Empire Home Video (UK)

Background: Empire Home Video is the home video label of Empire Communications.

1st Logo

(1988-1995)

Nicknames: "Sky Of Doom", "The Jumpscare Logo", "The Personification Of All That Is Suddenly Evil", "Why, UK, WHY?", "Strobe of Doom/Hell", “Doki Doki Be Like…”

Logo: We see a video of a sky with fast moving clouds. After a few seconds, it suddenly changes to the words "EMPIRE VIDEO" with a heavy strobe effect. WHen the music finishes, the strobe stops, causing the background to turn red and the text to turn white.

FX/SFX: The sky video and the strobe effect.

Music/Sounds: A calming tune, later turning into a 2-note dramatic orchestra sting. In 1992, a dark drone is added after the sting.

Availability: Should be available on Empire Home Video tapes from 1988 to 1995, including videos of various ITV-owned shows.

Scare Factor: None to NIGHTMARE. The sudden transition to a calming video into a creepy sting with a strobe effect can easily scare anyone, even if you're not expecting it. The drone used during 1992-1995 can also give shakes to people.

2nd Logo

(1995-1998)

Nicknames: "The City Of Boredom", "There! A Calming Empire Logo!"

Logo: We see a photo of a city with small houses and trees. The word "EMPIRE", in gold, zooms out and rotates.

FX/SFX/Cheese Factor: The zooming out/rotation of the EMPIRE text, which looks dated for the time.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Should be available on Empire tapes from 1995 to 1998.

Scare Factor: None. It's tamer than the previous logo, however it can also be boring to other people. However, the scare factor will raise again on the next logo...

3rd Logo

(1998-)

Nicknames: "The Neon Castle (of Doom)", "The Jumpscare Logo II", "NOOOOOOOOOO!!!", "Strobe Of Doom/Hell II", "The Personification Of All That Is Suddenly Evil II", "Why Does This Logo Still Exists?!", "WGBH 2001's Mother"

Logo: We see uncolored pipes. Suddenly, a white beam flies through them, and the camera pans around, following it. The camera then pans and zooms onward, revealing a now-completed drawing of a robot with a skyline on his centre. A high strobe effect suddenly happens, and when the music finishes, we see a smaller version of the robot and the words "EMPIRE VIDEO" below.

Trivia: The first half of the animation was adopted by WGBH on 2001.

Variants:

On early DVD releases by the company (during 1999-2003), the DVD logo is seen below the company's name.

On 2006, the animation was redone to look even more realistic.

On early Blu-ray releases by the company (during 2008-2010), the DVD variant is used, however the DVD logo is replaced with the Blu-ray logo.

FX/SFX: Top-notch CGI for 1998.

Music/Sounds: A calming tune (not like the 1st logo) followed by the sounds of the beam passing through, then a remastered version of the dramatic sting from the 1st logo. On 2010, the sting was remastered again.

Availability: Currently in use. Seen on Empire's VHS's and DVD's during the time.

Scare Factor: Nightmare. The use of the strobe effect and sting from the 1st logo can still scare a lot of people, and the robot doesn't look friendly. However, it's lower for those who are used to it.