BBC Four and BBC Radio 2 will be marking the 40th anniversary of Band Aid’s single, Do They Know It’s Christmas?
The recording took place on Sunday, November 25, 1984. The programming includes footage from that day which has never previously been broadcast.
The charity single was released to raise funds to help victims of the Ethiopian famine. It was produced by Midge Ure and released on December 10, 1984.
At the end of November, BBC Four and BBC iPlayer will present a new 75-minute documentary, The Making Of Do They Know It’s Christmas? The song was recorded over the course of one day at SARM Studios in Notting Hill, and was filmed by director Nigel Dick. While some of the footage was used for the iconic music video, much of it has remained unseen for four decades.
This documentary unearths 75 minutes of that original footage, shot on 16mm film and newly-restored and digitised. In rare and previously unseen moments, artists including Bananarama, Bono, Boy George, Duran Duran, George Michael, Glenn Gregory of Heaven 17, Paul Young, Phil Collins, Spandau Ballet and Sting, rehearse and record their parts and interact with each other.
The film also includes interviews which were shot on the day with Bono, Gary Kemp, George Michael, John Taylor, Simon Le Bon and Trevor Horn. The Making of Do They Know It’s Christmas? is produced by Jill S Sinclair for the Band Aid Trust.
Sir Bob Geldof from the Band Aid Trust described BBC Four’s documentary as revealing an “integral part of British pop history”.
On BBC Radio 2, Zoe Ball will present Do They Know It’s Christmas?: The Song That Changed The World (12-1am, Sunday, December 1, and on BBC Sounds from Monday, November 25), a one-hour documentary about the charity record.
On Monday November 25, in honour of the 40th anniversary of the recording of the song, The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show (6.30-9.30am) on BBC Radio 2 will be playing the first festive songs of the season.
Helen Thomas, head of BBC Radio 2, said: “Do They Know It’s Christmas? is a true Christmas classic, loved by our audience. On Radio 2 and BBC Sounds, The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show and Jeremy Vine will both look at the enduring appeal of the song across four decades since Band Aid released the original in 1984, alongside a special documentary also presented by Zoe Ball.”
Jonathan Rothery, head of BBC pop music TV, said: “The creation of the Band Aid supergroup and release of Do They Know It’s Christmas? was a hugely significant moment in pop music history, and BBC TV will be celebrating the 40th anniversary since its recording, and its incredible legacy which lives on today.”
PHOTO: Brian Aris
FOLLOW 
