ITV Thames TV continuity announcers (1968 1992). Initially, this ident was used only before local programmes; a modified ITV generic ident featuring this new logo was used for networked shows. By Kenneth Gosling. 2023 The TV Room. The Times (London, England), Thursday, 25 October 1984; Thames TV to join market with value of 91.2m. Plenty of plugs abound here for the Thames branded . To assist Rediffusion financially, the ITA insisted that the new company have two sets of shares: voting shares which would allow ABC to have control (with 51%) and 'B' shares which were to be split equally between the two, thus sharing profits fairly.[6]. Not that they were necessarily that drunk. Both groups were recording at Wessex studios in Highbury, north London in 1978, when a visibly refreshed Sid started haranguing Freddie: Ah, Freddie Mercury, still bringing ballet to the massses are you?, Oh yes, Mr Ferocious, dear, said Freddie, without missing a beat. When in 1972 Barbara Blake-Hannah returned to Jamaica, her birthplace, after seven years as a journalist and television presenter in Britain, it was with decidedly mixed feelings - hope for the . Gunn and a cameraman had . Its shows achieved massive audiences and are still remembered many years later. He later built up somewhat of a cult following amongst students as the long-serving host of Central TV's Blockbusters on ITV in the 1980s and early 1990s. Conspiracy theorist and former TV presenter Liz Gunn has been reportedly arrested after a scuffle involving a security guard at Auckland Airport. and situation comedy 2010. The outcome proposed by the ITA was a "shotgun marriage" between ABC and Rediffusion. He joined the company in the 1960s and stayed with its , Hilary was a Central Television and Thames Television announcer (1980s). They had signed to EMI two months previously. The programme used animation and graphics created by Cosgrove Hall, a Thames subsidiary founded in 1972, which made animated series for children. Former NZ television presenter Liz Gunn claims earthquake . The Teddington studios were highly desirable, as they had participated in colour experiments and were already partially converted by the time of the franchise change, and as such had been sought after by both Thames and LWT.[10]. Two years later in May 1977, another strike occurred when production assistants at Thames refused to operate new video equipment. In his acclaimed punk tome Englands Dreaming, Jon Savage says that the impact of the Today appearance had a totally disastrous effect on the group: from then until their demise in January 1978, they added only four new songs to their repertoire and their approach to their audience and their music remained the same. The two men followed Hollywood with series dedicated to leading comics of the silent era, Unknown Chaplin (1983) and Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow (1987). We very nearly didnt do it, he said. www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-64558222 It was live TV and the Sex Pistols were front-page., Steve Jones memory of McLarens reaction is markedly different: He was terrified. A few years after The World at War, Thames broadcast Hollywood (1980), a 13-part documentary series about the era of the America silent cinema. Bryan Cowgill said: "The need for sensible change in the way we conduct our operations has been at the heart of this dispute. There were no internal discussions of the potential savings that could be derived from new shift patterns, but there was a strong sense that union controls had to be removed before the company embarked on increasing its operations. [citation needed]. See MoreSee Less, RIP Raquel Welch. With the introduction of colour, the ident was remodelled on the vignette, this time using photographs rather than drawings. David Hewson "Thames deal angers ITV network". The television presenter, 62, who appears on The Grand Tour with James, 60, has his own farm in Oxfordshire called Diddly Squat, which his TV show Clarkson's Farm is based on. A Guide to British television programmes shown at Christmas time, throughout the years. Des Withey has worked for me on Radio Seagull for over two years. Some of our biggest TV talent lies not in A-list actors and big name presenters, but everyday Kiwis residing in the provinces, writes Duncan Greive. Television Limited and Rediffusion Television Limited was impossible, owing to internal politics, as was a merger between their respective parent companies Associated British Picture Corporation and British Electric Traction. ITV Thames TV presenters (1968 1992). Rest in peace Dickie Davies. About. The Thames TV 'Drive In' programme reviews the Chrysler Alpine in 1976, and comes up with some interesting conclusions, treating it as an imported car. Thames at Six was launched, later Thames News. This Is Your Life ran on ITV for 26 years until around 1995 when ITV cancelled it and the series was recommissioned by the BBC, with Thames continuing to produce it. Now, at 56, he has gone back to his first profession - acting. Granada Television won daytime service in the North, and ABC the weekends. The deal was blocked by both Richard Dunn, chief executive of Thames, and by the IBA, which concluded 'the proposal would lead to a major change in the nature and characteristic of a viable ITV programme company'. Thames produced the daily live entertainment and information programme to reflect "what is going on in London". 2, published by Palgrave Macmillan. [46], Thames chairman Richard Dunn publicly stated that Carlton chairman Michael Green had done everything in his power to obtain the London weekday franchise since being blocked by the IBA in 1985. Bitter Thames signs off but rejects talk of closedown. Its storylines became overly melodramatic and focussed far more directly on particular police characters rather than the crime from 1998 and its return to the hour long slot and then became much more a soap opera in 2002 (when individual story titles were dropped) until coming full circle dealing predominantly with crime again in about 2007 for the last few years of its existence. The Bill (19842010) began as a one-hour series of separate stories in 1984, but from 1989 until 1998 was broadcast several times a week, usually in a 30 minute slot. Melinda Wittstock "Contest for Channel 5 is clouded by doubts". He later participated in the relaunch of TV-am in . The twinkly smile of news presenter, political anchor and motoring magazine frontman Andy Craig will no longer beam out of TV screens in Berkshire, North Hampshire and Wiltshire when he leaves to . After Thames was acquired by FremantleMedia it was merged with another Fremantle company, Talkback, to form a new independent production company, Talkback Thames; consequently, Thames ceased to exist as a separate entity. And then youve got to rely on the guys on the studio floor to get the person out of the studio, which could lead to even more trouble than the interview was to start with. Wish You Were Here.? The Times, Wednesday, 29 August 1984; Thames strike is called off. The most controversial programme Thames broadcast was the documentary "Death on the Rock", part of the current affairs This Week series. The disgraced British socialite , 61, spoke by video call with the Talk TV presenter on January. Stay up to date with in depth music reviews, exclusive interviews and widespread coverage of whats happening from your favourite music genre. Hollywood and the Chaplin series were narrated by the actor James Mason. Some of the humour is still pretty "close to the edge", even by modern standards. With no access to ITN News, viewers in the Thames region had to make do with short Thames News bulletins. Georgia Toffolo, also known as Toff, has shown fans around her new central London home as she shares photos on social media of her new abode. [43] Thames bid 32.5 million while Carlton Television placed a bid of 43.2 million,[44] and since both Thames and Carlton were deemed to have passed the quality threshold, the franchise was awarded to Carlton for having submitted the higher cash bid. This big limousine turned up outside this place. The series, narrated by Sir Laurence Olivier, was commissioned in 1969, took four years to produce, and cost a record 4m (approx 47m in 2018). He's right. The Pistols best was already behind them. Host Carl Smith consults practitioners to explore how xenotransplantation - growing replacement organs in genetically modified . ), The former ABC studios at Teddington became Thames's main production base. One-time presenter Tommy Boyd was convinced Magpie was named after the opportunistic bird because it amounted to "a complete theft of Blue Peter's format".The two never clashed directly, Magpie settling into . The Times, Saturday, 27 December 1980 pg. It certainly would have added to the series and astonishing coverage at the time. If you find the site informative or enjoyable, please consider a donation to help me with the running costs of the site. Lulu.com, Feb 3, 2016 - Performing Arts - 624 pages. Later, the presenter claimed hed been pursuing a deliberate strategy to prove that these louts were a foul-mouthed set of yobs and that is what I did prove., Mike Housego sensed danger but decided that letting the interview continue would be less problematic than trying to clear the Pistols from the studio. He is the latest to join the list of ex BBC news presenters. Thames and Littlestar are on the search for musical theatre Super Troupers to star in @MammaMiaMusical. Shows. A programme on Harold Lloyd (The Third Genius) followed in 1989. They were primed, I think, to shock, he suggested. Anne Gregg - reporter and presenter on Ulster Television 's Roundabout; also worked for Anglia Television; later co-presented the BBC's Holiday programme during the 1980s; died in 2006. This site is not affiliated with any broadcaster, production company or design/marketing/talent agency. The BBC Breakfast weather presenter and the police officer live together in Carol's 2million home in a gated community in Berkshire, on the banks of the Thames. In 2003, Thames Television was merged with another FremantleMedia subsidiary, Talkback (founded by comedians Mel Smith and Griff Rhys Jones in 1981) to form Talkback Thames. A desperate EMI offered up new group the Sex Pistols as a last-minute replacement to Todays producers. Heres how it works. Thames Television broadcast from 9:25 Monday morning to 5:15 Friday afternoon (7:00 Friday night until 1982) at which time it would hand over to London Weekend Television (LWT). A list of all TV shows produced by Thames Television, listed alphabetically with pictures from the show when available. Cindy Williams, the dynamic actress known best for playing the bubbly Shirley Feeney on the beloved sitcom "Laverne & Shirley," has died, according to a statement from her family, provided to CNN by a open.spotify.com/show/7DIM1wfGKwDis0uzsjHeP7?si=pG0_U0TjRKGzVDvrePs4vA, www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5UUBNEPQQRV78, nostalgiacentral.com/pop-culture/people/raquel-welch/, www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-64558222, edition.cnn.com/2023/01/30/entertainment/cindy-williams-dead/index.html. However, it remained one of the top ten most watched shows across the whole ITV network and was still one of the UK's top TV exports, continuing to air in 97 other countries. Whilst at HTV, in the late-1970s, Sally pr . These items, like The Sweeney and Minder include images when available. Fascinatingly, they reveal that the controversy which led to the Pistols being trailed by newspaper reporters for the rest of the bands 18-month existence could have been even worse. No-one really understood that he'd sworn. Having until recently led the communications on National Highways' largest projects, the Lower Thames Crossing, A303 Stonehenge tunnel, the A428 Black Cat scheme and the A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon scheme, I'm now focussing on business development in a new director role at . The Times, Friday, 7 July 1989; pg. Mon 24 Oct 2011 12.17 EDT. A two-week technicians strike in the summer of 1975 shut down the whole of ITV with the technicians being bought off with a 35% pay rise. Some commentators consequently speculated that Thames had fallen victim to a 'government vendetta', whilst others felt that the auction had been won fairly. Enjoy your trip in the time machine! In 2021, Fremantle were licensing various Thames Television programmes to British television channels such as That's TV, Forces TV and Talking Pictures TV. WHAT WE DO. Guest presenters will include multiple media personalities, including Flava host Stacey Morrison as well as Moana Maniapoto, Matai Rangi Smith, Neil Waka, Peata Melbourne, Julian Wilcox, Luke Bird . In 1992, studio producer Mike Housego remembered: They were only allotted 90 seconds, and I thought, Well, not much can go wrong However, in one of the Thames documents outlining just what had gone wrong, an unnamed producer writes that the programmes researcher, Christine Whitehead, had warned Mike in advance that they might say fuck. So when Grundy was faced with that situation and had what he probably viewed as snotty kids in front of him, it becomes understandable why he was dismissive., After his introduction and a short film on punk, the interview started badly, with Grundy challenging the groups anti-materialistic credentials they had, after all, just accepted a 40,000 advance from EMI. 4-3-2-1 Hot and Sweet, ZDF TV music programme, the two presenters Ilja Richter and Suzanne Doucet here in the show, circa 1970. From Central, she moved on to host the , Christopher was an announcer for Associated Rediffusion, Southern, Anglia and Thames TV. [28], For the Thames board, the dispute represented a huge, but necessary, cost if the company was to expand its production operations profitably. In 1968 he moved to Thames Television and began presenting Magpie, a new children's programme, with Susan Stranks and Pete Brady. The Thames TV papers also seem to put paid to the conspiracy theory that the groups appearance was some kind of publicity scam concocted between Thames TV and their part-owners, EMI. Australian Museum. This list answers the questions, "What TV shows has . Bona to vada your jolly old eek. Thames TV is the entertainment label of Fremantle in the UK. Two of its post-franchise sitcoms found more success when they transferred away from ITV Men Behaving Badly, which moved to the BBC in 1994 and Is It Legal?, which moved to Channel 4 in 1998. David Hewson "Thames TV head leaves in dispute over Dallas". [13] The comedians had worked for the BBC since 1968 with major national success, but the decisive factor leading the duo to leave the corporation was Thames's offer to feature them as main leads in a film made by the company's Euston Films subsidiary. Our professional presenters include an array of famous faces including Clive Myrie, Phil Gayle and Helen Fospero, to some lesser . Television fanatics can use this list to find some Thames Television TV shows that they haven't seen before. ; Jonathan Aitken - presenter on Yorkshire Television's Calendar from 1968 until 1970: he was the first person to be seen on screen when the station launched. The following year, in 1989, Thames ended the contract of Benny Hill, a stalwart at the station since 1969. The first presenters were . During the interview process, several members of Rediffusion management also appeared in interviews for applicants for other regions, principally the consortium of which David Frost was a member, as well as the interview for Rediffusion, leading the ITA to question the loyalty at the company.[4]. See MoreSee Less, Burt Bacharach, one of pop's greatest songwriters, dies aged 94. Bath The comedy duo's leading scriptwriter, Eddie Braben, did not initially move to ITV with them, and with Eric Morecambe's failing health, the new shows never gained the audiences or matched the esteem they had previously enjoyed. For 5000, now you can, Watch David Bowie tease David Gilmour before joining him onstage for a spine-tingling duet on Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb, This stunning orchestral version of Stairway To Heaven, featuring Orianthi on guitar, will make you fall in love with Led Zeppelin all over again, "Where is my dog poop? By David Hewson. The structure of the new company was also a problem. Other successful series in the genre from this period include Shades of Greene (1975-76), Rock Follies (1976), and Armchair Thriller (1978-80). He then joined BBC Newcastle , David started his television career as a continuity scriptwriter for ATV, but soon moved to the , Bob was a Granada Television continuity announcer (1961 1964) and also a regional presenter , Well known Thames Television announcer and newsreader (late-1970s 1992) and LWT continuity . Yes, all of this actually happened . The union warned against a management-run service, as it would be a recipe for total network disturbance and a massive loss of programmes, but Thames claimed that it would be justified due to the strike being unofficial. Geographical and structural changes to the network led to the first significant shakeups of the network, a process that started in 1967 to take effect from 1968. For fans of the radio series "Round The Horne" (1965 - 1968) - starring the inimitable Kenneth Williams - there are several full episodes on Spotify. A statement released on Sunday by Barratt's son Olly read: "We . "[45] The Times quoted a spokesman the day after the announcement: "We can be more profitable this way, being forced out of broadcasting will save us 32.5m a year in bid payments, 30 million a year in advertising revenue taxes and about 10m in transmitter cost. Additional episodes of network productions were screened to help clear the backlog, since no outside programmes were broadcast. ITV - Thames TV presenters (1968 - 1992). The ITA ordered ABC's managing director Howard Thomas and its director of programmes Brian Tesler to be appointed in similar capacities at the new station, the only individuals named or specified in all 15 franchise awards. Another BBC favourite was comedian Benny Hill, the star of The Benny Hill Show (196989), who was placed under contract. [30] A few days afterwards speculation appeared that Carlton had attempted to buy a sizable number of shares; Michael Green, chairman of Carlton, was quoted saying "I can't possibly comment" but a Thames spokesperson pointed out "It does seem quite likely, however, no one share holder can own more than 10% of our equity so it's difficult to see what they might have in mind". To shock the nation then, an easy way to do it would be to pin down someone like my dad and get yourself on every single national newspaper in the country., However, watching the interview it seems pretty clear that the Pistols were just badly handled by Grundy. The following month, both sides backed down over the issues, with all technicians returning to work. The studios at Teddington were sold to a management buy-out team and were part of the Pinewood Group, owners of both Pinewood and Shepperton Studios. Some of the humour is still pretty "close to the edge", even by modern standards. Another sitcom, Man About the House (197376), was successful enough for two spin-offs, George and Mildred (197680) and Robin's Nest (1977-81). Home. Grundy (and British television audiences) would never forget 1 December 1976 the day he attempted to interview theSex Pistolslive to air. Tony Bastable, who has died at the age of 62, was one of the bright and breezy Mr Clean children's television programme presenters of the 1970s, with a fringe, a winning . The use of ABC's old studios at Teddington meant the workforce was predominantly ex-ABC, although those at Kingsway were ex-Rediffusion. Tributes are being paid to former Commons Speaker Betty Boothroyd after her death aged 93. The revised ident retained the London landmarks but contained them in a blue and orange triangle, pointing downwards, with three wavy blue lines to represent the river and the words 'Thames XXI' in the orange part of the triangle and it was this logo which was used on the first ITV branding idents on 4 September 1989.[54]. And thats all I remember., Matlock, however, maintains that the band had only had a couple of beers: I had a beer or two, as we all did, he told a TV interviewer in 2005. During the hours after Rainbow and before the children's slot, Good Afternoon was transmitted, a magazine programme. A memo from studio producer Mike Housego (who was in charge of the programme as it went out live) to Todays overall boss Tom Steel reveals that after the show ended the group were led back down to the Green Room. The Times, Thursday, 3 July 1986, MAI shares peak on bid speculation. From its formation in 1954, the Independent Television Authority (ITA) offered broadcasting licences to different companies for weekday and weekend service in its first three Independent Television network locations, the London area, the Midlands, and the North. The first ident was used to signify programmes made at Rediffusion's old studios at Adastral House, the latter, shows that came from ABC's former Teddington Studios. The flotation was not a great success, EMI and BET only managing to reduce their shares to 56.6%, with management acquiring much of the new stock. The Times, Wednesday, 31 October 1990, "Names of companies awarded new ITV franchises will be announced tomorrow" By David Hewson. The answer was found to be a new holding company, Thames Television (Holdings) Ltd.[6] ABC's parent, the Associated British Picture Corporation was taken over by EMI in 1969, and in 1979 became part of Thorn EMI. [2] Questioning the ITA's decision, Rediffusion attempted to slow down the merger: only the threat of giving the licence solely to ABC made it relent. Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Sally McLaren whips her trousers off in the continuity booth for this in vision link from 1989. Tape and film editing - entertainment. Bill Grundy. The company also produced the children's show Magpie, which began in 1968 and was intended as a rival for Blue Peter on BBC 1, and The Tomorrow People (197379), a science fiction series. Thames Television was acquired by Pearson Television in mid-1993. Comically, the 12-line telephone system automatically diverted any unanswered calls to the Green Room. Jack was a popular BBC TV forecaster (17th May 1969 4th May 1983) and for many years was the , Johns broadcasting career began at ILR station Radio Tees. On 16 October 1991, Thames Television lost its weekday London ITV franchise from the beginning of January 1993 as a result of losing the silent auction used to renegotiate the new franchises. The group started answering the phones and dishing out even more abuse. These included Reilly, Ace of Spies (1983), Jack the Ripper (1988), Capital City (19891990), Selling Hitler (1991), and Anglo-Saxon Attitudes (1992). Over time, Thames replaced Today with a more conventional news offering as seen on other ITV stations. ThamesTelevision issued an apology, Grundy was suspended for two weeks, and theTodayprogramme was scrapped five months later. I knew the moment the autocue lady threw up her hands and her bag, her make-up cascading through the air, that we had smashed the deception. As part of Fremantle, one of the largest creators, producers and distributors in the world, Thames has emerged as Britain's leading entertainment label . L. orraine Kelly has returned to work with a full bill of health after previously being sent home with a "buglet". . Pistols bassist Glen Matlock says the band werent keen on being dragged out of rehearsals but had their arm twisted. ABC had majority control of the new company and the make-up of its board predominantly (and eventually fully) came from ABC. Thames's share was bought out by Flextech in 1996.[61][62]. Miller's career began in 1973 when he worked for BBC Radio Birmingham as a reporter. Hill made only 58 hour-long episodes in the 20 years he worked for Thames, with the result that, in the UK, the show was generally promoted as specials, but the programmes were reedited as 30-minute episodes for overseas markets. She was a presenter on BBC Radio 2 (1980), and also an announcer there (1980 - 1982). All rights reserved. BA1 1UA. Within four days, all but one ITV station had gone off-air after the ACTT asked members at other companies to walk out in claim for a 15% pay rise. Klass achieved popularity when she became part of the pop group Hear'Say.Her popularity increased when she started hosting television shows like Popstar to Operastar and BBQ Champ.Myleene Klass is also known for her charity work; she has been the face of charity campaigns like ChildLine. This article is about the former ITV franchise holder and production company. Thames Television broadcast from 9:25 Monday morning to 5:15 Friday afternoon (7:00 Friday night until 1982) at which time it would hand over to London Weekend Television (LWT). I always hated the Beatles, and as it happens I still do. Radio presenter on various shows, Currently broadcast 2 shows a week on Radio Seagull 1395 & 1602 am. after the union agreed to rostering according to need, while the management dropped plans for ending six-day working fortnights. 17 December 1992. As a result of the changes to the schedule, ABC was at risk of losing both of its existing franchises, the weekend services that would be going away. The technicians walked out, but the station was off the air for just one day as management and administration staff took over their roles. The truth is even better than the show. 2 Aug, 2015 01:45 AM 4 minutes to read New Zealand Thames believed Carlton's demands were unreasonable and would have forced it to drop most networked programmes on ITV during the autumn of 1992. Who knows what damage would have ensued if he had called while the Pistols were still in the Green Room. 30, "Thames Television up for sale". Entertainment and arts reporter, BBC News. The Scottish TV star, 63, delighted fans on Monday when she returned to her . But it still takes 30 seconds to get a film rolling so youve still got 30 seconds of abuse to listen to. "[45], The transition of ITV companies was never smooth, but Thames's bitterness stayed until the very end. As part of these changes, the separate weekend service was eliminated in the Midlands and North, who would instead be served by a single seven-day schedule. [27], The strike ended on 3 November 1984, after 62 film editors agreed to the new conditions, while the ACTT agreed as well to start negotiations about the introductions of new technology. In many ways the careers of Grundy and the Pistols never recovered from the confrontation. Melinda Wittstock. The company took over the This Is Your Life format in 1969, several years after the BBC had dropped the show in 1964. Grundy appears not to hear the profanity, which wasnt that easily audible as people were talking across each other, although in the hand-written notes on the Thames documents it says: Bill told to cool it on earpiece., Grundy took no notice. Melinda Wittstock "ITV franchise losers consider a joint bid for Channel 5". The Times, Thursday, 17 October 1991. He began his career as a newspaper journalist on the Eastern Evening News , Keith was born in Sandwich and was a chorister at Canterbury Cathedral. Weekend ITV schedules for the London region were not affected by the strike, with London Weekend Television coming on air on Fridays at 5.15pm as usual. 11 September 1986 -. [35], Carlton's owner, Michael Green, claimed that the decision left him 'bewildered' and said: 'We are surprised at the IBA's decision. In Julien Temples The Filth & The Fury movie, Steve Jones says: I remember downing about four bottles of Blue Nun and I was fucking just having a fucking good old time, pissed by the time we went out there. Carlton was forced to advertise on LWT to promote its new programme line up until December 1992, following an acrimonious High Court dispute between Thames and Carlton over the selling of rights of hundreds of films in Thames's library. It was originally shot by stop-frame animation on 16mm film, then shot again on 35mm film in 1976 and finally digitised on computer in 1984. In 1976, the tabloids, an apparently the nation, went berserk. The ident was finally withdrawn in the summer of 1989, when Thames celebrated its 21st anniversary. A merger between the two existing contract holders A.B.C. . Magpie is doomed never to be considered on its own merits, forever compared with Blue Peter (BBC, 1958-). Dec 12, 2022. The Thames studio switchboard was flooded with protest calls, some also claiming that Grundy was drunk. Finalist for 'Chimeras in Medicine': "This two-part radio series explores the complex scientific, ethical and societal implications of using animals to solve challenging medical problems. The camera's from 1970's children's TV Show 'Finding out' gave viewers the opportunity to discover how Thames Televisions 'Magpie' is produced and put on air. More conventional sitcoms, all of which began in Thames's early years, included Father, Dear Father (196873), the Sid James vehicle Bless This House (197176), and Love Thy Neighbour (1972-76), with a controversial take on race relations. Barker, Dennis The Guardian (19592003); 3 November 1984. Simon is best-known for his long stint as a BBC Radio 1 DJ and radio presenter on several other It continued after Harry Corbett's retirement in 1975 with his son, Matthew Corbett, and lasted on Thames until late 1992. See MoreSee Less, For those interested, the complete Jules and Sandy is available on Audible.