BBC Three to go online only tomorrow

The linear feed of the BBC’s youth channel, BBC Three, is due to go dark tomorrow, making its move to online-only.

The service will cease to operate as a linear channel at the close of tonight’s broadcast – at 03:55 tomorrow morning.

The last scheduled programme to appear on the TV feed is a rerun of an episode from one of the 13-year old channel’s biggest hits, comedy Gavin and Stacey.

Speaking at an event in London last month to preview the reinvented BBC Three, channel controller Damian Kavanagh said: “We’re reinventing our offer for young people, but I want to be clear that this is just the start.

“We will iterate, refine, adapt and I ask that you guys come on this adventure with us. Some things won’t work, but we have the capability to change tack very, very quickly; this is what’s most exciting about the new BBC Three.”

“We have a brilliant track record on BBC Three for making purposeful content that resonates with people, and we will build on this.”

The linear switch-off follows a report over the weekend by Radio Times, claiming that senior BBC strategist are considering merging BBC Three and Radio 1, and appointing a single ‘youth controller’ to oversee all platforms aimed at 16-34 year olds.

A spokesperson for the BBC said: “Everyone knows we are looking at the BBC’s structure to make sure we are fit for the digital age. There has already been a lot of speculation about our future shape and there will no doubt be plenty more, but when we’ve got something to announce we’ll do so.”