Horizon at 60 - Andrew Cohen
Editor of Horizon 2005-2010
By the time Andrew Cohen became editor of Horizon (2005-2010), the programme had undergone many changes. It had been hugely successful in the years running up to Andrew’s arrival, but with the support of the then head of the BBC Science Unit, John Lynch, and BBC Two Controller Roly Keating, Andrew was able to experiment more with the series, injecting a greater sense of surprise into it, and taking greater risks.
Arguably the rise through the world of TV science of the hugely popular and highly successful physicist and communicator Professor Brian Cox was down to Andrew Cohen.
Cox had been the keyboard player of pop band D:Ream, and when the band split up in 1997, he completed a doctorate in high-energy particle physics at Manchester University. Despite being entirely ’tele-genic’, Cox was uncertain about addressing the camera directly. Slowly Andrew Cohen drew out the true communicator in him. The flexibility of the Horizon way of making programmes allowed for this sort of experimentation.
Interviews
Peter Goodchild
After having trained in studio direction Peter Goodchild (the longest surviving editor of the programme) was asked by Aubrey Singer, then Head of BBC Science and Features, to make a choice. Did he want to be an educationalist or an entertainer for the rest of his BBC career?
Alec Nisbett
Alec Nisbett, has been described by fellow programme makers as ‘the quintessential Horizon producer’, never shying away from putting hard science on TV.
Deborah Cadbury
The first programme Deborah worked on for the BBC was on a series which was something of a training ground for many a Horizon producer, Tomorrow's World (BBC: 1965-2003). She won many awards for her work on Horizon including Emmys and BAFTAS.
Simon Campbell-Jones
Simon’s first film for Horizon was broadcast in January 1969, and was called The Miraculous Wonder: the Human Eye. Narrated by Christopher Chataway, the programme asked if human eyes “were windows to your soul, the receiver of irrelevant information, respectable substitutes for sex, something like footballs? Or a piece of the brain looking out at the world?”
