Rosalind Dallas: BBC graphic designer who worked on such programmes as 'Elizabeth R', 'Testament of Youth' and 'Hot Shoe Shuffle'

An encyclopaedic knowledge of graphic styles of all periods was needed, and Dallas excelled

Dallas: she had a quicksilver wit and a wide range of knowledge worn lightly (Peter Lane)

Rosalind Dallas was a leading graphic designer in television who spent her entire career with the BBC, first at Alexandra Palace and then at Television Centre.

She was born in 1949 into an artistic north London family. Her maternal grandfather was Warwick Lendon (1883–1971) a pupil of Walter Sickert, and a painter, illustrator and poster designer. He was a prominent member of the Sketch Club and lived in a house he had designed for himself in Hampstead Garden Suburb where Rosalind and her older sister Jennie grew up following the separation of their parents.

The walls were closely hung with pictures, including original drawings by Fred Taylor, while the carpets were either designed by Frank Brangwyn or by their aunt, Lorna Lendon. It seemed natural, then, after a stint at Camden School for Girls that both sisters should pursue careers in the arts.

Rosalind went to Brighton College of Art in 1967. Her final degree show was noticed by John Aston, head of graphic design at the BBC; he offered her a place in his department, which was in its heyday. Her first posting was at Alexandra Palace working on graphics for the new Open University broadcasts. She later moved to the Television Centre in Wood Lane, White City, where she spent the rest of her distinguished career. The job of the graphic designer in television was at that time often misunderstood. The assumption was that the designer was responsible for the opening and end title credits crawl – a misapprehension stemming, perhaps, from the earliest days of television in the 1950s when the primitive programme credits could clearly be seen turning on a drum, Captain Pugwash-style.

By the 1970s graphic designers were responsible for much more than lettering the title crawls; working closely with writers and directors they devised, designed and directed lengthy title sequences, directing actors, briefing illustrators and lettering artists, commissioning props and supervising elaborate animations.

They were also responsible for the printed or graphic material seen onscreen. One of Dallas's tutors at Brighton, Miriam Goluchoy, had been a pioneer of lettering in television graphics, and Dallas commissioned work from her for various specialised lettering projects, including the animated handwritten signature of Elizabeth I seen at the opening of the series Elizabeth R in 1971.

The graphic designer was responsible for all kinds of assorted posters and manuscripts, as well as recreated period graphics such as ration cards or fictional period book jackets. An encyclopaedic knowledge of graphic styles of all periods was needed, and Dallas excelled.

In 1978 she commissioned a series of vernacular woodcut style illustrations from Peter Bailey for Dennis Potter's adaptation of Thomas Hardy's novel The Mayor Of Casterbridge. A year later she devised and directed the sensitive filmic opening titles for the original adaptation of Vera Brittain's Testament Of Youth: white flowers floated on dark water, soon overlaid with images of flowers on Edwardian picture hats, which in turn were overlaid with images of First World War uniform cap badges. These in turn were overlaid with degraded images of those same uniforms, the badges and boots muddied, decayed and destroyed. It was visual storytelling of a high order, edited to the rhythm of Geoffrey Burgon's fine score.

Dallas worked closely on Testament of Youth with the producers, Jonathan Powell and Betty Willingale, and she continued to work successfully with both of them over a long period. One of her greatest pleasures was in directing actors – something which, sadly, she was unable to develop further.

Graphic design at the BBC was an in house activity, the whole team responsible for making designs for a wide range of programming. Dallas had formed a strong friendship with the Daily Mail theatre critic Jack Tinker at art school: they shared a delight in the camp, the over-the-top, the sparkle of the Hollywood musical, and she was as much at home designing for light entertainment shows like Russell Harty's early-evening chat show in the 1980s, or the dance extravaganza Hot Shoe Shuffle, as she was working on an adaptation of Iris Murdoch's novel, The Bell.

In 1991 she was responsible for the graphic elements in the 1991 adaptation of Elizabeth von Arnim's novel Enchanted April, directed by Mike Newell and shown in cinemas to great success. She won numerous awards, including an American Broadcast Design Award for her work on Jonathan Gili's BBC2 series, The Seven Deadly Sins.

Dallas retired from the BBC just as the ethos was changing. The work was increasingly outsourced to outside design companies and the graphic design department was wound down. Dallas continued to work on freelance projects, took up rowing on the Thames near her Putney home and was at the forefront of the local campaign to stop Thames Water from developing the so-called "super sewer".

The overriding impression of those who knew her was of someone with a quicksilver wit and a wide range of knowledge worn lightly. Hers was a graceful presence, with a svelte dancer's physique, always flirtatious and engaging and always impeccably dressed. She is survived by her mother and her sister Jennie, who is also a designer in television.

Rosalind Dallas, graphic designer: born London 2 March 1949; died 14 March 2015.