Stings
During the run of the idents, there were also quick, usually humorous short animations shown before the trailers known as 'Stings'. Such examples included a 2-shaped pancake landing in a frying pan, a '2' performing stunts on a bicycle, or a set of spinning plates in the form of the '2'. These were sometimes themed to suit a particular event, such as sport coverage. Examples include a set of snooker balls racked in the '2' shape (of which — like some others — there was more than one variant of the scene). Animations were also often created annually to match the theme of that year's Christmas symbol; for example, a set of short animations featuring Wallace and Gromit were used during the 1995 Christmas period along with a similarly themed ident. Blink and you'll miss them.
Today, these 'sting' animations are not remembered as prominently as most of the idents. They were usually only a few seconds long and, particularly from 1997, the '2' would become a character rather than a symbol, an idea that was carried on for the BBC Two yellow idents from 2001.
Below is an incomplete, short summary of some of the stings.
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Jelly | A gelatin (jelly) '2' jumps over the floor in a room. The room and the 2 are both dark yellow. First aired 1993. |
| Cliffhanger | A '2' hanging on the top of a wooden object, possibly about to fall off. Introduced in 1993. |
| Crash | A '2' crashes into the screen and gets dizzy. First aired 1995. |
| Door | A '2' in a dark room, with a door being closed, leaving the '2' in darkness. There were two versions in this ident. Introduced around 1994 and usually used as a closing ident. |
| Polaroid | A polaroid camera, printing off a photograph with a '2' on. The colour of the 2, and the angle of the camera, were changed from time to time. Introduced in 1991. |
| Ten Pin | A bowling game, showing a '2' as the only pin not knocked down. A ball is rolled to try to knock the 2 over, but the 2 jumps into the air, making the ball fall down. First aired 1995. |
| Egg | An egg cracks, revealing a '2'. Introduction date 1992. |
| Hangover | A glass of water (or some other type of transparent liquid), with two '2'-shaped Alka-Seltzer tablets being dropped into the water and dissolving. Introduced around 1994. |
| Spaghetti | A bowl of '2'-shaped spaghetti pieces in a tomato sauce. First aired 1991. |
| Plunge | A '2' jumps from a high diving board into a pool of water. First aired 1995. |
| Slinky | A Slinky-shaped '2' rolls down some stairs. First aired 1993. |
| Cuckoo Hooligan | A naughty cuckoo '2' leaps out of a clock, and tries to hit the camera. First aired 1993. |
| Pump | An inflatable '2' pumps on a patio. First aired 1995. There was a variant where the 2 is pumped too big, with the music in a different end. First aired 1993. |
| Velcro | Also known as 'Sticky Pad'. A '2' made out of Velcro in a vidarin room tries to get out. First aired 1997. |
| Harley Bike | A bicycle '2' does a trick, and then rides home. First aired 1993. |
| Newton's Cradle | A '2' ball is seen in a Newton's Cradle type of toy. First aired 1994. |
| Pounce | A '2' that looks like a cow or a cat tries to pounce on a dot. First aired 1994. |
| Hair Curlers | A hair drying machine opens to reveal '2' shaped hair curlers in the woman's hair First aired 1991. |
| Sub | One of three animated shorts featuring the duck '2', who also starred in his own ident. The '2' pops up from underneath the bubbles, and like a submarine periscope, looks around in different directions, before sinking below surface again. First aired 1997. |
| Ducks | The second in this family of shorts. A '2' is crowded by hundreds of rubber ducks. First aired 1997. |
| Jaws | The third in this family of shorts. This one features the duck '2' swimming through the bubble bath squeaking the theme from Jaws. First aired 1997. |
| Web | The spider makes its web, and the web turns into a '2'. First aired 1995. |
| Whacky | A saw makes a circle around the '2', causing the '2' to fall. First aired 1993. |
| Fridge | The '2' becomes fat in a freezer and falls. First aired 1998. |
| Crane | A 2 made of metal is picked up by a hook. First aired 1995. |
| Zebra | A 2 colored white and black stripes blends on a same colored background. Aired first in 1997. |
| Moon | A 2 shaped spacecraft lands on the moon. First aired 1994. |
| Wood | A grey 2 chips up a wooden floor. 1996 first time around. |
| Boombox | A 2 is blown away by a boombox. Aired first 1994. |
| Monster | A giant 2 rampaging in a city. First aired 1996. |
| Switch | A 2 transports via a Star Trek like device. First aired 1993. |
| Tent | A white 2 cuts tent supports off. First aired 2000. |
| Dance | A 2 dances by spinning a la ballet.First aired 2000. |
| Wreck | A wrecking ball hits a giant 2 but cracks on impact. First aired 1999. |
| Magnet | A 2 magnet gets everything and the camera attached to it. First aired 2000. |
| Dry | A hair dryer dries a 2 made of cotton. First aired 1991. |
| Robot | A giant 2 gets a smaller one at top which that one gets a 2 which gets a 2 with a robotic camera. First aired 1998. |
| Fast | A 2 walks down a road then speeds off. First aired 1999. |
| Tin Foil | Layers of tin foil overlap and create a 2 shape. First aired 1995. |
| Pinball | A 2 spins, stops then hits a glass object making it spin again. First aired 1993. |
| Plates | A group of plates spinning in a 2 shape. First aired 1992 |
| Television | A 2 does a dance on TV by another 2. First aired 1991 |
| Fish | Lots of fish form a 2 before swimming off. First aired 2000. |
| Kiss | A 2 jumps to a TV and kisses the screen. First aired 1992. |
| Snooker Ball | A 2 is made from snooker balls.First aired 1993. |
| Accident | A rusted 2 is stuck between a group of wheels.First aired 1995. |
| Mad | The 2 is bouncing on the TV.First aired 1999. |
| Puzzle | A puzzle is finished to reveal a 2.First aired 1991. |
| Ghost | A 2 is seen behind a sheet like a ghost.First aired 1991. |
Read more about this topic: BBC Two '1991-2001' Idents
Famous quotes containing the word stings:
“Pride ruined the angels,
Their shame them restores;
And the joy that is sweetest
Lurks in stings of remorse.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)