Ian Allan Video

Background

Ian Allan Publishing was established in 1942. Since the 1970s it has published an annual book series entitled Railways Restored which covers various preserved railways throughout the UK. During the early 1990s the Railways Restored series was used as a basis for a new series of railway documentaries. The series was distributed by Ian Allan Publishing and made by RV Television.

More recently, Ian Allan Publishing published magazines such as Railways Illustrated and the Hornby Magazine before the publications were sold to Key Publishing.

1st Logo (1991)

Visuals: There is a monochrome photo of an LNER K4 Locomotive tinted slightly blue. The coat of arms of Ian Allan Publishing spin into view from the centre of the screen, before zooming out and spinning to the left of the screen. Then, "Part of the Ian Allan Group" zooms in and spins into view on the right of the screen. The logo ends shortly after the words have stopped spinning.

Technique: Analog computer animation.

Audio: A synthesized fanfare, which is accompanied by a drumbeat that sounds like a wooden ruler being hit against a table.

Availability: Seen on Railways Restored tapes from the era. It's unknown whether or not the ident was left intact on Artsmagic's prints of the series.

2nd Logo (1993-1996)

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Visuals: On a white background, there is the Ian Allan coat of arms from before, in front of a green rectangle reading the words "IAN ALLAN" in a bold serif font. Below the green rectangle and to the right of the coat of arms is "SBS Video" in an italic serif font that shares its colour with the rectangle.

Technique: Fading effects.

Audio: The opening sounds of the documentary.

Availability: Seen on the Railways Then and Now series of videos, and is kept intact on the DVD releases.