Hum The Theme Tune

The theme tune of Blue Peter is instantly familiar to viewers young and old. The famous instrumental tune is Barnacle Bill which was composed by Ashworth Hop (1880-1962).

The signature tune was first used in 1958, when the programme was launched and 11 different versions have been used since then, apart from a brief period in 2008 when a version of the Sailor's Hornpipe was used.

My recent purchase is this copy of the sheet music score published by EMI Music Publishing which was printed to coincide with the first revised version of the track, recorded by Mike Oldfield on Virgin Records in January 1979. The original version, used for 21 years was a production by Sidney Torch and The New Century Orchestra.

Other versions over the years include:

•Sidney Torch & The New Century Orchestra: October 1958 to January 1979
•Mike Oldfield: January 1979 to June 1989
•Simon Brint: September 1989 to September 1992
•Simon Brint: September 1992 to September 1994
•The Yes/No People: September 1994 to August 1999
•David Arnold and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra: September 1999 to June 2004
•Nial Brown: September 2004 to December 2006
•Dave Cooke: January 2007 to June 2007
•Dave Cooke & Blue Peter Music Makers September 2007 to June 2008
•Dobs Vye: September 2008 – June 2011
•Banks & Wag: September 2011 – present
For those musically-gifted people out there who can read music, here is the score for you to practice and come up with your own version: