Ceefax (phonetic for "See Facts") is the BBC's teletext information service.

The system was announced in October 1972 and following test transmissions in 1973-1974 the Ceefax system went live on the 23 September 1974 with thirty pages. Developed by BBC engineers who were working on ways of providing televisual subtitles for the deaf, it was the first teletext system in the world. The then BBC Director of Engineering James Redmond was a particular enthusiast. Other broadcasters soon took up the idea. In March 1980 BBC2, then BBC1 began to transmit experimental teletext pages in-vision before programmes were transmitted and from May 1983 in-vision pages were filling in the entire length of daytime closedowns. Also in 1983, after Channel 4 and S4C had launched, pages from 4-Tel, ORACLE and even SBECTEL were transmitted in-vision before ITV finally transmitted ORACLE pages in-vision in 1987 before TV-am was transmitted.

Over the years the technology became the standard European teletext system and replaced other standards, for example the Antiope system in France.

In 1983, Ceefax started to broadcast programs (known as telesoftware) for the BBC Micro, a home computer from the BBC. This stopped in 1989. (A similar idea was the French C Plus Direct satellite channel which used different, higher speed technology to broadcast PC software.)

Aside from small changes such as the introduction of coloured graphics (1976) and the four-page receivers with "Fasttext" shortcut buttons (early 1990s), the technology has remained the same since its introduction and now has a quite dated appearance. Considering this, it is remarkable that teletext remained the main source of interactive information in British homes until the mid 2000s when it was superseded by broadband internet and digital teletext. As the BBC's digital broadcasts now carry BBCi, Ceefax will almost certainly be retired when the UK goes through with its analogue switchoff around 2012.

The current Ceefax service holds info on a wide range of topics, such as News, Sport, Weather, TV Listings and Business. These pages are kept extremely up to date and are usually the first to report a breaking story or headline.

In 2002, the BBC stopped broadcasting Ceefax on Digital Satellite (Sky Digital), but have since brought back a limited service including a TV schedule for BBC One and BBC Two; "Super Sips", a wine tasting "session"; and subtitles.

Since 2006, the BBC has been promoting the reuse of the Ceefax page numbers on the Freeview and digital satellite BBCi Ceefax-replacement services.

Technology

Ceefax uses the World System Teletext standard (originally CEPT1). As with other teletext systems, text and simple graphics are transmitted in-band with the picture signal, and decoded by controller circuitry. Almost all television sets sold in the UK come with decoder hardware.

Pages from Ceefax

Those without access to teletext-equipped sets can still view limited Ceefax content via the Pages from Ceefax slot on BBC One and Two. This consists of selected Ceefax pages (typically news) transmitted as an ordinary TV picture. As a result, although Pages from Ceefax can be viewed on any set, there is no interactivity or choice, rather negating the purpose of the original concept.

The audio accompaniment for Pages from Ceefax broadcasts typically consists of some form of easy listening music (between 2000 and 2005 the music was typically sourced from music production libraries such as Funtastik, KPM or BMG Zomba, or sometimes a discontinuous tone. Since 2006, the music is now completely sourced from Funtastik music.

Pages from Ceefax is normally only shown by the BBC in the absence of any other programming. Once a common filler during daytime (where it was occasionally billed as Ceefax in Vision or Ceefax AM), it has been marginalised by the move towards a near-continuous service, where in recent years BBC News 24 would be placed in late night/early morning gaps in schedules.

For a period between September 2005 and December 2006, there was a weekday gap between 6am and 7am on BBC Two that saw Pages From Ceefax broadcast. During the Christmas period, when The Learning Zone is off air, Ceefax is shown through the night on BBC2. The Learning Zone saw a reduction in its airtime in 2007, so Ceefax is now the filler following the end of programmes on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights plus every night during the summer school holidays (July - September). The last BBC One network broadcast took place on 9 November 1997, although it is still occasionally shown on BBC One Scotland, normally to fill the gaps between opt-outs and The Sign Zone. The selection of pages broadcast now is significantly smaller than that shown until the late 1990s.

The limited set of rolling pages shown on Pages from Ceefax (referred to as a "newsreel") are also accessible at any time of day via Ceefax page 152 (BBC One or BBC Two) on any analogue teletext television.

External links

• Online representation of today's Ceefax
• More information and captures of CEEFAX pages
• BBC News article celebrating 30th anniversary of Ceefax
• View Ceefax on an Apple Mac using the OS X Dashboard feature
• "Pages from Ceefax" at Everything2
• Ceephax, an electronic musician named after Ceefax