The BBC - or "Auntie Beeb" to her congregation (an amalgamation of the phrase "Auntie knows best" and Peter Seller's reference to the BBC as the "Beeb" in the 1950s) - is an institution in the UK which you will come into contact with on your trip to London. It's likely that your hotel TV (can't find it? Have a look in that cupboard with barn doors) will have the first channel tuned to BBC1. Visitors from the USA are more familiar with the BBC these days, since they ventured into the American market (with the snappily titled BBC America), but although their programmes may be familiar, the whole concept of the BBC is alien to most countries. What is it, why is it and how?

The British Broadcasting Corporation receives its funding via an annual license fee, which you must pay if you own a television set in the UK. The upside is that it makes content which must fulfill Royal Charter requirements (the constitutional basis for its existence). So it commissions many types of programme which commercial systems would rule out. It has no advertisements (worth celebrating) and the focus is on maintaining quality entertainment, education and impartiality.

That's the official blurb, which really means that it's allowed to make programmes which are worth making, whether there's a business case for it or not. To some organisations this may appear 'unholy' in a commercial setting - but it's the BBC's trump card. It also sells its programmes abroad for profit, neatly sidestepping any Communist accusations which might be levelled at it.

The BBC frequently receives criticism for cronyism (being set for life once you get your feet under the table), and same-old same-olds propping up the schedules, but that's been addressed in recent years. It was the first TV company to venture into cross-platform media when its website went live in the 1990s, long before anyone else dared to and despite paring back its main site http://www.bbc.co.uk/ (note the local domain, I can think of no other British company who use their .com to domain forward to their .co.uk), it's been in the top 50 Alexa sites more or less since going live. It launched the iPlayer 'on demand' services via broadband, and every broadcaster has rushed to follow suit after its instant success. It podcast before doing so had cachet (Gardener's Question Time was an unlikely success story) and so on. For such a large institution it can react with nimble feet when new opportunities present themselves.

Most importantly however, if the BBC says so, it's probably true. This was the case with the BBC World Service, pre-Internet where power-struggles in developing countries were monitored domestically by both sides, using the BBC World Service for updates. It's trusted by the public and aside for some grubby reporting during the Wapping picket by printers in the 1980s (where the Government was directly intervening and influencing the impartiality). The meddling was leaked and confidence in the Beeb was restored. Another storm in 2004 led to resignation by the then Director General of the BBC - Greg Dyke, regarding the Hutton Report: which investigated the death of David Kelly and the questionable reporting practices surrounding his death. More grubbiness, but blemishes are very few and far between. The Board of Governors was replaced by the 'BBC Trust' in 2007.

The BBC is headquartered in London at Broadcasting House, a stones-throw from Oxford Circus but has further sites dotted around the capital, including 'Television Centre', which always reminds me of the tap dancing world record attempt and the Blue Peter garden being vandalised, for some reason. A strange mix, and I'm sure it's different for all - but the circular building is as well known as the channel.

The first broadcasts were made in 1932, using John Logie Baird's 30 line model of picture transmission (current HDTV uses 1080 lines). Service was suspended during the Second World War, restarting a year after the war ended. In 1964 BBC2 was introduced, meaning the original service became BBC1. This was also the period when Radio Caroline (operating offshore from a ship in the North Sea) began playing popular music prompting the BBC to change the radio services it offered. Creating Radio 1 (popular music), 2 (easy listening), 3 (classical) and 4 (discussion, drama and light entertainment) which are still broadly the same.

During national crisis events (such as the 7/7/bombings) the BBC is overwhelmingly the channel which the British public turn to for information. The BBC website received over a billion hits that day in 2005, with over 40,000 requests per second putting the network under immense strain - but it coped. Which is where the BBC's reputation comes from. It tends not to fail.

It's the programmes that people remember and here are a few over the years that the BBC took a risk on, and the schedules are a much better place for it.

Monty Python's Flying Circus - Essentially a comedy about the strange idiosyncrasies and contradictions of being British, with some surreal observation thrown in. It's popularity in other countries meant it was more accurately about the strange idiosyncrasies and contradictions, of being human. Palin and Jones wrote together, Cleese and Chapman did, Idle wrote alone and Gilliam produced his animations - but they all squabbled en masse about what to include in the programmes.

Dr. Who - created a behavioural retreat that became part of the culture. That of "hiding behind the sofa" (or settee, depending on class indicators). The early-evening Saturday monster show had shonky sets and a raft of expositional dialogue, but the monsters would haunt your dreams. Personal sleep nemesis for me was the Sea Devil, who moved excruciatingly slowly (probably due to ill-fitting costumes). All the better for you to fall, or become stuck in something as they moonwalked towards you at a glacial pace. Theme tune still excites, though its new format is much slicker.

 

'Germans' episode of Fawlty Towers. Still funny, though crudely jingoistic by today's standards (except if you're at an England/Germany football match when 'two World Wars and one World Cup' is still bellowed from the terraces)

Newsnight - in its 30th year, it's basically the news with a deep-end. Famous for its banter and as a forum for teasing MPs who try to use it as a soapbox. It covers serious issues without insisting you take it seriously. Paxman rules the roost, when he isn't clipping the wings of students on University Challenge. I'm confident having travelled, that only the BBC could make a programme like this and keep it alive for 30 years. Nothing else comes close.

Boys From the Blackstuff - the phrase "Gissa job", entered the lexicon of British daily life in the early 1980s. This groundbreaking Alan Bleasdale series changed many perceptions about the north of England and Britain's class structure at the time. Did much to build resentment towards the Thatcher years of government in the UK, despite most of it being written during the permiership of Labour's Jim Callaghan. True.

Fawlty Towers - one of the most quoted shows of all time ("You started it!" - "No we didn't!" "Yes you did, you invaded Poland!" etc.) The sprawling plots that always resolved neatly, were written on large sheets of paper connected with arrows by then partners - John Cleese and Connie Booth. All the better for killing the show after two series. Leave them wanting more and they did.

I'm Alan Partridge - another show which had a deep impact on the national psyche - especially with its investigation into what happens when your BBC series doesn't get re-commissioned. And you punch the programme commissioner in the face with a stuffed partridge. Monkey Tennis anyone?

Later With Jools Holland - a music programme which refuses to put genres into boxes. Just shuffles everyone who likes playing music, of any persuasion into a room to play together live - no miming, backing tracks or cheating. The result is that you cross-pollinate interests and who can fail to enjoy all those musicians getting a kick out of each others' music? Rapidly approaching its 20th year of broadcast. A stocking-filler album is released each Christmas.

 

KT Tunstall's debut on 'Later With Jools Holland' - brought in as a late replacement, KT blew everyone into the weeds with her 'solo-band' performance. One of the most watched clips from the show and deservedly so.

Life on Earth - or any nature programmes featuring David Attenborough of which this was the first of many. He was actually the controller of BBC2 when it launched, but had a contractual clause which allowed him to continue making natural history programmes. Life on Earth was the first of a vast canon of series with his lilting and interested voice narrating. He explained that a chaotic anthill, was actually an organised system if you knew what to look for and that cheetahs are hard-luck lightweights in the big-cat world. I read once that Bjork said her favourite programmes growing up were David Attenborough's, along with many others in Iceland. His influence has been global and he's still going after nearly 60 years in the job.

The Naked Chef - shook up cookery programmes for good. After Keith Floyd took them out of the studio, Jamie Oliver continued the tradition by inviting you back to his urban nest for a smashed up salad with peaches and mozzarella. He'd inevitably have to pop out on his scooter (and slide down the circular banister no-handed) to source some produce. In the evening, friends would come over for dinner. It was immensely successful, his book went straight to number one and every following series and book was a bestseller. He'll probably blast off into space for his next series... in fact he's probably already there - opening a 15 on the moon. Zero gravity? Pukka!

The Office - first aired on Beeb Two, so was only seen by people who'd heard rumours that the series was destined for greatness. The first 5 minutes were enough to realise it was groundbreaking, painful, moving and above all - funny. Followed the Fawlty Towers formula and wrapped after 2 series. Then came back for an extended Christmas special. The protesters warned against resurrecting 'perfect' pieces of work but faded and fizzled out when it aired. It was expertly measured and resolved the programme so it could never come back ("She's engaged!" "Not anymore...").