The Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theatre Union (BECTU), formerly the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union, became a sector of the

Prospect Prospect may refer to: General * Prospect (marketing), a marketing term describing a potential customer * Prospect (sports), any player whose rights are owned by a professional team, but who has yet to play a game for the team * Prospect (minin ...

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

on 1 January 2017 following the merger of BECTU with Prospect. It has approximately 40,000 members who work in

broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began wi ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...

, IT,

telecoms Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that ...

entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousa ...

leisure Leisure has often been defined as a quality of experience or as free time. Free time is time spent away from business, work, job hunting, domestic chores, and education, as well as necessary activities such as eating and sleeping. Lei ...

and interactive media.

History

BECTU was founded in 1991 with the merger of the Association of Cinematograph Television and Allied Technicians and the Broadcasting and Entertainment Trades Alliance, the history of which can be traced back to 1890. In July 1995, the Film Artistes' Association (FAA), founded in 1927 as a trade union for film extras merged to become a sub-division of BECTU. BECTU's affiliations included the Trades Union Congress, the Scottish Trades Union Congress, Union Network International, the General Federation of Trade Unions and the

Federation of Entertainment Unions The Federation of Entertainment Unions (FEU) is a joint representative body based in the United Kingdom, representing workers in TV, theatre, film, music, gaming, cinema, publishing, new media, professional football and other performing arts. The ...

. Gerry Morrissey was elected General Secretary in February 2007, after the position had been left vacant due to the death of Roger Bolton, who died from cancer in November 2006.

Merger into Prospect

BECTU announced in 2014 that it was in merger talks with the

trade union which represents

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considerin ...

s, managers,

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosop ...

s and other specialists in both the public and private sectors in the UK. Prospect is not currently affiliated to any

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

. At the BECTU Annual Conference held on 14 May 2016 it was agreed to ballot BECTU members on the proposed merger with Prospect. It was announced on 30 August 2016 that BECTU members had overwhelmingly voted Yes to the merger with Prospect which took place on 1 January 2017. BECTU became a sector of Prospect, with Morrissey continuing to lead the sector. In 2018, Philippa Childs took over as secretary of the sector.

Leadership

General Secretaries

:1991:

Tony Hearn David Anthony Hearn (born 4 March 1929), known as Tony Hearn, is a former British trade union leader. Hearn attended Trinity College, Oxford. He began working for the Association of Broadcasting Staff (ABS) in 1955, as assistant to the Genera ...

and

Alan Sapper Alan Sapper (18 March 1931 – 19 May 2006) was a British trade unionist. Born in Hammersmith, Sapper studied at the Latymer Upper School, then worked as a botanist at Kew Gardens while studying with the University of London External Programme. ...

:1991:

:1993: Roger Bolton :2007:

Gerry Morrissey Gerry Anthony Morrissey (born 12 April 1960) is an Irish-born British trade unionist and was the head of the BECTU sector of the Prospect union up until his retirement in 2018. He was succeeded by Philippa Childs. Born in Tipperary, Ireland, Mo ...

:2017: Mike Clancy* * General Secretary of Prospect following the 2017 merger.

Head of Bectu (after 2017 merger with Prospect)

:2017: Gerry Morrissey :2018: Philippa Childs

Presidents

:1991: Tony Lennon :2010: Christine Bond :2014: Jane Perry :2020: Ann Jones* :2022: Eleanor Wade* * President of Prospect following the 2017 merger.

References

External links

bectu.org.ukCatalogue of the BECTU BBC archives
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick {{Portal bar, Organised labour Broadcasting in the United Kingdom Communications and media organisations based in the United Kingdom Entertainment industry unions Organisations based in the London Borough of Lambeth Stockwell Trade unions established in 1991 Trade unions in the United Kingdom 1991 establishments in the United Kingdom Trade unions disestablished in 2017 Trade unions based in London