France 3

History

La Troisième Chaîne Couleur (1972–1974)

On 22 March 1969, the government mentioned a plan to create a third national television channel. Jean-Louis Guillaud, attached to the Office of the President of the Republic, coordinated the preparatory studies for its launch from November 1969. This new national channel of the French Television Broadcasting Office (ORTF) was to be launched directly in color and to allow better exposure of the regional offices of the ORTF through many opt-outs and through the decentralized production of the channel's programmes. The ORTF implemented this project throughout 1972 in the form of a national and interregional channel in color, without advertising or continuity announcers (although out-of-vision announcers were later introduced), offering shorter evenings at different times compared to the other two channels, with a majority of cultural programs, and relying largely on the technical and editorial relays of its regional stations. To accomplish this, the Board is setting up several heavy production centers within its main regional stations to produce programming for the new channel. The most important are those of Télé Marseille-Provence, Télé-Lille and Télé-Lyon. The third channel thus responds to the main concern of reform law no. 72-5534 3 July 1972, on the status of the ORTF, which aims to introduce the decentralization of production and the devolution of decisions on programs the Office.

The third color channel (La Troisième Chaîne Couleur) of the ORTF started its operations on 31 December 1972, at 7 pm with its start-up theme, which was followed by the CEO of the ORTF, Arthur Conte, and the general manager of the channel, Jean-Louis Guillaud, who present their wishes to the French for this new channel and for the year to come, calling on the ORTF's regional television services and aspiring young staff to join the new network, and then followed by Jean Amadou welcoming the viewers to briefly explain to them what will distinguish this new channel from the two others, in particular in its colorful, dynamic design and the introduction of genre credits before each programme, to replace the announcers, and which are all the work of stylist Catherine Chaillet. Then, the first program, Jeunes années, a program for young people, was launched with the cartoon Roulotte, followed at 8:35 p.m. by the inaugural evening of the channel consisting of a variety show written by Maurice Horgues, Jean Amadou and Robert Rocca, directed by Dirk Sanders and produced by the Lille8 production center and whose national sponsor is the singer Anne-Marie David, chosen by the CEO of the Office.

The director general of the third color channel, Jean-Louis Guillaud, decides to make extensive use of the regional stations of the ORTF and young directors for the production of the programs, because the third channel intends to prove itself as a new channel regions and cinema, using state-of-the-art techniques and high-quality graphics. The original project, which planned to rely on the cultural and artistic actors of the regions within the framework of the long-awaited decentralization within the Office, in fact comes down to a simple deconcentration of resources of production, regional television remaining confined to the little space granted in the opt-outs of the national service.

Autonomous from the state (1974–1999)

In 1974, the new President of the Republic Valéry Giscard d'Estaing asked his Prime Minister to present a communication on the French Television Broadcasting Office to the Council of Ministers on 3 July. Jacques Chirac then assures that "the new organization must be based on competition between autonomous units, fully responsible. It must ensure free and open information, must exclude any waste by relying on streamlined structures. The reports of the State and of the new autonomous units should be limited to the designation of its leaders". Law No. 74-696 7 August 1974, abolished the ORTF and created seven independent bodies, including three national television program companies, a national sound broadcasting company, two public industrial and commercial companies responsible for the production and broadcasting and a national audiovisual institute. The state monopoly is maintained and each of the companies is placed under the supervision of the Prime Minister. The Office's television director, Claude Contamine, was appointed by the Council of Ministers as president of the future national television program company to succeed the ORTF's third channel. The choice of a manager from the seraglio responds to the already well-defined face of the future third channel in the law of 7 August, article 10 of which specifies that "one of the national companies reserves a privileged place for the programming of films on television". This point is also clearly written into the specifications of the national program company France Régions 3, which makes it not only the channel aimed at the regions, but above all the channel of cinema and fiction in the broad sense, FR3 in front should devote more than half of its evenings to the airing of films and TV films. This new national television program company is also responsible for managing and developing the regional radio and television centers created by the Office (22 regional stations and 29 radio centers governed by 11 metropolitan directorates and a DOM-TOM directorate managing 9 stations in French overseas territories). We then count on the productions of the 22 regional stations, then equivalent to 35 minutes of regional television per day.

Law no. 74-696 7 August 1974, came into force on 1 January 1975, with the official birth of the three national television program companies Télévision française 1 (TF1), Antenne 2 (A2) and France Régions 3 (FR3), the national sound broadcasting company Radio France, the French Production Company (SFP), Télédiffusion de France (TDF) and the National Audiovisual Institute (INA).

On Monday 6 January 1975, at 6:55 pm, France Régions 3 begins its operations with a program schedule similar in all respects to that of the former third channel. The channel broadcasts only four hours of programs a day and devotes only five minutes to its inaugural broadcast this evening of 6 January to make way for the film Peau d'âne by Jacques Demy.

Plans to privatisation (1986–1989)

On 6 May 1986, FR3 changed its look and changed its program schedule by starting at 9 am, instead of 5 pm as it was until then, and by putting on the air a new local information program, with national and international headlines, named 19/20 created and presented by Henri Sannier with Ghislaine Ottenheimer. The in-vision announcers also made their appearance the same year.

In 1986, the then government of Jacques Chirac put forward the proposal of privatising one of the three public television companies. The original suggestion was to transform FR3 into a private body, however the final decision was that of TF1. The broadcasting authority at the time, the CNCL, appointed Rene Han to become programme controller of FR3, with the result that the networked programmes took an even more highbrow and cultural focus.

Changes to the schedule included a supplementary Friday night edition of Thalassa- le magazine de la mer whilst an opera was televised every Wednesday night. Popular quiz show Questions pour un champion made its broadcasting début in November 1988. La Classe, an entertainment programme which replaced Les Jeux de 20 heures and followed 19|20, was also introduced. Having launched without using speakerines, the network introduced in-vision announcers in September 1987 and retained live continuity until 1993, a year after TF1 and France 2 had abandoned in-vision presentation.

Reaffirmation of the public sector (1989–1990)

At the turn of the decade, the French television landscape which had been previously dominated by the three public stations now consisted of a strong private sector in the form of TF1 and Canal+ and the now-fragmented public sector of Antenne 2 and FR3. In 1990, the State, through the Conseil Supérieure de l'Audiovisuel (CSA), decided to merge the separate public entities into a new corporation.

At the same time, FR3 was already closing down on Saturday afternoons to allow nine hours of airtime to the educational station La Sept, airing from 3 pm to midnight. The arrangement continued until 1992 when the launch of the Franco-German network Arte led to the broadcaster's demise. On FR3 itself, the network aired current affairs programming on Saturday mornings including Continentales and L'Eurojournal, both presented by Alex Taylor.

The public reunification (1990–2009)

On 7 September 1992, FR3 and Antenne 2 were reunified in the new France Télévisions entity and rebranded as France 3 and France 2 respectively. Their logos match to the French flag like TF1. In 1998, France 3 partnered with TPS to launch a satellite station called Régions.

Between 2000 and 2005, La Cinquième (now France 5), RFO (along with RFOsat, then France Ô) and France 4 joined France 2 and France 3 under the France Télévisions corporate identity.

Under the direction of France Télévisions chairman Patrick de Carolis and director of channels Patrice Duhamel, October 2006 saw the introduction of a new daily cultural programme called Ce soir (ou jamais!) presented by Frederic Taddei, marking a new, more cultural focus to the network's programming. The late night news programme Soir 3 was given a new, fixed timeslot of 11 pm.

2009–present

On 5 January 2009, all on-air advertising on France Télévisions, (including France 3) between 20:00 and 06:00 was eliminated, meaning the traditional start of primetime viewing in France of 20:45 was brought forward by ten minutes to 20:35.

With the establishment of TNT, France's digital terrestrial television network, France 3 has seen its national audience share down to under 10%, behind M6.

In October 2023, France Télévisions and Radio France announced that they would unify their regional services under the brand "Ici", encompassing the France Bleu radio network and France 3. This transition began with the two networks adopting a shared digital platform under the Ici branding, and the rebranding of France 3 news bulletins under the Ici title (including the new morning show Ici Matin, which is simulcast with France Bleu). The Ici branding began to be promoted on-air in late-August 2024; news programmes simulcast with France Bleu will begin to carry the Ici logo beginning in November, and France 3 will be fully rebranded as Ici in January 2025. The rebranding has faced criticism over the planned discontinuation of the historic France 3 brand, including protests by a union representing France Télévisions' employees.

Branding

Idents

On 7 September 1992, the new France 3 channel was given a logo designed by the Gédéon agency: the number "3" in blue with the word "France" inscribed in the upper part of the number. The jingles and trailers divide the screen into three equal horizontal bands, the upper two of which display the natural landscapes of France. This dressing remained on the air for eight years, the landscapes evolving over the seasons and the years. Only the trailers changed in 1998 to show animals and plants in extreme close-up. On 2 October 2000, the dressing develops smoothly: the three horizontal bands are no longer the same size (the one in the middle is smaller) and the landscapes are no longer only natural, but also urban.

On 7 January 2002, the France Télévisions group adopted a new visual identity designated by the Gédéon agency. France 3 has a new logo similar to the other channels: a blue trapezium with the number "3" written in white inside along the right side. However, the logo has a particularity: the number "3" is not written with the new font of the group but keeps that of the old logo. On 8 September 2003, the channel changed its look. The commercial jingles feature animals drawn in white pencil coming to life in natural landscapes with ambient music. These evolve with the seasons and on 20 March 2006, the animals were replaced by plants.

On 7 April 2008, the logo of France 3 changed with the addition of a 3D effect. While the 3D logo appears on air, the old 2D formula is still used for the channel's print publications. On 5 January 2009, France 3 got a new look designed by the Dream On agency. The advertising idents and jingles depict characters carrying out actions of daily life. To create a visual difference, they are placed in contemplative natural landscapes. On 5 September 2011, France 3 adopted a new look from the Gédéon agency. The screen is divided into 24 boxes representing the 24 regional newsrooms of the channel. Each box contains a different video extract, which juxtaposed form a single image representing a person in an action of daily life. This design is inspired by Dadaism and the work of photographer David Hockney.

France 3 regularly set up temporary covers for events or special periods. Each summer, the channel offered a specific look. In summer 2013, the jingles featured wild animals with human behavior animated in 3D in photo-realistic settings. In 2014 and then 2015, new animals were featured. These idents had a certain public success (in particular the famous marmots, regularly acclaimed) and have been rewarded several times by professionals in the sector. From 31 December 2012, to 13 January 2013, and from 29 June – 11 August 2013, France 3 broadcast jingles designed by the Demoiselles agency to mark its 40th anniversary. A logo was also created based on the old logo of France Régions 3. On 4 January 2016, France 3 put its logo back in 2D. The 3D logo is still a small used.

Mission

France 3 is a general entertainment channel whose mission is to deliver domestic and regional programming, offering cultural and educational advantages. Its local and regional vocation has been assured by its new mission statement. (" Elle doit privileger l'information décentralisée et les événements régionaux ") Translated it reads:

'It must promote local news and regional events and to introduce and familiarise the different regions of France and Europe and "to give space to our lively spectacles".'

Headquarters

France 3 was originally based at 13–15 rue Cognacq-Jay in Paris, which housed the television services of the former Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (ORTF).

Since TF1 became independent from the ORTF, FR3 was based at the Maison de la Radio in the 16th arrondissement of Paris with its editorial base located at 28 Cours Albert 1er in the 8th arrondissement.

In 1998, France 3 moved to a new base at 7 Esplanade Henri de France in the 15th arrondissement. This also houses the rest of France Télévisions' operations. The headquarters are accessible by taking RER Line C to Boulevard Victor.

Programming

France 3 has fewer audience constraints compared to sister channel France 2, with the latter being the flagship public channel. This allows France 3 to concentrate on specialist and cultural programming.

It offered three information sessions per day until 25 August 2019, and offers since 26 August 2019, and the stop of Soir 3 (replaced by the 11 p.m. of France Info) two information sessions per day, which include regional and local news editions. It also offers several weather reports per day.

Every morning, France 3 airs the children's programming block Okoo. While France 5 broadcasts pre-school programmes, France 3 targets the older age range. Okoo airs all day long on France 4.

On 2 September 2020, France Ô ceased to be broadcast, since 31 August 2020, to replace certain missions of the channel, France 3 broadcasts two programs on the overseas territories every morning (outremer.lemag, outremer.l'info).

Newscasts (Journal télévisé)

There are three weekday newscasts broadcast as part of the channel's schedule:

Ici 12/13 is broadcast every day between 12:00 and 12:50 CET.

A typical edition of Ici 12/13 consists of regional, national and international news headlines at 12:00 followed by an Outre-Mer bulletin from the studios of RFO Paris at 12:15. The regional opt-out bulletins (midi-pile) air at noon, followed by the all edition regional news from 12:25–12:50 CET.

Ici 19/20 France 3's flagship evening news programming block, Ici 19/20, airs nightly between 19:00 and 19:55 CET.

A typical edition of Ici 19/20 opens with a short summary of the national, regional and international headlines. This is then followed by an opt-out for either regional news or local features, with the main regional news airing after this at 19:00.

Previously, a 15-minute programme, launched in July 2010 called 18:30 Aujourd'hui opened the 19/20 news sequence, presenting the leading news stories from France 3's regional news bureaux. It was cancelled in September 2011, with the regional round-up moving to the 12/13 news programme.

Soir 3, broadcast every night at 22:30 CET, is the network's late night news programme, presented by Francis Letellier (ad interim) on weeknights and Sandrine Aramon at weekends.

On 5 January 2009, the programme began to incorporate a 5-minute regional news opt-out as part of a revamp of France 3's schedule to accommodate the end of prime-time advertising.

On 26 August 2019, the program was moved to Franceinfo due to cost cutting and was renamed to Le 23h. The concept of the program remains "grand JT du soir de France Télévisions".

Entertainment

One of France 3's most well-known programmes is Plus belle la vie, a recurring soap opera based in the fictional neighbourhood of Mistral, Marseille. The show has garnered critical acclaim within France and commands one of the highest viewing figures for the channel.

Game shows make up an important part of the channel's daytime schedule, currently including Duels en familles, Slam, and long-running quiz show Questions pour un Champion. Des chiffres et des lettres—France's longest-running game show—was also a fixture of its daytime lineup after moving from France 3 in 2004; the series concluded in 2024 after 52 years.

Other well-known programmes are personality talk show Vie privée, vie publique, (Private life, public life), Thalassa, a programme about all things concerning the sea, magazine show Des racines et des ailes and children's science show C'est pas sorcier. Cookery and home-improvement shows also feature, with Côté Cuisine, Côté Jardin and À Table!. Live music shows also feature weekly. Taratata focuses on rock music, whilst Chabada rediscovers forgotten French pop songs. A selection of these programmes are also broadcast internationally, via TV5Monde.

Another children's program is Les Minikeums, the first long-running program that introduced the marionettes. Until 1 April 2002, T O 3, one of the first children's programs produced entirely in computer-generated images, and the show presented by Theo and Luna, two virtual characters. Then after 30 August 2004, France Truc, the show presented by the three robotic animated mascots, Truc, Truque, and Truk, and Toowam, and later Ludo, the second and third long-running programs, which there are only some voice announcers.

Acquired programming

Amongst the acquired programmes screened by France 3, British dramas feature prominently. The popular detective dramas A Touch of Frost, Lewis, Inspector George Gently, and Midsomer Murders are shown and have different title names, such as Inspecteur Frost, Inspecteur Lewis, and Inspecteur Barnaby.

Information regarding climate change in weather forecasts

In February 2023, 2 state TV channels, France 2 and France 3 have begun to enter information regarding climate change in their weather forecasts. This will make the forecasts 1.5–2 minutes longer. The climate related information will rely on experts. The channels will also provide information about climate change and the ways stopping it to their workers. In France, except in case of breaking news they will ask reporters to take the train instead of a plane.

Regional structure

From its historical origins, the Third Channel has used regional editorial and production centres which were developed since 1963 and owned by the ORTF.

From 1992 to 2010, France 3 had 13 regional directorates: France 3 Alsace, France 3 Aquitaine, France 3 Bourgogne Franche-Comté, France 3 Corse, France 3 Limousin Poitou-Charentes, France 3 Lorraine Champagne-Ardenne, France 3 Méditerranée, France 3 Nord-Pas-de-Calais Picardie, France 3 Normandie, France 3 Ouest, France 3 Paris Île-de-France Centre, France 3 Rhône-Alpes Auvergne, and France 3 Sud. They were associated with 12 so-called "outlying" centers and were supported by several local newsrooms producing television news.

The regional centres are often grouped in two levels – two half-hour news programmes and a short late night bulletin are produced and broadcast each day (in many cases, separate bulletins are produced for various parts of the region). The centres also produce shorter, more localised news bulletins for broadcast within 19|20. For example, France 3 Nord Pas-de-Calais Picardie produces localised bulletins for Côte d'Opale, Lille Métropole and Picardy. Various sport, features, current affairs and entertainment programming produced for and about the regions are also broadcast.

13 regional stations make up the network. Between them, the stations provide 24 sub-regional services, whose broadcast areas approximately match the 22 former metropolitan régions of France (the exceptions being that Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur and Rhône-Alpes are sub-divided into two). Each sub-regional news service emanates from a distinct centre of production. In addition, the stations provide 42 more localised news opt-outs.

Since 4 January 2010, a new organization of the regional network of France 3 has been implemented as part of the reform of the France Télévisions group into a single company. The network has 24 local branches responsible for producing regional and local programs, particularly news. They are united under four governance hubs that manage finance, human resources, and logistics: France 3 Nord-Est (based in Strasbourg), France 3 Nord-Ouest (based in Rennes); France 3 Sud-Ouest (based in Bordeaux) and France 3 Sud (based in Marseille). Corsica has its territorial management in Ajaccio.

Ici 19/20 local opt-outs

Within the main Ici 19/20 programming block and depending on where the viewer receives France 3 via terrestrial transmitters, local opt-out bulletins (some live, some pre-recorded) concentrating on specific communautés are aired. The ten-minute opt-outs air at around 1845 CET before the main regional news.

Notes

^1 France 3 Alsace also airs a daily bulletin in the Alsatian language (Rund um) as part of the Ici 12/13 lunchtime news block.

^2 France 3 Bourgogne Franche-Comté airs a daily pan-regional magazine show, Ça manque pas d'air, instead of local news bulletins.

^3 The Soir 3 regional opt-out on France 3 Corse is in the Corsican language.

^4 France 3 Picardie airs a daily pan-regional discussion show, Quoi de neuf depuis?, instead of local news bulletins.

^5 France 3 Bretagne also airs a daily bulletin in the Breton language (An taol lagad) in the Iroise area as part of the Ici 12/13 lunchtime news block.

^6 France 3 Paris Île-de-France airs additional pan-regional news coverage during this timeslot.

^7 France 3 Languedoc-Roussillon also airs bulletins in the Occitan language (Edicion Occitana) and Catalan language (Pais Catala) as part of Ici 19/20 on Saturdays.

Regional languages

France 3 also produces and airs programmes regionally for the various regional languages of France. Outside of regional news bulletins, France 3 also airs general interest programmes in the target language.

Regional programming in the Occitan language started sporadically, with 15 minutes daily of news reports. After audience protests, by 1982 the time devoted to the language rose to over 3 hours weekly.

Viure al Pais (Living in the Country) – Magazine show in Catalan or Occitan aired on France 3 Sud.

Punt de vista (Point of View) – France 3 Aquitaine, France 3 Languedoc-Roussillon

Vaqui – Magazine programme broadcast on France 3 Provence-Alpes

Programmes in the Breton language started with a daily news bulletin from predecessor RTF Télé-Bretagne.

Red an Amzer – weekly current affairs programme, broadcast on Sundays

Te ha Me (From You to Me) – Interview programme, broadcast on Saturday mornings

Mouchig-Dall – Children's programme, broadcast on Wednesdays

Son da zont (Song Coming Up) – Saturday morning music programme, showcasing music in Breton.

Istorioù Breizh

Despite having special status as a semi-autonomous region, only 40 minutes per week are devoted to the Corsican language. The first programme in Corsican was in 1966 and was a weekly poetry reading from a Corsican-language school.

Organization

Directors

Chairmen and chief executive officers:

Jean-Louis Guillaud: 31 December 1972 – 31 December 1974

Claude Contamine: 1 January 1975 – June 1981

Guy Thomas: June 1981 – 09/1982

André Holleaux: 09/1982 – 21 October 1985

Janine Langlois-Glandier] 21 October 1985 – 12/1986

René Han: 12/1986 – 10 August 1989

Philippe Guilhaume (joint chairmanship A2/FR3): 10 August 1989 – 19 December 1990

Hervé Bourges (joint chairmanship A2/FR3): 19 December 1990 – 7 September 1992

General managers:

Philippe Levrier

Rémy Pflimlin

Geneviève Giard: since September 2005

Cinema

France 3 supports the co-production of feature films through its subsidiary France 3 Cinéma, which was established as FR3 Films Production in 1984. The creation of FR3 Films Production came after fellow television companies TF1, Antenne 2 (now France 2) and S.F.P. had each established, in 1981, their own subsidiaries specializing in film co-production: TF1 Films Production, Films A2 (now France 2 Cinéma) and Société française de Production cinématographique.

France 3 Cinéma was preceded by ORTF's involvement in the co-production of feature films, which began as early as 1970. ORTF's first investment was René Allio's film, Les Camisards (1972) and it produced approximately 40 other films, including Benoît Jacquot's The Musician Killer (1975), directed by Benoît Jacquot (1974), and Patrice Chéreau's La Chair de l'orchidée (1975). Following the breakup of ORTF, Antenne 2 and FR3 continued this policy. FR3 had been officially recognized as a film producer in 1975.