title: 2000 Today
text: 2000 Today was an internationally broadcast television special to commemorate the beginning of the Year 2000. This program included New Year's Eve celebrations, musical performances, and other features from participating nations.
  
  Most international broadcasts such as the Olympic Games coverage originate from a limited area for worldwide distribution. 2000 Today was rare in that its live and taped programming originated from member countries and represented all continents including Europe, Asia, Africa, South America and North America & Oceania.
  
  Development
  2000 Today was conceived as part of the Millennium celebrations, given the numerical significance of the change from 1999 to 2000. 2000 Today was commissioned by the BBC as one of the five main millennium projects that were broadcast across TV, radio and online services throughout 1999 and 2000.
  
  Most nations that observe the Islamic calendar were not involved in 2000 Today. However, a few predominantly Muslim nations were represented among the programme's worldwide broadcasters such as Egypt (ERTU) and Indonesia (RCTI). Africa was minimally represented in 2000 Today. The only participating nations from that continent were Egypt and South Africa. Portugal-based RTP África distributed the programme to some African nations.
  
  Antarctica was mentioned on the programme schedule, although it was unclear if 2000 Today coverage was recorded or live.
  
  Production
  The programme was produced and televised by an international consortium of 60 broadcasters, headed by the BBC in the United Kingdom and WGBH (Now known as GBH) in Boston, United States. The editorial board also included representatives from ABC (Australia), CBC (Canada), CCTV (China), ETC (Egypt), RTL (Germany), SABC (South Africa), TF1 (France), TV Asahi (Japan), TV Globo (Brazil) and ABC (USA). The BBC provided the production hub for receiving and distributing the 78 international satellite feeds required for this broadcast. The idents for the programme were designed in the UK by Lambie-Nairn and the BBC for use by all the participating broadcasters taking part in the event. The linking theme throughout all the idents and promotions was a distinctively shaped stone engraved with the year 2000. The themes were: desert, fire, ice, lasers and water; plus a special BBC News ident.
  
  Up to 5,000 staff worked on 2000 Today, 1,500 of them in BBC Television Centre in West London, where all eight television studios were used during the 28-hour broadcast. Each participant financed and produced its own contributions and shared the core costs proportionately to its size and wealth. It is estimated to have cost $6 million to produce and broadcast.
  
  2000 Today was nominated for "Best Visual Effects and Graphic Design" at the 2000 British Academy Television Craft Awards.
  
  Programme timeline
  2000 Today's core international broadcast was 28 hours long, following the beginning of the New Year 2000 across the world's time zones. The programme was tailored by individual broadcasters to provide local content and hosts.
  
  The broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom started on 31 December 1999 at 09:15 UTC. 2000 Today started its international feed at 09:40 UTC, with the Kiribati Line Islands celebrating the arrival of 2000 at 10:00 UTC.
  
  Most of Europe celebrated midnight at 23:00 UTC. Broadcasting celebrations from many countries under Central European Time posed a particularly complex broadcast challenge. 2000 Today chose to rapidly air each nation's midnight observances in succession, using tape delays in most cases. This hour of the broadcast included a blessing by Pope John Paul II from Vatican City and the pyrotechnic display of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. ABC 2000 Today however decided to use Paris for its broadcast in the United States while French broadcasters TF1 and France 2 covered the festivities live from the Eiffel Tower. In addition, Italian broadcaster Rai used the pope's blessing for its Millennium - La Notte Del 2000 broadcast.
  
  2000 Today's international feed finished shortly after midnight celebrations were broadcast from Samoa on 1 January 2000 at 11:00 UTC. BBC One in the United Kingdom continued to broadcast with national features until 13:30. Later the same evening, it aired a two-hour highlights programme, The Best of 2000 Today.
  
  Personalities
  
  National hosts
  
   Argentina (Canal 13 – El Día del Milenio)
   Mónica Cahen D'Anvers and César Mascetti (presenters of Telenoche)
   Marley
   Julián Weich
   Pancho Ibañez
   Luís Otero
   Santo Biasatti
   Guillermo Andino
   Mercedes Sosa and Alejandro Lerner
   Lito Vitale
   Coro de Buenos Aires
   Julio Bocca and Eleonora Cassano
   Australia (ABC Australia)
   George Negus
   Maxine McKew
   Deborah Kennedy
   Mike Bailey
   Andrea Stretton
   Caroline Baum
   John Lombard
   Jennifer Byrne
   James O'Loghlin
   Daniel Marsden
   Peter Thompson
   Kathy Bowlen
   Brazil 
  (Rede Record)
   Boris Casoy
   Eliana
   José Luiz Datena
   Eleonora Paschoal
   Virgínia Nowicki
   Dalton Vigh
   Fábio Jr
   Raul Gil
   (BAND)
   Otaviano Costa
   Márcia Peltier
   Fernando Vannucci
   Susana Alves
   Marcos Hummel
   Luciano do Valle
   Silvia Poppovic
   Canada
   (CBC)
   Peter Mansbridge (primary host, most hours)
   Laurie Brown (00:00–08:00 UTC, with Mansbridge)
   Alison Smith (13:00–18:00 UTC)
   (Radio-Canada)
   At the time, technicians at Radio-Canada were on strike. Transmissions were seen as scheduled, but using only the main feed from the BBC, with a French voice-over. Also, as a consequence, 2000 footage from Canada was scarce on SRC's presentation, while footage from Quebec was not available at all worldwide (though the CBC did manage to get the only Quebec coverage on their own network—a video shot of midnight fireworks in Hull, Quebec, shot from Ottawa, Ontario).
   Chile (TVN)
   Jennifer Warner
   Mauricio Bustamante
   Jorge Hevia
   Margot Kahl
   Karen Doggenweiler
   Felipe Camiroaga
   Pedro Carcuro
   Rafael Araneda
   Andrea Molina
   Colombia (RCN Televisión)
   Claudia Gurisatti
   William Calderón
   Iñaki Berrueta
   Czech Republic (Czech Television)
  
   Marek Beneš
   Vladimír Jiránek
   Karel Gott
   Břetislav Pojar
   Pavel Koutský
   Jiří Lábus
   Ota Jirák
   Václav Postránecký
   Petr Haničinec
   Petr Skoumal
   Jiřina Bohdalová
   Blanka Bohdanová
   Jiri Salamoun
   Karel Cernoch
   Martin Klásek
   Jan Balej
   Karel Fiala
   Zdenek Miler
   Alena Munkova
   Jiri Munk
   Robert Hájek
   Kristýna Květová
   Petr Narozny
   Josef Dvorak
   Jiri Barta
   Estonia (TV3)
   There was no in-vision commentary or studio used for the broadcast and was aired without commentary between midnight and 6:00 UTC.
   Ene Veiksaar (9:40–12:00 UTC)
   Lauri Hussar (9:40–12:00 UTC)
   Jüri Aarma (12:00–15:00 UTC)
   Priit Aimla (12:00–15:00 UTC)
   Rein Lang (15:00–18:00 UTC)
   Kiur Aarma (15:00–18:00 UTC)
   Harri Tiido (18:00–21:00 UTC)
   Vello Rand (18:00–21:00 UTC)
   Mart Luik (21:00–00:00 UTC)
   Märt Treier (06:00–09:00 UTC)
   Kätlin Kontor (06:00–09:00 UTC)
   Enn Eesmaa (09:00–11:00 UTC)
   Finland
   Katariina Lillqvist
   France (TF1 – Le Millénium)
   Jean-Claude Narcy
   Valérie Benaïm
   Christophe Dechavanne
   Carole Rousseau
   Jean-Pierre Pernaut
   Évelyne Dhéliat
   Claire Chazal
   Patrick Poivre d'Arvor
   Charles Villeneuve
   Germany (RTL Television)
   Peter Kloeppel
   Antonia Rados
   Bernd Fuchs
   Heiner Bremer
   Michael Karr
   Birgit von Bentzel
   Ireland (RTÉ One – Millennium Eve: Celebrate 2000)
   Miriam O'Callaghan
   Mark Little
   Geri Maye
   Pat Kenny
   Liz Bonnin
   Joe Duffy
   Israel (Keshet 2)
   Miki Haimovich
   Jacob Elon
   Italy (RAI – Millennium - La notte del 2000)
   Bruno Pizzul
   Monica Maggioni
   Carlo Conti
   Gigi Proietti
   Valeria Marini
   Clarissa Burt
   Japan (NHK - Kōhaku Uta Gassen)
   Masato Kubota
   Kihachiro Kawamoto
   South Korea (MBC)
   Sohn Suk-hee
   Shim Hye-jin
   Mexico
   (Televisa)
   Ernesto Laguardia
   Mayra Saucedo
   Marco Antonio Regil
   Guilliermo Ochoa
   Guilliermo Ortega
   Lolita Ayala
   (Once TV)
   Adriana Perez Cañedo
   Jose Angel Dominguez
   Sergio Uzeta
   Christina Pacheco
   Rocío Brauer
   Lilia Silvia Hernandez
   Netherlands (NOS)
   Astrid Kersseboom
   Jeroen Overbeek
   Kees Prins
   Siem van Leeuwen
   Philippines (GMA Network)
   Mike Enriquez
   Jessica Soho
   Mel Tiangco
   Jay Sonza
   German Moreno
   Angelique Lazo
   Vicky Morales
   Paolo Bediones
   Karen Davila 
   Arnold Clavio
   Mickey Ferriols
   Miriam Quiambao
   Ryan Agoncillo
   KC Montero
   Suzi Entrata
   Kara David
   Bernadette Sembrano
   Luchi Cruz-Valdes
   Ninna Castro
   Lyn Ching
   Margaux Salcedo
   Arnell Ignacio
   Susan Enriquez
   Tisha Silang
   Antoinette Taus
   Francis Magalona
   Dingdong Dantes
   Martin Andanar
   Butch Francisco
   Tito Sotto
   Vic Sotto
   Joey de Leon
   Cacai Velasquez
   Janno Gibbs
   The Eraserheads
   Jaya
   Side A
   Verni Varga
   Poland (TVP2)
   Halina Filek-Marszalek
   Portugal (RTP)
   José Rodrigues dos Santos
   Manuela Moura Guedes
   Slovakia (Jednotka)
   Julius Pantik
   Spain (Televisión Española)
   Jesús Álvarez Cervantes
   Alfredo Urdaci
   Helena Resano
   Ramón García
   Anne Igartiburu
   Nuria Roca
   Ukraine
   Vlad Ryashyn (Inter)
   Svitlana Leontyeva (Inter)
   Yuriy Makarov (1+1)
   United Kingdom (BBC One)
   David Dimbleby
   Michael Parkinson
   Michael Buerk
   Peter Sissons
   Peter Snow
   Philippa Forrester 
   Jamie Theakston
   Gaby Roslin
   Huw Edwards
   Shauna Lowry
   Tim Vincent
   Siân Lloyd
   Noel Thompson
   Kate Thornton
   Fergal Keane
   Tony Robinson
   Jackie Bird
   Kirsty Wark
   Sian Williams
   John Kettley
   Dale Winton
   Steve Wilson
   Emma Ledden
   Katy Hill
   Alan Dedicoat
   John Cunliffe
   Ken Barrie
   United States
  (ABC – ABC 2000 Today)
   Peter Jennings
   Barbara Walters
   Diane Sawyer
   Charles Gibson
   Elizabeth Vargas
   Jack Ford
   Sam Donaldson
   Connie Chung
   Cokie Roberts
   Deborah Roberts
   Carole Simpson
   Morton Dean
   Dick Clark
   PBS
  Various participants
   Vietnam (VTV)
   Nguyễn Thanh Lâm
   Thu Uyên
  
  Music performers
  Musical artists were part of the 2000 Today broadcast, including:
  
  Africa
   Jean Michel Jarre – Giza pyramid complex, Egypt
  Asia
   Maki Ohguro – Nara, Japan
   Regine Velasquez – Makati, Philippines
  Europe
   Björk – Reykjavík, Iceland
   Charlotte Church – United Kingdom
   The Corrs – London, England, United Kingdom
   Eurythmics – United Kingdom
   Ronan Keating – Dublin, Ireland
   Manic Street Preachers – Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom
   Martine McCutcheon – United Kingdom
   Natalie MacMaster – Ireland
   Robyn – Sweden
   Ruslana – Kyiv, Ukraine
   Simply Red – London, England, United Kingdom
   Spice Girls  – London, England, United Kingdom
  North America
   Bee Gees – Miami, Florida, United States
   Juan Gabriel – Mexico
   Great Big Sea – St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
   Kenny G – New York City, New York, United States
   Phish – Big Cypress Indian Reservation, Florida, United States
   The Tragically Hip – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  Oceania
   Split Enz – Auckland, New Zealand
   Kiri Te Kanawa – Gisborne, New Zealand
  South America
   Los Fabulosos Cadillacs – Ushuaia, Argentina
   Alejandro Lerner and Mercedes Sosa – Iguazú Falls, Argentina
   Lito Vitale and Estudio Coral de Buenos Aires – Perito Moreno Glacier, Argentina
  
  Participating broadcasters
  
  The following nations broadcast 2000 Today. Some nations were licensees of the broadcast, rather than formal members of the broadcast consortium.
  
  Argentina: El Trece
  Australia: ABC
  Austria: ORF
  Belgium: VRT (Dutch) and RTBF (French)
  Brazil: Rede Record and BAND
  Canada: CBC (English) and Radio-Canada (French)
  Cape Verde: RTP África
  Caribbean: CBU
  Chile: TVN 
  China: CCTV
  Colombia: RCN Televisión
  Czech Republic: ČT
  Denmark: DR and TV3
  Ecuador: Teleamazonas
  Egypt: ETV
  Estonia: TV3
  Fiji: Fiji TV
  Finland: YLE
  France: TF1
  Germany: RTL
  Greece: ERT
  Guinea-Bissau: RTP África
  Hong Kong: ATV
  Hungary: MTV (MTV1, selected coverage; MTV2, full coverage)
  Iceland: IBC
  India: Doordarshan and Zee TV 	
  Indonesia: RCTI
  Ireland: RTÉ
  Israel: IBA and ICP
  Italy: RAI
  Japan: TV Asahi
  Jordan: JRTC
  Lebanon: MTV
  Lithuania: TV3
  Macau: TDM (possibly also Channel 32 and Channel 30)
  Malaysia: RTM
  Malta: Super One
  Mexico: Once TV
  Mozambique: RTP África
  Netherlands: NPO
  New Zealand: TV3
  Norway: NRK and TV3
  Oman: Oman TV
  Panama: Telemetro
  Paraguay: Telefuturo 
  Peru: Panamericana Televisión
  Philippines: GMA Network
  Poland: TVP
  Portugal: RTP
  Romania: Antena 1 (licensee)
  Russia: VGTRK and Prometey AST
  Samoa: Samoa TV
  São Tomé and Príncipe: RTP África
  Singapore: TCS, CNA, STV12 and SCV
  Slovakia:  (licensee)
  Slovenia: POP TV (licensee)
  South Africa: SABC
  South Korea: MBC
  Spain: TVE
  Sri Lanka: MTV
  Sweden: TV3 and SVT
  Switzerland: SRG SSR
  Taiwan: PTS
  Thailand: BBTV Channel 7
  Tonga: TBC
  Ukraine: Novyi Kanal, Inter, 1+1
  United Kingdom: BBC
  United States: ABC and PBS
  Uruguay: Teledoce and TNU
  Vietnam: VTV and HTV
  Venezuela: RCTV
  
  Recorded time broadcasts 
  Longest time broadcasts: HTV (34 hours)
   Shortest time broadcasts: VTV (6 hours)
  
  Ratings
  2000 Today had an estimated worldwide audience of 800 million people, with an audience of 12.6 million people on the BBC alone.
  
  Soundtrack
  
  2000 Today: A World Symphony for the Millennium is a television soundtrack album of music commissioned by the BBC for its internationally broadcast television special, 2000 Today and released by Sony Classical Records in December 1999. The music was composed and conducted by multi award-winning composer Tan Dun, and performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra, London Voices choir, New London Children's Choir, and a group of world instrument performers from around the world. It was featured on PBS and ABC throughout the promotions leading up to the broadcast and throughout the broadcast itself, providing musical "stepping stones" from country to country, culture to culture, day to night.
  
  The programme's theme song was a cover version of Bob Marley's song "One Love" performed by the Gipsy Kings, Ziggy Marley, Tsidii Le Loka and the Boys Choir of Harlem. This version was released as a single in Europe. "One Love" was performed live by Gipsy Kings as part of the broadcast from Miami, Florida.
  
  Track listing
  
  Personnel
  Tan Dun – composer, conductor, producer
  Charles Harbutt – engineer, post production
  Mary Lou Humphrey – liner notes
  Photonica – photographer
  FPG International – photographer
  Grace Row – producer
  
  See also
  ABC 2000 Today, the commercial American broadcast
  Millennium Eve: Celebrate 2000, the Irish broadcast
  Millennium Live, the supposed nemesis of the successful 2000 Today broadcast
  New Year's Eve
  
  References
  
  External links
  
  2000 Today at the British Film Institute
  CBC archive of New Year's Eve 2000
  
  2000 Today (BBC) on YouTube
  
  New Year's television specials
  1999 television specials
  2000 television specials
  Simulcasts
  Turn of the third millennium
  International broadcasting
  International telecommunications