Airport (TV series)

Airport is a British documentary television series based at London Heathrow Airport, broadcast by the BBC and syndicated to Dave, part of the UKTV network.

Airport
Airport title card from Series 8 (2002)
GenreDocumentary
Narrated by
Composers
  • Hal Lindes
  • Cherry Lodge
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series11
No. of episodes96 (+ 7 specials)
Production
Running time30 minutes
Release
Original network
Original release2 May 1996 (1996-05-02) 
24 July 2008 (2008-07-24)

The show is a fly-on-the-wall series following passengers and staff who work for the airlines, the airport operator BAA, the animal reception centre, emergency services, customs and immigration, and others. The airlines and staff featured change from series to series, although certain staff feature in multiple series.

History

The first series of Airport aired on BBC One, beginning on 2 May 1996.[1] It was then repeated on BBC Two in April 1997.[2] Originally intended to be a low-key behind-the-scenes documentary, the emergence of several memorable recurring characters gave the show a docusoap feel. Special fame was gained by Jeremy Spake, an Aeroflot employee, whose flamboyance earned him a series of short 'bumpers' on UKTV People explaining how to best use airports. Other airlines featured throughout the series are Aer Lingus, Air Jamaica, Avianca, BMI, Canadian Airlines, Cyprus Airways (1947–2015), Czech Airlines, El Al, Emirates, Gulf Air, Icelandair, Iran Air, Jat Airways, Kuwait Airways, Pakistan International Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

There have also been several special Airport programmes over the years featuring airports other than Heathrow, such as Frankfurt and Edinburgh.

The first version from 1996 to 2001 had the opening scenes with the entrance to the Heathrow Airport tunnel and the theme music was composed by Hal Lindes. The opening titles and music were given a make over for the start of the 7th series in 2002. From the 7th series onwards, incidental music (composed by Cherry Lodge) was added over the scenes shown on screen. The title music was once again revamped for the 10th series in 2005. In addition, Liza Tarbuck replaced John Nettles as the show's narrator for series 10.

Celebrities who have been seen on the show include Stephen Fry, Hugh Hefner, Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Joan Collins, Michael Jackson, Pamela Anderson, Blue, Brian May, Tom Jones, Mohammed Burhanuddin, Yusuf Islam, Colin Powell, Kate Winslet, David Beckham, Kriss Akabusi, Al Pacino, Engelbert Humperdinck, Lennox Lewis, Bob Geldof and several government or state officials including Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Diana, the Japanese Emperor and Bill Clinton.

In one episode, a BA staff member gets arrested by the airport police for impersonating someone else. He is arrested on board an incoming flight and is led away by un-uniformed officers.

Regular contributors

John Cull, Qantas Airport Manager, appears in 17 episodes of the series. Jeremy Spake, Aeroflot Airlines Manager makes frequent appearances in the series. Maria Demetriou of Cyprus Airways (1947–2015) appears in many shows. Animal Health Officer Stuart King, Royal Suite manager Anita Newcourt and journalists Russell Clisby and Steve Meller all contribute in many of the series.

Other contributors

These include:-

Name Airline / Occupation
Viv Eggins Customer Service Manager, British Midland Airways
Anita Newcourt MBE Royal Suite Manager
Michelle Harris Terminal Manager, Terminal 3
David Duddy Customer Service Duty Manager, T1
Karen Jones Customer Service Duty Manager, T3
Dennis Stone Airport Photographer
Axle Gundarsson Steward, Icelandair
Shaker Mehio Customer Service Manager, Gulf Air
Robert Scott Immigration Officer
Maria Demetriou Airport Duty Manager, Cyprus Airways
Eric Day Immigration Officer
Eben Twum-barima Supervisor, Ghana Airways
Caroline Acherson Immigration Officer
Sarah Collins Check-in Supervisor, El Al
Peter Luck Check-in Supervisor, El Al
Elaine Pringle Dispatcher, Lufthansa
Annabel Davis WPC
Nikki Taylor Traffic Enforcement Officer
Siobhan Feeney Check-in Supervisor, Aer Lingus
Corinne Cossu Shopping Consultant
Garth Powell Customs Officer
Gregg Bailey Assistant Service Manager, bmi
Ciara Thorn Check-in Manager, bmi
Merla Celestine Airport Manager, Air Jamaica
Nauaman Supervisor, Qatar Airways
Gerard Robinson London Ambulance Service
Paul Schofield London Ambulance Service
Kelvin Ogunjimi Concierge, Canadian Airlines
Naomi Tembo Check-in Supervisor, Kenya Airways
Mina Rughani Airport Services Manager, Srilankan Airlines

Production status

Repeats of Airport have been shown on Dave and UKTV People, and they often ran an Airport day or weekend, showing back-to-back episodes for the duration of the day or weekend. Repeats have also be seen on BBC One, although less frequently. There was a new series broadcast in the first half of 2005, which finished in July 2005. Several episodes were broadcast, before a gap of about a month, then the rest of the series was shown.

Airport is also shown once a week on the Australian Lifestyle channel, a feature channel on Australia's Foxtel Digital network and also screens on the AUSTAR network. It is also aired on the free-to-air Nine Network.

Transmissions

Series

SeriesStart dateEnd dateEpisodes
12 May 19966 June 19966
212 June 199714 August 199710
319 September 199828 November 199810
418 September 199912 November 19999
528 March 200030 May 200010
69 November 200022 December 20006
731 May 20019 August 200110
820 June 200225 July 20026
928 October 200220 January 200310
1023 March 200521 July 200514
Return14 July 200824 July 20085

Specials

DateEntitle
22 December 1998Christmas Special
24 December 1999Christmas Special
6 September 2001
22 November 2001
Airport: Miami Airport
27 April 2003
12 June 2003
Airport USA
13 November 2003Airport Edinburgh

Return to... Airport

On 14 July 2008, the BBC broadcast a new 5-part series titled Return to... Airport. The show featured interviews with stars of the original series and behind the scenes recollections from cast members, as well as original series highlights.[3]

See also

References

  1. "Airport – BBC One London – 2 May 1996 – BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 2 May 1996. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  2. "Airport – BBC Two England – 2 April 1997 – BBC Genome". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 2 April 1997. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  3. "Blogposts". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
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