Died: December 25, 2020. MARTIN Lambie-Nairn, who has died aged 75, was a designer whose work will be known to millions who have watched British terrestrial TV over the last 40 years or so, even if they don’t know the name of its creator. This came through a series of animated logos that gave both the BBC and Channel 4 their corporate identities. More recently, Lambie-Nairn was behind the oxygen bubbles ident for mobile phone network, O2. He was also the brains behind the original Spitting Image (1984-1996), which became one of the most iconic TV programmes of its era. The puppet-based satirical sketch show‘s grotesque rubber caricatures created by Peter Fluck and Roger Law matched the brash, no-holds-barred scurrilousness of its material. Running for a phenomenal 18 series, the programme was described as being “based on an original lunch with Martin Lambie-Nairn”.
January 7, 2021 5:42 pm
Whether they realise it or not, most UK television viewers of the last four decades will be familiar with the work of Martin Lambie-Nairn.
From the famous Channel 4 “blocks” logo, to paint-splattered idents for BBC Two, Lambie-Nairn’s mark on the television branding and ident landscape is unmistakable. His was a career that saw him establish two design studios, hold roles at ITN and the BBC, and later receive honorary doctorates from the University of Lincoln and University of Northampton.
Tributes have flooded in for the late designer, showing how he was easy to get along with, future-focused and generous with his time, as well as being someone who was full of ideas, which he could see through from concept to execution.
Martin Lambie-Nairn
Credit: Ashley Bingham at A&M Photography
Martin Lambie-Nairn, who has died aged 75, was one of Britain’s leading television graphic designers, creating memorable logos for the BBC and Channel 4, as well as coming up with the original idea for the Spitting Image series.
Credited with the concept of “an adult Muppet Show”, Lambie-Nairn recalled having a brainwave in the middle of a winter’s night in 1981: a satirical show featuring grotesque caricatures of public figures, politicians, royalty and celebrities, like the Plasticine models made by Peter Fluck and Roger Law he had seen in Sunday newspaper colour supplements but with animated puppets.
Martin Lambie-Nairn, branding expert who made TV idents sexy , dies aged 75
Tributes for designer s exceptional work for C4 and BBC.
by Gideon Spanier
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Graphic designer Martin Lambie-Nairn dies aged 75
He was also co-creator of the satirical TV puppet show Spitting Image.
Lambie-Nairn was best known for his branding design for TV, which included creating the famous Blocks logo for Britain s Channel 4 when it launched in 1982. In 1990 he also created BBC Two s channel identity, which featured live-action aspects and was later produced using CGI.
A BBC Channel Two identity by Lambie-Nairn
His other television branding work included the hot-air-balloon globe identity for BBC One and ident packages for a number of other BBC channels, including CBeebies and BBC Four. The designer also created the ITN corporate logo and the title sequence for its News at Ten programme.