BBC Three unveils new look, new ethos

BBC Three controller Danny Cohen has unveiled a new look and new multi-platform focus for the channel.

All programmes on the channel will be simulcast on digital TV and the web starting in February. User generated content will be regularly scheduled in peak and interactive ideas will be placed "at the heart of programmes".

Cohen said: "I'm delighted to announce BBC Three's fantastic line-up of new programmes, along with our innovative and exciting approach to television for young audiences. BBC Three is aiming to become Britain's most ambitious multi-platform network – combining television and the web into a single, integrated offering.

"At BBC Three we should be known for pioneering risk, and be obsessed with all things new – new talent, new programmes, and a new relationship between television and the internet."

> Click here for a preview of BBC Three's new idents

The channel's new schedule will revolve around single dramas, live entertainment and factual output.

Four single dramas will air in the Spring: Phoo Action, described as a futuristic, kung fu, live action drama; The Things I Haven't Told You, a dark thriller set in the sixth form; Being Human, a tale about a vampire, werewolf and ghost who share a house; and Mrs In-Betweeny, billed as a "dark comic look at modern British family life" featuring a long-lost uncle who returns as a pre-op transsexual named Emma.

Of the four, one will go on to become a series for the following year.

Other drama series to air on the channel include Greek, imported from ABC Family, and Heroes' second season.

In entertainment, the channel's key output includes the previously-announced Lily Allen and Friends, which stars Lily Allen as the host of a social networking-based chat show, The Wall, in which emerging talent will be given a showcase opportunity on TV and the web, and Upstaged, which will develop on the web before its BBC Three outings later in the season.

In news, BBC Three's signature 60seconds bulletins will undergo a "total revamp", including the launch of a nightly World News programme looking at global events through the output of other news channels from around the world. Environmental issues will be frequently featured and special bulletins focusing on specific subjects including technology and sport will be scheduled.

Factual output will include Pramface Mansion, which looks at the demands of being a single parent, and Jack's Story, which will take "an intimate look at the lives of brave young men fighting in Afghanistan".