbara Windsor ). She hears Ted tell Pauline that he knows that Mark has AIDS. Peggy spreads the gossip around the Square and

26814-606: The challenge of better reflecting and representing a changing UK". Since 2017, the BBC has also funded the Local Democracy Reporting Service , with up to 165 journalists employed by independent news organisations to report on local democracy issues on a pooled basis. In 2016, the BBC Director General Tony Hall announced a savings target of £800 million per year by 2021, which is about 23% of annual licence fee revenue. Having to take on

27060-407: The character was uncanny, so they offered him the role. Mark was originally scripted to be a wayward delinquent and was due to feature heavily within the first year of the series. However, as soon as the regular gruelling schedule of EastEnders production established itself, it became clear that Scarboro was not happy in the role. The stress of the heavy workload and the sudden fame that came to all

27306-527: The city had previously been held by the Conservatives. From the creation of the first Member of Parliament seat for Southend in 1918, there has been a history of long serving MPs. Rupert Guinness of the Guinness family was Southend's first MP, and only stepped down when he was given a peerage. His wife, Gwendolen Guinness replaced him in 1927, until she retired and her son-in-law Henry Channon replaced her in 1935, serving until his death in 1958. Because of

27552-464: The closure of BBC Television Centre in March 2013. On 16 February 2016, the BBC Three television service was discontinued and replaced by a digital outlet under the same name, targeting its young adult audience with web series and other content. Under the new royal charter instituted in 2017, the corporation must publish an annual report to Ofcom, outlining its plans and public service obligations for

27798-408: The corporation began to sell off a number of its operational divisions to private owners; BBC Broadcast was spun off as a separate company in 2002, and in 2005, it was sold off to Australian -based Macquarie Capital Alliance Group and Macquarie Group Limited and rebranded Red Bee Media . The BBC's IT , telephony and broadcast technology were brought together as BBC Technology Ltd in 2001, and

28044-487: The council using Section 4 of the Town and Country Act 1962 to compulsory purchase the remaining properties. The development, which became Victoria Circus Shopping Centre, opened in 1970 and saw a large area of much loved Southend demolished. Further developments put forward by the council included building a ring road around the town centre. First discussed by the council in 1955, plans were started to be developed in 1961, with

28290-640: The country with a money ransom – all the while believing that Steve had shot Phil, meaning that Dan was never aware that Lisa had shot Phil in the first place. At the point Phil's when actions have resulted in Dan fleeing the country and Steve's marriage with Mel were left on the verge of facing jeopardy, Mark and Lisa conduct a plan to pretend that she is expecting Mark's baby – as he had grown to love Lisa ever since her troubles with Phil had started. To facilitate their lie, Mark insists that he had taken all necessary precautions in relation to his HIV, and they fool everyone for

28536-464: The country. Mark returns to Walford several times for brief visits. In July, he brings his Welsh friend Owen Hughes (Philip Brock) over to the square. They soon cause problems after fellow neighbour Cassie Carpenter ( Delanie Forbes ) steals their cannabis and her parents, Tony Carpenter ( Oscar James ) and Hannah Carpenter ( Sally Sagoe ), catch her smoking it; the Carpenters refuse to speak to

28782-427: The death of his father Arthur not long after the latter is exonerated for being wrongfully implicated with embezzlement, and managing to reconcile with Pauline in light of overcoming a number of major family problems. Mark Fowler is the first of three children born to Albert Square residents Arthur Fowler ( Bill Treacher ) and his wife Pauline ( Wendy Richard ); he has a sister called Michelle ( Susan Tully ) and

29028-602: The declaration of war , the British government began the internment of German citizens and several thousand were held on three ships, the Royal Edward, Saxonia and the Ivernia which were moored off the pier until May 1915. The War Office selected a piece of land north of the town in 1914 for a new aerodrome, with Squadron no. 37 of the Royal Flying Corps moving in a year later. Many soldiers passed through Southend en route to

29274-404: The difficulties that can occur in a relationship when one partner has HIV and the other does not. Ultimately Mark overcame the stigma and he enjoyed several years of happy, healthy living before finally succumbing to an AIDS-related illness and dying in April 2004 off-screen. EastEnders executive producer Louise Berridge said Carty had made a "fantastic contribution" to the soap and Mark has been

29520-553: The division was later sold to the German company Siemens IT Solutions and Services (SIS). SIS was subsequently acquired from Siemens by the French company Atos . Further divestments included BBC Books (sold to Random House in 2006); BBC Outside Broadcasts Ltd (sold in 2008 to Satellite Information Services ); Costumes and Wigs (stock sold in 2008 to Angels Costumes ); and BBC Magazines (sold to Immediate Media Company in 2011). After

29766-498: The drawing board. In 1980, the town's reinvention as a commercial centre had seen it shrug off its tag as a dormitory town for London, however the future of the pier was in doubt and a campaign, which included Sir John Betjeman, pushed the council to keep the pier open. The pier may have been saved, now run by Lecorgne Amusements, but the town lost another attraction in 1983, when the Southend Aircraft Museum closed for

30012-505: The electrification of the London, Tilbury and Southend railway line acting as impetus as bridges over the line which were on the route of the planned ring road needed replacing. In 1965, the Ministry of Transport gave the council a grant of £869,986 to the planned cost of £1.2 million to build the North and East sections of the ring road. The council used compulsory purchase orders to buy up many of

30258-561: The end of the war. HMS Leigh was attacked by the Germans on the 22 November when they dropped magnetic mines and machine gunned the pier, but none of the mines caused any damage and the navy's anti-aircraft guns destroyed one of the German planes. It was the last time there was a concentrated attack on the pier. Southend Airport was requisitioned by the RAF at the outbreak of war, becoming a satellite of Hornchurch and being renamed RAF Rochford. The town

30504-550: The end of the year, Nick gets one over Mark after giving Martin ecstasy . When Mark discovers this, he decides to settle the score with his tormentor once and for all. Mark spikes Nick's drink, leads him up to the Walford viaduct, and watches delightedly as the intoxicated Nick falls – just as midnight strikes and 2001 commences. Nick survives the fall, but is left severely crippled and vows revenge against Mark. He enlists his son Ashley (Frankie Fitzgerald), who had recently befriended Martin, to take revenge on Mark. However, when Ashley

30750-417: The episode was sad and downbeat it was not without its positive aspects, as Mark talked to his sister about his own mortality." Susanna Dawson, the actress who played Gill, found the experience of playing a person living with, and dying from, AIDS so intense that she co-produced an educational video based on the subject for use in schools and wrote a book, The Gill and Mark Story , to accompany it. Mark became

30996-473: The esplanade to Chalkwell in 1903, and in 1909 adding the "wedding cake" bandstand at the top of the cliffs, opposite Prittlewell Square, which was one of six bandstands that stood in Southend. In 1909, an indoor roller-skating rink was opened in Warrior Square. The new facilities were not only serving the growing visitor numbers, but also the residents, with the inhabitants having grown by 1911 to 62,723,

31242-497: The example set in 1913 by Blackpool. The town became a favourite with motorcycle riders during the 1930s, with the phase, Promenade Percy , coming from this pastime. In the same year, the council purchased land on the Cliffs at Westcliff to build a 500 seater theatre and concert venue to be called Shorefield Pavilion with working starting four years later only to be suspended by the start of the war. Southend became an essential part of

31488-458: The excellence of the roads, added to the incomparable fineness of the water, have induced so much polite company down these last two summers Nothing came of the subscription but the Chronicle reported in 1787, "Southend is likely to become a place of fashionable resort, and that there are a greater number of genteel families there this season than was ever known before" . By the end of the decade,

31734-407: The facilitation of a loan to Prime Minister Boris Johnson . Dame Elan Closs Stephens was appointed as acting chairwoman on 27 June 2023, and she would lead the BBC board for a year or until a new permanent chair has been appointed. Samir Shah was subsequently appointed with effect from 4 March 2024. In October 2024 it was announced that the BBC along with Sky Sports signed a deal to broadcast

31980-512: The family fruit and vegetable stall in the market after his uncle, Pete ( Peter Dean ), leaves the square. He also begins casually dating his sister's housemate Shelley Lewis ( Nicole Arumugam ), but is reluctant to tell her about his HIV status. Whilst on a trip to Amsterdam , Shelley makes it clear to Mark that she wants to sleep with him - forcing him to admit his HIV status. Shelley is furious that he did not think to tell her this before and tells Mark she never wants to see him again. Mark takes

32226-478: The fastest growing population in England, and was being regarded an Eastern suburb of London. During 1913, the Day Technical School split, with the girls moving to the new Southend High School for Girls at Boston Avenue, while the day technical school was renamed Southend High School for Boys. In 1914, the town gained county borough status, and the corporation formed the first police force. Shortly after

32472-532: The final time. However in the same year the council put up £800,000 with the Historic Buildings Fund investing £200,000 in restoring the pier. Further invest saw a new narrow gauge railway fitted to the pier, which was reopened by Princess Anne on 2 May 1986. A contract was given to Brent Walker to run the pier in 1986, but in September of that year it was damaged by the ship Kings Abbey , destroying

32718-447: The first fully electronic television system in the world to be used in regular broadcasting. The success of broadcasting provoked animosities between the BBC and well-established media such as theatres, concert halls and the recording industry. By 1929, the BBC complained that the agents of many comedians refused to sign contracts for broadcasting, because they feared it harmed the artist "by making his material stale" and that it "reduces

32964-486: The first mainstream soap character to be diagnosed as HIV-positive. The storyline came after a government request to "spread the word". Mark lived with the condition for 13 years before dying of an AIDS-related illness. The Terrence Higgins Trust worked with the production team for the duration of Mark's story. Despite all the public health campaigns concerning HIV transmission, the biggest peak in requests for testing in Britain

33210-426: The first place. Phil grudgingly comes to accept these terms, and decides to cover Lisa's involvement by framing his ex-business partner Dan Sullivan ( Craig Fairbrass ) for the crime. Mark and Lisa observe Phil planning to incriminate Dan in the shooting, even going as far as to get Steve and Mel involved with his plan. However, Dan is found not guilty and he takes revenge on Phil and Steve by kidnapping Mel and fleeing

33456-412: The first year. It still left a gap though, because several of Mark's functions in the serial, as slightly the eldest of the youngsters, could not have been taken over by the others. A new character needed to be introduced to restore the balance to its original shape, which is why the character of Simon Wicks ( Nick Berry ) was introduced later in 1985. This meant introducing the audience to a character and

33702-429: The following year, BBC Choice was launched as the third general entertainment channel from the BBC. The BBC also purchased The Parliamentary Channel, which was renamed BBC Parliament . In 1999, BBC Knowledge launched as a multimedia channel, with services available on the newly launched BBC Text digital teletext service (later rebranded as BBC Red Button), and on BBC Online . The channel had an educational aim, which

33948-402: The forthcoming ending of the remaining £253 million funding towards pensioner licence fees would increase financial pressures. In January 2021, it was reported that former banker Richard Sharp would succeed David Clementi , as chairman, when he stepped down in February. In March 2023, the BBC was at the centre of a political row with football pundit Gary Lineker , after he criticised

34194-499: The four national channels, a series of local BBC radio stations were established in 1967, including Radio London . In 1969, the BBC Enterprises department was formed to exploit BBC brands and programmes for commercial spin-off products. In 1979, it became a wholly owned limited company, BBC Enterprises Ltd. In 1974, the BBC's teletext service, Ceefax , was introduced, created initially to provide subtitling, but developed into

34440-612: The full cost of running the BBC World Service and the BBC Monitoring service from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and partially finance the Welsh broadcaster S4C . Further cuts were announced on 6 October 2011, so the BBC could reach a total reduction in their budget of 20%, following the licence fee freeze in October 2010, which included cutting staff by 2,000 and sending a further 1,000 to

34686-633: The government. Throughout the 1930s, political broadcasts had been closely monitored by the BBC. In 1935, the BBC censored the broadcasts of Oswald Mosley and Harry Pollitt . Mosley was a leader of the British Union of Fascists , and Pollitt a leader of the Communist Party of Great Britain . They had been contracted to provide a series of five broadcasts on their parties' politics. The BBC, in conjunction with The Foreign Office of Britain, first suspended this series and ultimately cancelled it without

34932-405: The higher resolution 625-line standard which had been standardised across Europe. BBC2 was broadcast in colour from 1 July 1967 and was joined by BBC1 and ITV on 15 November 1969. The 405-line VHF transmissions of BBC1 (and ITV) were continued for compatibility with older television receivers until 1985. Starting in 1964, a series of pirate radio stations (starting with Radio Caroline ) came on

35178-417: The hospital to exact revenge – prompting him to find Lisa in order to protect her from Phil. When he finds them at her house, Mark learns from Phil that it was Lisa who shot him. Lisa confesses to shooting Phil. Despite this, Mark continues to defend Lisa and tells Phil that she is not totally responsible for the crime – stating that the abuse Phil had inflicted upon Lisa is what set the course of his shooting in

35424-412: The illness; in turn Arthur becomes more supportive for Mark. The situation seems to ease on Mark afterwards, but soon his relationship with Rachel collapses to the point where they break up; the subsequent animosity between them at home prompts Mark to go back to his girlfriend Gill, who moves to London and becomes seriously ill. Gill's HIV has already progressed into AIDS and her deterioration is rapid. She

35670-408: The last time [...] We will all miss Todd, who is one of our best-loved actors, and wish him every success in the future." BBC One 's head of drama John Yorke said, "We want to thank Todd for his great contribution to EastEnders over the last 12 years." Some reports disclosed that Carty was "upset and angry" by the decision to axe Mark. According to Carty, the decision was "a bolt from the blue" from

35916-491: The late EastEnders star Wendy Richard was like a mother to him. "When I was filming my goodbye scenes, those tears were real. Seeing Wendy break down was one of the most poignant moments. The whole day was so emotional – I had to hold it together and stay strong for Wendy". Carty had also told the Daily Mirror that the pair had struck up a 20-year friendship after they were cast. Following Mark's departure in February 2003,

36162-534: The late 1980s, the BBC began a process of divestment by spinning off and selling parts of its organisation. In 1988, it sold off the Hulton Press Library, a photographic archive which had been acquired from the Picture Post magazine by the BBC in 1957. The archive was sold to Brian Deutsch and is now owned by Getty Images . In 1987, the BBC decided to centralize its operations by the management team with

36408-461: The leader of the Free French, made a speech, broadcast by the BBC, urging the French people not to capitulate to the Nazis. In October 1940, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret made their first radio broadcast for the BBC's Children's Hour , addressing other children who had been evacuated from cities. In 1938, John Reith and the Government of the United Kingdom , specifically the Ministry of Information which had been set up for WWII, designed

36654-463: The liberty ship SS Richard Montgomery , with over 6,000 tonnes of explosive on board, lost its mooring off the Isle of Sheppey, opposite Southend, in strong winds and wedged itself onto the mudflat, breaking its back. Prior to this, HMS Leigh had been the mustering point for 576 ships in June 1944 before they headed for Normandy and D-Day. Force L, the follow up forces that were to follow the initial D-Day invasion force were located at Southend. After

36900-422: The lifeboat station . Two years later, management of the pier returned to the council. The seafront would see several plans put forward in the late 70s and the 1980s to build a marina on the seafront by numerous developers including Brent Walker, including an artificial island alongside the pier, though the council ended the plans after they were objected to by the RSPB due to loss of intertidal areas for wildlife

37146-428: The loss-making consortium, and Reith was keen that the BBC be seen as a public service rather than a commercial enterprise. The recommendations of the Crawford Committee were published in March the following year and were still under consideration by the GPO when the 1926 United Kingdom general strike broke out in May. The strike temporarily interrupted newspaper production, and with restrictions on news bulletins waived,

37392-435: The majority of the amusement park in 1973. The town became one of the earliest to receive an electronic telephone exchange in 1971, and by 1972 Access , Britain's second credit card, opened their offices in the former EKCO site in Priory Crescent. A year later HM Customs and Excise opened the central offices for the collection of VAT . In 1972, Southend Air Museum opened its doors for the first time at Aviation Way. This

37638-543: The material their broadcasts would cover. Nothing was to be added outside the preordained news items. For example, the BBC Polish Service was heavily censored due to fears of jeopardising relations with the Soviet Union . Controversial topics, i.e. the contested Polish and Soviet border, the deportation of Polish citizens, the arrests of Polish Home Army members and the Katyn massacre , were not included in Polish broadcasts. American radio broadcasts were broadcast across Europe on BBC channels. This material also passed through

37884-422: The men who worked them still being enlisted. It wasn't until 1946 that the town started to return to normal, and by 1949-50 visitor numbers had returned with over 5.75 million visiting the pier alone. The visitors would have used the replaced pier railway, newly installed in 1949, or may have visited the newly opened Golden Hind replica containing waxworks by Louis Tussaud next to the pier. These numbers grew to

38130-482: The modest, church-going elderly or a member of the Clergy . Until 1928, entertainers broadcasting on the BBC, both singers and "talkers" were expected to avoid biblical quotations, Clerical impersonations and references, references to drink or Prohibition in the United States , vulgar and doubtful matter and political allusions. The BBC excluded popular foreign music and musicians from its broadcasts, while promoting British alternatives. On 5 March 1928, Stanley Baldwin,

38376-481: The municipal coat of arms, translates as 'By [the] Sea, By [the] Church', reflecting Southend's position between the church at Prittlewell and the sea as in the Thames estuary. The city has been twinned with the resort of Sopot in Poland since 1999 and has been developing three-way associations with Lake Worth Beach, Florida . Due to boundary changes, the seats in Southend changed at the 2024 election to Southend East and Rochford and Southend West and Leigh. In

38622-413: The new corporation adopted the coat of arms , including the motto "Nation shall speak peace unto Nation". British radio audiences had little choice apart from the upscale programming of the BBC. Reith, an intensely moralistic executive, was in full charge. His goal was to broadcast "All that is best in every department of human knowledge, endeavour and achievement.... The preservation of a high moral tone

38868-425: The next year. In its 2017–18 report, released July 2017, the BBC announced plans to "re-invent" its output to better compete against commercial streaming services such as Netflix . These plans included increasing the diversity of its content on television and radio, a major increase in investments towards digital children's content, and plans to make larger investments in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to "rise to

39114-413: The notice of the public. Less radical politicians faced similar censorship. In 1938, Winston Churchill proposed a series of talks regarding British domestic and foreign politics and affairs but was similarly censored. The censorship of political discourse by the BBC was a precursor to the total shutdown of political debate that manifested over the BBC's wartime airwaves. The Foreign Office maintained that

39360-419: The number of bathing machines had increased, the hamlet was recorded as containing the Ship Inn and 25 houses and cottages, and reported visitors such as Lord Cholmondley . In 1790, the local lord of the Manor of both Prittlewell and Milton (now Westcliff-on-Sea) and landowner Daniel Scratton set aside 35-acres of land at the top of the cliffs to the west of South-end called Grove Field and the Grove. The site

39606-416: The opinions of those in Parliament who are not nominated by Party Leaders or Party Whips, thus stifling independent, non-official views. In October 1932, the policemen of the Metropolitan Police Federation marched in protest at a proposed pay cut. Fearing dissent within the police force and public support for the movement, the BBC censored its coverage of the events, only broadcasting official statements from

39852-407: The people of Britain and broadcast content according to these perceived standards. Reith effectively censored anything that he felt would be harmful, directly or indirectly. While recounting his time with the BBC in 1935, Raymond Postgate claims that BBC broadcasters were made to submit a draft of their potential broadcast for approval. It was expected that they tailored their content to accommodate

40098-412: The perfect location for office development, and the council in 1960 finally started work on a new Civic Centre on land previously purchased to build a new further education college. The Civic Centre would encompass a new police station that opened in 1962, a courthouse in 1966, council offices and chamber in 1967, a new College in 1971 and a Library in 1974. The planned fire station was dropped and

40344-412: The plans included redeveloping the area north of the High Street, which included the Talza and Victoria Arcades, had been discussed with developer Hammerson . Although the plans were rejected by central government, Hammerson started a programme of buying property in the area, and in 1964 the council accepted Hammerson's plans for the site. Hammerson had by this point had purchased 93% of the freeholds, with

40590-492: The plot and the following issues that the scriptwriters explored, from anti-retroviral drugs, safe sex and prejudice. The storyline was so successful in raising awareness that a 1999 survey by the National AIDS Trust found teenagers garnered most of their information about HIV from the soap. The character of Mark remained in the show for a further 13 years after his re-introduction, and featured in an array of storylines including two failed marriages, which were scripted to highlight

40836-480: The police, Mark ran away from home in April 1985. As this had not been the original plan for the character, it meant a hectic period of re-writing early in 1985. The first 50+ scripts were reworked to accommodate this major change. Many of the stories intended for Mark were subsequently given to Kelvin Carpenter ( Paul J. Medford ), Ian Beale ( Adam Woodyatt ) and Mark's sister Michelle ( Susan Tully ) – which partially explains why her character became so prominent in

41082-435: The positive impression created by its balanced coverage of the views of government and strikers, Seaton has characterised the episode as the invention of "modern propaganda in its British form". Reith argued that trust gained by 'authentic impartial news' could then be used. Impartial news was not necessarily an end in itself. The BBC did well out of the crisis, which cemented a national audience for its broadcasting, and it

41328-422: The post, with a note saying 'We regret, etc.'" In the 1930s music broadcasts also enjoyed great popularity, for example the friendly and wide-ranging BBC Theatre Organ broadcasts at St George's Hall , London by Reginald Foort , who held the official role of BBC Staff Theatre Organist from 1936 to 1938. Television broadcasting was suspended from 1 September 1939 to 7 June 1946, during the World War II , and it

41574-434: The pressure from these quarters and uneasiness among the staff of the licensing authority, the General Post Office (GPO), was sufficient to lead to a ban on further Chelmsford broadcasts. But by 1922, the GPO had received nearly 100 broadcast licence requests and moved to rescind its ban in the wake of a petition by 63 wireless societies with over 3,000 members. Anxious to avoid the same chaotic expansion experienced in

41820-445: The producers. On 16 December 2002, it was reported that Mark was to be killed-off. It was also announced that the character's death would be shown off-screen. A spokesperson for the show said, "There is now nothing more he can do medically to stop the advancement of the infection [...] Rather than see his family suffer from the deterioration of his health and eventual death, Mark decides to leave Walford to spend his remaining days seeing

42066-464: The properties along the planned route and work started in 1966, with the first section opening in 1967 with the first high pressure sodium street lamps in Britain. The West and South sections of the ring road were never completed. In the same year, work was started on dualing Victoria Avenue to Carnarvon Road, while part of the High Street was pedestrianised by 1968. By this point Victoria Avenue had seen further development, with offices opening along

42312-412: The proprietors, being only 42 miles from London and two coaches, and the post passes through it three times a week; water carriage is also convenient, being only eight hours sail, with a fair wind, from London Scratton leased the parcels of land to building firm Pratt, Watt & Louden and John Sanderson, an architect, both of Lambeth. Another site was leased from Scratton by Pratt, Watt & Louden for

42558-402: The public should not be aware of their role in the censorship. From 1935 to 1939, the BBC also attempted to unite the British Empire's radio waves, sending staff to Egypt, Palestine , Newfoundland , Jamaica, India, Canada and South Africa. Reith personally visited South Africa, lobbying for state-run radio programmes which was accepted by South African Parliament in 1936. A similar programme

42804-423: The radio and television divisions joining forces together for the first time, the activities of the news and currents departments and coordinated jointly under the new directorate. During the 1990s, this process continued with the separation of certain operational arms of the corporation into autonomous but wholly owned subsidiaries , with the aim of generating additional revenue for programme-making. BBC Enterprises

43050-500: The railway construction, hired architects Banks & Barry to design Clifftown . The first houses were made available for sale in 1871, with even the smaller properties offering a glimpse of the sea, and eventually the development would include the Clifftown Congregational Church, the Nelson Road shopping parade and Prittlewell Square, Southend's first park. The arrival of the railway did not at first greatly increase visitor numbers, with Southend still being seen as quiet resort and not

43296-498: The rejection badly and stops taking his HIV medication. During Christmas that year, he is rushed to hospital after collapsing. Mandy visits him in hospital and learns that he has HIV. When Shelley finds out that Mark is ill, she returns and admits that she really cares for him and they reconcile. However, Shelley tries to rush things by asking Mark to meet her family and go on holiday with her parents. She becomes infatuated and tries to spend as much time with him as she can. Mark fears that

43542-403: The relationship is moving too quickly and Mark decides to end it. When he tries to tell Shelley this, she uses emotional blackmail to stop him, saying that she has risked her health being with him so he owes her. When this does not work, she threatens to tell everyone about his HIV status, but leaves Walford when her bluff does not work. Following Joe's death of an AIDS-related illness, Mark meets

43788-433: The residents begin to boycott Mark's fruit and vegetable stall, fearing they will catch the virus; this shows their ignorance on their knowledge of HIV or AIDS. Pauline springs to her son's defence before she and Peggy have a vicious fight, but even Pauline cannot defuse the prejudice; at one point Mark comes home to find the words "AIDS scum" graffitied on his wall. This is too much and he decides to present his neighbours with

44034-594: The restrictions of the illness, which finally caused his death in April 2004. Mark had embarked on three marriages with Gill Fowler (Susanna Dawson), who had also contracted HIV and died on the day after their wedding; Ruth Fowler ( Caroline Paterson ), which ended in adultery; and Lisa Shaw ( Lucy Benjamin ), which became the most circumstantial out of all his marriages. Other storylines involved feuds with his archnemesis Nick Cotton ( John Altman ) and love rival Phil Mitchell ( Steve McFadden ), an unlikely friendship with Phil's aggressive brother Grant ( Ross Kemp ),

44280-439: The role was recast in 1990 to actor Todd Carty , renowned for his role as Tucker Jenkins in Grange Hill . At this time, Mark returned to the series as a permanent character. Carty later reported that he enjoyed playing Mark because it gave him "good dramatic stuff to get his teeth into." The most notable storyline involving Mark after his return to Albert Square was the revelation that he had contracted HIV . Mark discovered he

44526-504: The role. From this point the character was a permanent fixture in the series and Carty remained in the role until the character was written out of the series in early 2003. The character was originated as a member of the established Beale/Fowler family ; he is the eldest son of Arthur ( Bill Treacher ) and Pauline ( Wendy Richard ), thus being the older brother of both Michelle ( Susan Tully / Jenna Russell ) and Martin (Jon Peyton-Price/ James Alexandrou / James Bye ) as well. Initially

44772-443: The sales of OBs and costumes, the remainder of BBC Resources was reorganised as BBC Studios and Post Production , which continues today as a wholly owned subsidiary of the BBC. The 2004 Hutton Inquiry and the subsequent report raised questions about the BBC's journalistic standards and its impartiality. This led to resignations of senior management members at the time including the then Director General, Greg Dyke . In January 2007,

45018-432: The same month, a bombing raid damaged houses in the Fleetwood Avenue in Westcliff. During 1941, Prime Minister Winston Churchill visited Shoebury Garrison twice for weapon demonstrations, with the Experimental Establishment carrying out numerous trials of weird and wonderful weapons. An air raid in February 1941 destroyed the London Hotel in the High Street, while the foreshore was often used by German bomber aircraft as

45264-459: The same year, when he visits unexpectedly to spend the day with his family. Mark astutely guesses that local publican and Pauline's sworn enemy Den Watts ( Leslie Grantham ) is the father of Michelle's baby daughter, Vicki (Emma Herry), but nevertheless agrees at his family's bequest to keep the secret to himself. He then departs again and this would be the last time Mark is seen for over two years. Mark returns to Albert Square in August 1990 as

45510-409: The section opposite the Civic Centre including Portcullis House in 1966, the first offices opened by HM Customs and Excise in the town. In 1969, Southend-on-Sea Borough Police amalgamated with Essex Constabulary to become the Essex and Southend-on-Sea Joint Constabulary . This merger was campaigned against by the council and the local MPs . The town's decline as a holiday resort continued, with

45756-423: The show. An attempt to revive the show for September 2015, as the Southend Airshow and Military Festival, failed. The town started to regenerate its visitor attractions, with the Sealife Centre opening in 1993. In 1995, the owners of Peter Pan's Playground purchased the land East of the pier and started to expand, creating Adventure Island , being rated best-value amusement park in Britain in 2024. The Kursaal,

46002-411: The site of where the current Cliff lift is. To celebrate Queen Victoria 's diamond jubilee, a statue of her pointing out to sea was placed at the top of Pier Hill, although the locals stated she was pointing at the gents toilets! A foundation stone was laid by Lord Avebury in 1901 for the new Day Technical School, School of Art and Evening Class Institute with the completed building being opened by

46248-446: The slip which showed there was already signs of a slippage. A £2.8 million cliffs stabilisation programme was completed in 2013. In May 2023, work started to investigate further slippage at Belton Hills in Leigh-on-Sea, with remedy work said to cost £500,000. The British Geological Survey provided a summary in 1986 of the geology of the country around Southend and Foulness: Southend is governed by Southend-on-Sea City Council, which

46494-718: The square shortly afterwards and mutters to himself "Some people you're just glad to see the back of"; their rivalry is brought to an end as Mark and Nick would never see each again afterwards. By 2001, Nick was not the only enemy Mark had been clashing with throughout the year. He embarked on a conflict with Phil after learning that he had been mistreating his girlfriend Lisa Shaw ( Lucy Benjamin ), whom Mark has been growing fond of from that point. Mark soon takes Lisa to live with him after she leaves Phil, and they start dating – much to Pauline's speculation. Mark also defends Kathy's son Ian ( Adam Woodyatt ) from Phil on several occasions, particularly when Mark witnesses Phil attacking Ian and

46740-496: The storyline as an "accurate portrayal" of many real victims' experiences. They also pointed out that they had the backing of AIDS charity The Terence Higgins Trust . David Johnson, director of Waverley Care, said "Scriptwriters for EastEnders – and other soaps – carry a huge burden of responsibility. The current story is a difficult one because, although drug treatments are not straightforward for everyone, many people do very well on them. Encouraging people to come forward for testing

46986-427: The strategy for the corporation, assesses the performance of the BBC's executive board in delivering the BBC's services, and appoints the director-general. Ofcom is responsible for the regulation of the BBC. The board consists of the following members: The executive committee is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the broadcaster. Consisting of senior managers of the BBC, the committee meets once per month and

47232-439: The time and I'm worried that this storyline will make people give up hope. Or that they won't start treatments in the first place." In 2008, All About Soap included Mark's HIV plot in their list of "top ten taboo" storylines of all time. Their writer described it as one of the "taboos which have bravely been broken by soaps." In 2020, Sara Wallis and Ian Hyland from The Daily Mirror placed Mark 37th on their ranked list of

47478-490: The time he eventually discovers this. After confronting Phil about the discovery, Mark almost rapes Lisa. Horrified by his actions, Mark leaves Walford for a short while. However, Lisa soon realises her mistake when living with Phil, and wants to reconcile with Mark, but Pauline refuses to tell her where Mark has gone. Mark eventually returns at Christmas, when he supports Martin to deal with the aftermath of running over Jamie. In January 2003, Mark's doctor tells him that his body

47724-591: The time he tried to kill Mark, Nick ultimately dies from a drug overdose. Mark Fowler was one of the original 23 characters invented by the creators of EastEnders , Tony Holland and Julia Smith . Mark was a member of the first family of EastEnders , the Beales and Fowlers , and Holland took the inspiration for some of the series' earliest characters from his own London family and background. Mark's original character outline as written by Smith and Holland appeared in an abridged form in their book, EastEnders: The Inside Story . Mark will be leaving school at Easter and

47970-420: The time of his death. A "City Week" was held throughout the town between 13 and 20 February 2022, beginning with the inaugural "He Built This City" concert named in honour of Amess. The concert was held at the Cliffs Pavilion and included performers such as Digby Fairweather , Lee Mead , and Leanne Jarvis . Other events such as a city ceremony and the Southend LuminoCity Festival of Light were held during

48216-411: The town. In 1990, Southend was the first local authority to outsource its municipal waste collection to a commercial provider. However, in 1998 it again became the single tier of local government when it became a unitary authority . Upon receiving city status on 1 March 2022, the council voted to rename itself ' Southend-on-Sea City Council '. The Latin motto, 'Per Mare Per Ecclesiam', emblazoned on

48462-417: The towns population grew 100 fold from 2,800 to 29,000. Marine Park & Gardens opened during 1894, which in 1901 was redeveloped into The Kursaal amusement park. In the same year, the Metropole Hotel opened on Pier Hill, which would later be renamed the Palace Hotel, while the town first received both electric street lighting and trams, and had fitted an electric staircase fitted by Jesse W. Reno on

48708-522: The two later have a brother named Martin (Jon Peyton-Price). In the events of his teenage years, Mark got involved in drugs with local thug Nick Cotton ( John Altman ) before later seeking to join a racist organization known as "The New Movement". He also generally clashed with his parents before later becoming a suspect in the murder of elderly neighbour Reg Cox (Johnnie Clayton), unknowingly committed by Nick. With no solution to his own problems in sight, Mark abruptly leaves home without telling anyone. He

48954-563: The value of the artist as a visible music-hall performer". On the other hand, the BBC was "keenly interested" in a cooperation with the recording companies who "in recent years ... have not been slow to make records of singers, orchestras, dance bands, etc. who have already proved their power to achieve popularity by wireless." Radio plays were so popular that the BBC had received 6,000 manuscripts by 1929, most of them written for stage and of little value for broadcasting: "Day in and day out, manuscripts come in, and nearly all go out again through

49200-503: The virus from Gill Robinson (Susanna Dawson), his girlfriend in Newcastle, who visits briefly later that year but leaves when she sees him kissing Diane. At first Mark tells Gill that he is not infected, but later admits the truth to her. Mark's relationship with Diane never becomes serious, but she is a good friend and confidante to the point where she persuades him to have counselling at the Terrence Higgins Trust . Mark initially turns on his male counsellor, relaying his bitterness at being

49446-399: The visitor numbers on the pier falling to a million during 1969-70 and the attraction lost £45,000. The town saw the number of visitors had fallen from the 1950s by 73%, which was against the backdrop of more Brits travelling abroad, growing from just 1.5 million holidays in 1951, to 4.2 million by 1971. The pier slowly began to decline and with it the structure began to deteriorate. In 1971,

49692-400: The war Southend soon opened up to visitors again, with pier officially being given permission to open by the Home Office in March 1945, although the Prince George Extension was still out of bounds to the public. The Chelmsford Chronicle reported that the public returned in their droves, with 79,000 visitors turning up in the first nineteen days, though it wasn't until 30 September that the pier

49938-468: The wealthy clientele that was being aimed at. At this time, Pratt, Watt & Louden transferred the lease to Thomas Holland, a builder and solicitor from Grays Inn , however his finances were not sound and he was soon selling off building materials. By December 1792, the operators of the Duke of York, brewers Sea and Woollet closed the public house, but by September 1793 it was still in their ownership. The Grand Hotel, now known as The Royal Hotel opened on

50184-479: The week. Sam Duckworth , who knew Amess personally, performed at some of the events. On 1 March, Southend Borough Council was presented letters patent from the Queen, by Charles, Prince of Wales, officially granting the borough city status. Southend became the second city in the ceremonial county of Essex, after Chelmsford, which was granted city status in 2012. The seven kilometres of cliffs from Hadleigh Castle to Southend Pier consist of London Clay overlaid in

50430-401: The whole square about Mark's HIV status. Soon enough Phil and Kathy find out the truth about Mark's condition, which causes Ruth to lose her job as a child minder. Mark confronts Grant after learning he blackmailed Ruth about his HIV status, but Grant reassures Mark that he will not tell anyone else. On the day of his father's funeral, Mark becomes angry that Willy had attended and assaults him at

50676-454: The world and coming to terms with his fate." Carty said: "Portraying someone with HIV has been very challenging at times but to learn Mark has been inspirational to real-life people with HIV is really humbling." Reflecting on his time in the soap, Carty went on to say "I've had great fun, made some lovely friends and have been very lucky working with terrific scripts and storylines." Mark's off-screen death aired in April 2004. Carty had said that

50922-407: The world, Southend Pier , while London Southend Airport is located to the north of the city centre. Southend-on-Sea originally consisted of a few fishermen's huts and farm at the southern end of the village of Prittlewell . In the 1790s, the first buildings around what was to become the High Street of Southend were completed. In the 19th century, Southend's status as a seaside resort grew after

51168-444: The £700 million cost for free TV licences for the over-75 pensioners, and rapid inflation in drama and sport coverage costs, was given as the reason. Duplication of management and content spending would be reduced, and there would be a review of BBC News . In September 2019, the BBC launched the Trusted News Initiative to work with news and social media companies to combat disinformation about national elections. In 2020,

51414-436: Was fatally stabbed during a constituency meeting in Leigh-on-Sea . On 18 October 2021, the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson , announced that the Queen had agreed to grant Southend-on-Sea with city status as a memorial to Amess, who had long campaigned for this status to be granted. Preparations, led by Amess, for Southend to enter a competition for city status in 2022 as part of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee were underway at

51660-500: Was HIV positive in 1991, and informed his family of this on Boxing Day that year. There then followed a traumatic journey as he struggled first to come to terms with the news, then track down his previous partners to inform them that he was infected with the virus. The problems didn't end there, however, as Mark then had to battle with the fear and ignorance of those living around him – including his parents. Many of Albert Square's residents initially rejected him when they found out that he

51906-489: Was HIV positive. Mark married one of his ex-partners Gill (Susanna Dawson), who had also been infected with the virus but in her case it had progressed to AIDS , and she subsequently died the day after the wedding in 1992. The episode in which Gill died (written by Debbie Cook and directed by Leonard Lewis ) has been chosen by writer Colin Brake as one of the most memorable episodes of 1992. In his book, EastEnders: The First Ten Years Blake comments, "Although in many ways

52152-442: Was a widely reported urban myth that, upon resumption of the BBC television service after the war, announcer Leslie Mitchell started by saying, "As I was saying before we were so rudely interrupted ..." In fact, the first person to appear when transmission resumed was Jasmine Bligh and the words said were "Good afternoon, everybody. How are you? Do you remember me, Jasmine Bligh ... ?" The European Broadcasting Union

52398-446: Was adopted in Canada. Through collaboration with these state-run broadcasting centres, Reith left a legacy of cultural influence across the empire of Great Britain with his departure from the corporation in 1938. Experimental television broadcasts were started in 1929, using an electromechanical 30-line system developed by John Logie Baird . Limited regular broadcasts using this system began in 1932, and an expanded service (now named

52644-500: Was against the backdrop of the government planning to build a new airport on Maplin Sands at Foulness Island , which the council purchased a share in the consortium of developers hoping to shape the benefits for the town, but the airport plans were pulled by the new Labour government in 1974. During 1976, plans called Prospects 1976 was released to improve the town's ability to attract holidaymakers, including bastions with facilities at Chalkwell and Westcliff, but they never got off

52890-419: Was believed to be the most heavily defended place in Essex, ranging from three and half miles of anti-tank cubes on the seafront, machine gun and anti-aircraft posts, road blocks and barrage balloons. On 31 May 1940, six cockle fishing boats: the Endeavour , Letitia , Defender , Reliance , Renown and the Resolute were joined by the Southend lifeboat Greater London at the pier on their way to assist at

53136-411: Was built by Abraham Vandervord in 1792 in Old South-end which would later become the Minerva public house. Due to the bad transportation links between Southend and London, there was not rapid development during the Georgian Era as there was in Brighton . Margate , although further away from London than Southend, offered cheaper boat and stagecoach fares and had more to offer the visitor. Development

53382-421: Was deemed to much. Plans were resurrected again in 2020 for a marina off the coast at Shoeburyness. In May 1986, the Southend Airshow was started, featuring a fly past by Concorde , and after the first year where entry was charged by the council, it would grow to become Europe's biggest free airshow. The final show took place on 2012, with the council announcing in January 2013 it could no longer afford to run

53628-416: Was diagnosed HIV-positive. Mark's departure from EastEnders left the victim "outraged". He said, "I'm a big soap fan and, until now, feel that the HIV issue had been handled sensitively in EastEnders [...] I was very hurt and upset by the Mark Fowler story. He'd been told that there wasn't another combination of drugs available – even though he'd only had three. There are new developments in drug therapy all

53874-422: Was divided on how to handle the BBC, but ended up trusting Reith, whose opposition to the strike mirrored the PM's own. Although Winston Churchill in particular wanted to commandeer the BBC to use it "to the best possible advantage", Reith wrote that Stanley Baldwin 's government wanted to be able to say "that they did not commandeer [the BBC], but they know that they can trust us not to be really impartial". Thus

54120-421: Was enlarged in 1929 with the Prince George extension, at a cost of £58,000, to manage the increasing number of visitors arriving by paddle steamer. A Southend icon, EKCO, opened their large factory at Priory Crescent on the site of a former cabbage patch in 1930. To cope with the increase demand for housing, estates like Earls Hall were built during 1930, with the Manners Way estate joining it just north along with

54366-420: Was enlarged in 1933 by the former area of Shoeburyness Urban District and part of Rochford Rural District . Southend Civic Centre was designed by borough architect, Patrick Burridge, and officially opened by the Queen Mother on 31 October 1967. On 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972 , Southend became a district of Essex, with the county council once more providing county-level services to

54612-464: Was eventually built in Sutton Road. These replaced cramped facilities located in Alexandra Road and Clarence Street. The council in 1960 put forward a redevelopment plan, called Prospect of Southend to central government, to improve both the commercial and retail growth in the town, but the original plan and an amendment, which requested compulsory purchase orders, were both rejected by the Minister for Housing Development and Local Government. Part of

54858-441: Was followed by the Government's acceptance of the recommendation made by the Crawford Committee (1925–26) that the British Broadcasting Company be replaced by a non-commercial, Crown-chartered organisation: the British Broadcasting Corporation. The British Broadcasting Corporation came into existence on 1 January 1927, and Reith – newly knighted – was appointed its first director general. To represent its purpose and (stated) values,

55104-425: Was formed on 12 February 1950, in Torquay with the BBC among the 23 founding broadcasting organisations. Competition to the BBC was introduced in 1955, with the commercial and independently operated television network of Independent Television (ITV) . However, the BBC monopoly on radio services would persist until 8 October 1973 when under the control of the newly renamed Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA),

55350-419: Was found dating from the 6th century, with a display of the finds displayed at Southend Central Museum since 2019. The road widening was cancelled after a campaign known as Camp Bling . A year earlier there was a slippage on the Cliffs, which saw the bandstand close. The cliffs were stabilised in 2013, with the council planning to build a new museum at the location to host the Anglo Saxon discoveries, as well as

55596-403: Was given to build the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway with the line finally opening at Southend in 1856. The line had been planned to terminate opposite the pier, however residents in The Royal Terrace opposed this, and the station was built further back. In 1859, the Grove Field area was leased to Sir Morton Peto , and with a consortium which included Thomas Brassey , the contractors for

55842-453: Was its first director of music. The company was to be financed by a royalty on the sale of BBC wireless receiving sets from approved domestic manufacturers. To this day, the BBC aims to follow the Reithian directive to "inform, educate and entertain". The financial arrangements soon proved inadequate. Set sales were disappointing as amateurs made their own receivers and listeners bought rival unlicensed sets. By mid-1923, discussions between

56088-406: Was left to BBC Radio broadcasters such as Reginald Foort to keep the nation's spirits up. The BBC moved most of its radio operations out of London, initially to Bristol , and then to Bedford . Concerts were broadcast from the Bedford Corn Exchange ; the Trinity Chapel in St Paul's Church, Bedford was the studio for the daily service from 1941 to 1945, and, in the darkest days of the war in 1941,

56334-416: Was made a municipal borough in 1892. In 1897 the borough was enlarged to also include the neighbouring parish of Southchurch , with further enlargement in 1913 by taking over the area formerly controlled by Leigh-on-Sea Urban District Council . In 1914 the enlarged Southend became a county borough making it independent from Essex County Council and a single-tier of local government. The county borough

56580-486: Was made explicit for the duration of its current broadcast licence, as was the prohibition on advertising. To avoid competition with newspapers, Fleet Street persuaded the government to ban news bulletins before 7 pm and the BBC was required to source all news from external wire services. The Radio Times , the world's first and longest-running radio and television listings magazine, was launched by Reith in September 1923. The first edition, subtitled "The official organ of

56826-533: Was made from the factory of Marconi Company in Chelmsford in June 1920. It was sponsored by the Daily Mail ' s Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe and featured the famous Australian soprano Dame Nellie Melba . The Melba broadcast caught the people's imagination and marked a turning point in the British public's attitude to radio. However, this public enthusiasm was not shared in official circles where such broadcasts were held to interfere with important military and civil communications. By late 1920,

57072-400: Was modified later on in its life to offer documentaries. In 2002, several television and radio channels were reorganised. BBC Knowledge was replaced by BBC Four and became the BBC's arts and documentaries channel. CBBC , which had been a programming strand as Children's BBC since 1985, was split into CBBC and CBeebies , for younger children, with both new services getting a digital channel:

57318-406: Was officially derequisitioned by the Navy. The town, which had been heavily fortified, slowly started to remove the defences during 1945, however the dust and noise attracted unhappiness with the holidaymakers, with two elderly ladies complaining to the police that it should be stopped while they were on their vacation for the week. Many of the fairground attractions only opened at weekend due many of

57564-413: Was officially opened, in secret, by Lord Mountbatten in 1943. The well known jeweller R.A. Jones store was damaged by bombing in October 1942. An amusing moment during the war was Lord Haw-Haw announcing in his radio broadcasts that German forces had sunk the British ships HMS Westcliff and HMS Leigh. The town started to fall under constant V1 and V2 rocket attacks until December 1944, with one hitting

57810-541: Was perhaps killed off too early as advancements in drugs are helping people live for much longer... Saying that, one decent soap episode is worth a thousand leaflets in schools. That is why we would always go out of our way to help scriptwriters. TV and films can be very powerful." On 1 July 2002, it was announced that Mark Fowler had been axed from EastEnders and that the character was set to depart in early 2003. Carty said, "I've had 12 brilliant years on EastEnders , and they've been fantastic to me [...] I'll deeply miss all

58056-442: Was piecemeal in the early 19th century, with a Theatre being built in Old South-end by Thomas Trotter in 1804. Southend was however mentioned in Jane Austen 's novel Emma of 1815. The resort first received Royal patronage in 1801 when Princess Charlotte of Wales visited to sea bathe on the order of her physician. Her mother, Princess Caroline of Brunswick stayed at 7-9 The Terrace during 1803, and in 1805 Lady Hamilton held

58302-469: Was purchased by Brent Walker in 1988 with plans to redevelop the site as a water theme park, but the company entered liquidation and the site remained empty. The council purchased the Kursaal, and after a multimillion-pound redevelopment by the Rowallan Group, the main Kursaal building was reopened in 1998 with a bowling alley, a casino and other amusements. In 2003, during excavations for a road widening scheme at Priory Crescent, an Anglo-Saxon royal burial

58548-438: Was recorded as 106,050, but as the census was postponed to the summer months due to a planned general strike, it was greatly inflated by holidaymakers. The Corporation purchased three former German U-boat engines to generate power for the tram network, siting them at Leigh, London Road and Thorpe Bay. During 1924, the Sunken Gardens at the side of the pier became Peter Pan Playground, a children's pleasure garden. The pier head

58794-403: Was recorded that 22% of the town's population were working in holiday related industries. The council were concerned that the town was too reliant on tourism and being a dormitory town, that they decided to try and grow the commercial industry in the town, which coincided with plans in central government to de-centralise services. The Miles Report of 1944 had already identified Victoria Avenue as

59040-410: Was reorganised and relaunched in 1995, as BBC Worldwide Ltd. In 1998, BBC studios, outside broadcasts, post production, design, costumes and wigs were spun off into BBC Resources Ltd. The BBC Research & Development has played a major part in the development of broadcasting and recording techniques. The BBC was also responsible for the development of the NICAM stereo standard. In recent decades,

59286-479: Was replaced by BBC Two HD in the same month. On 18 October 2007, BBC Director General Mark Thompson announced a controversial plan to make major cuts and reduce the size of the BBC as an organisation. The plans included a reduction in posts of 2,500; including 1,800 redundancies, consolidating news operations, reducing programming output by 10% and selling off the flagship Television Centre building in London. These plans were fiercely opposed by unions, who threatened

59532-410: Was seen in January 1991 when Mark Fowler was diagnosed HIV-positive. Carty has commented: "I feel that the storyline educated people at a time when there were lots of misconceptions about HIV and AIDS…My main concern was that they'd get it right and, overall, I think they did – because it showed someone living with HIV, as opposed to dying of it." The storyline was widely applauded for the way it handled

59778-418: Was set up, with the town being designated part of the coastal defence area, but with the risk of invasion dropping, in 1941 it was reduced to 10 miles. By 28 October 1940, RAF Rochford had been renamed RAF Southend, no longer being a satellite of Hornchurch, although they still had Fighter Control at the base. A day later 264 Squadron arrived for night fighter duties equipped with the Boulton Paul Defiant . In

60024-414: Was split into three leasehold sites with 99 year leases, with the development called New South-End, and the original settlement being renamed Old South-end. A new road was created that cut through the development, which would later become the High Street. The Chelmsford Chronicle wrote at the time, There seems but little doubt of its becoming a place of fashionable resort, and answering the expectations of

60270-450: Was the least likely to get the job as he was relatively inexperienced, having previously only appeared in a little-known made-for-television film and Grange Hill . His reading was not a huge success as he mumbled most of his lines. However, Holland and Smith were taken with his appearance, particularly his "piercing eyes", which reminded them of James Dean . They felt that he would be "dynamite on-screen", and his likeness to their vision of

60516-416: Was to help highlight the problems some parents face when their teenage children disappear from home. He returned again for brief stints in 1986 and 1987. His final appearance as Mark was on Christmas Day 1987. Scarboro was never to make a return due to his suicide in April 1988. However, BBC bosses decided not to kill off the character, and later set out to find a new actor to reprise the role. Subsequently,

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