See also: English Towns
I cannot pretend serious programmes are my favourite aspect of Vintage Television.
I'm afraid the good old BBC Reithian charter to educate largely passed me by, and perhaps I was not the only one.
Nevertheless here are details of a few documentaries and historic broadcasts, many of which have something fascinating to teach us today about Television History.
My favourite series: Chess Masterpieces- miniature delights on film. If anyone has any of these,
please let me know.
How ironic that 50 years ago you could watch some Chess on tv, but these days, despite thousands of hours broadcasting time available,
there is no chess on British tv at all.
Series I hated: On the Braden Beat and Out of Town.
The picture on the right shows the meeting of some of the big names in early ITV, c1956.
To Main TV Menu
Which ITV company were the first to produce programmes specially for schools?
Answer
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Picasso (1960) -
Sir Kenneth Clark at the Tate Exhibition of "one of the most incomprehnsible artists-" his words. Sir Ken openly admits he is one who doesn't always understand either but he makes a good stab at enthusing us, yet though his critical erudition is to be admired, for me Picasso cannot be labelled "an entertainer," as Ken says, since "when he is being funny" I never laughed once. But Picasso's "added power by abstraction" can at least now be admired, thanks to honest Ken.
The Dream Machine (transmitted Wednesday 11th November 1964
at 9.10pm ) -
ATV documentary with some fascinating glimpses behind the scenes as producer Francis Essex attempts to assemble his variety show 'Six Wonderful Girls.' Clips are juxtaposed with a lecturer teaching his students about the new medium of television. He raises the issue of TV's need to be more self-critical and of the more obvious need to appreciate the impact the box makes on everyday life.
Whilst he pontificates, Essex is trying to juggle his finances, arguing with executive Bill Ward over having to reduce his budget by a massive £1,000. The Daily Telegraph critic asks him if he's bothered about the emphemeral nature of television. Essex's reply: TV is a transient medium. "I am a person who becomes bored with long runs." There speaks the first channel hopper!
We see Honor Blackman and Millicent Martin rehearsing with ATV's top scriptwriters Sid and Dick in attendance. Finally the tension of the taping!
In the final analysis this is an historically important documentary, but director Denis Mitchell fails to provide any analysis of his own on the impact The Dream Machine makes. True, he allows the cameras to show us much, but since his aim is to examine the role of telly, he's no better, no worse than the medium he's seeking to criticise.
Crisis on Wheels (1966) -
directed by Kevin Brownlow. For those who have experienced the tragedy of death on the roads, this jokey analogy with war might well be anathema. There's a potted history of automobiles leading to the modern phenomenon of the car "being the object of veneration in suburban avenues on Sunday morning" before a rude awakening as the science of road accidents is analysed. But does the director see this as the crisis, or is it traffic wardens (more jibes)? But in fact it seems to be congestion that is the real enemy as the prescient fast forward to the year 2000 shows "the suburbs were overwhelmed... this jam started three weeks ago and it still hasn't moved an inch." People even take the law into their own hands to ease congestion, so the solution is simple- scrap the car!
EVR in Education (1968) -
Kenneth Kendall introduces this ATV film which showcases some of the ITV Schools programmes of the era, including Primary French (unintentionally hilarious), and Conflict (clip from Othello).
ATV Today -
ATV's Midland local news magazine, read by a rather self-important RP Tracey
Documentary Menu
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Sea War -
In association with Rank, Southern TV produced an interesting account of the Royal Navy during World War II.
Life Line - The Navy's Atlantic battle with the U-boats. Some authentic archive footage plus some interesting studio reconstruction, these scenes directed by Lawrence Huntington
The Full Man (1964) -
Tragedy.
Two clips from Macbeth with George Baker in the title role and Rosalie Crutchley as Lady M, plus a scene from Adventure Story by Terence Rattigan with George Baker as Alexander the Great and Francis Rowe as the Queen Mother. Baker then has a fascinating little discussion with presenter David Daiches about the demerits of this play. A final scene is enacted to illustrate the "inconsequential dialogue" of much modern tv drama. Obviously someone watched this and understood this sort of thing was being praised!
First In Last Out -
Documentary on training commandos, narrated by Christopher Wain
School At Sea -
50 minute Southern TV documentary narrated by Richard Davies, written and directed by Cyril Doncaster
Documentary Menu
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Around the World (Associated-Rediffusion)-
Orson Welles introduces: London- A more unlikely mismatch you're unlikely to see as Welles coaxes information from some venerable London East End ladies.
Basque- Orson warms to the region "not French or Spanish." He finds one local who compares life with that in the good old USA, then a longer deeper discussion with an author, including contrasts with US and Basque education. Perhaps it's all too tongue in cheek: "smuggling is the biggest industry in these parts."
Return to the Rhondda (TWW)-
This has been reissued on dvd. An optimistic and affectionate tribute introduced by Donald Houston: "the few shall not for ever sway." Also with Stanley Baker, who describes the valley as "my idea of hell." Boxer Tommy Farr tells of his career and Gwyn Thomas recounts the 1926 General Strike, puzzled indeed over his own conclusion that "the poverty was marvellous." My Welsh dad enjoyed singing along with the choirs too.
Pontcanna (TWW)-
A 1965 publicity film of how TWW took over the WWN franchise having to upgrade their studios to provide this new dual service. Rather tough on the company, that they then lost their remit, this film obviously failed to win over the doubters.
Survival (Anglia)-
Trailers for b/w editions, one with Rolf Harris, another with voiceover by the ubiquitous Patrick Allen
The Lonely Man (Channel TV, 1964)-
In 1960 at lonely Les Ecrehou, hides a fugitive from justice, wrongly accused of rape. Predictably amateurish production with an interesting interview, much in need of editing
News (ITN)
Review of 1955/6- one year on, ITN shows some stories covered in Sport, Home and International news.
News Headlines- A news summary from back in 1964.
Documentary Menu
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Independent Television Opening Nights
Each regional ITV station had its own opening show in the years after the first station in London (see below) opened in 1955.
Scottish Television (Saturday August 31st 1957)
Anglia Television (Tuesday October 27th 1959)
Documentary Menu
Opening Night of Independent Television London Area (Associated Rediffusion and Associated Broadcasting Company- later ATV- Thursday September 22nd 1955)
7.15pm The guests arrive, (this preserved without the commentary). More interesting is the grandiose introduction giving glimpses of London landmarks and a potted history of the city. We are solemnly told the television act insists on a service "of high quality." It was- to start with!
Then we have are all the trailers for Channel 9's programmes, serious first, of course, then popular shows, then imports, with a long clip from Dragnet.
7.30pm Sir John Barbirolli with the Halle play Elgar's Cockaigne Overture (clip).
7.45pm Speeches from London's Guildhall- the Lord Mayor of London, who argues, erroneously as it turned out, against tv bringing "a rapid decline in standards of entertainment." Charles Hill's speech is the most entertaining, as he believes "Hamlet will not interrupt his soliloquy to tell us of the favourite brand of toothpaste ordinarily used at Elsinore." And he was right when he said "competition would bring change." Kenneth Clark (then chairman of the ITA), with that dignified way of his, concludes this boring opening ceremony. The best one could say about it, is that the BBC could not have done it much better, except perhaps for the camera changes.
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This is Scotland (August 31st 1957)
Hosted by James Robertson Justice, who after an uncertain start infuses a pride into his homeland, as he shows during the hour long programme, the beauty of the countryside, with all its many rivers, the glories of its history and the great Scotsmen of the day, including messages of congratulation from some eminent men from across the world.
The singing of Scottish songs is in the capable hands of Kenneth McKellar, with such standards as Come Along, and Over the Sea to Skye.
On film, Alastair Sim reads the poem In the Highlands, whilst more light heartedly Archie McCulloch interviews Deborah Kerr who is filming in the South of France with David Niven. The latter gives the game away when he admits, what would be dear to many a Scottish heart, that "television is something for nothing."
A more ambitious interview is a live link with the Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh to speak to a rather off-the-cuff Moira Shearer. There's a split screen as we see James chatting happily with Moira like two old friends.
Inevitably Jimmy Logan is on hand, appearing with Stanley Baxter in excerpts from Five Past Eight, the show currently at The Theatre Royal Glasgow. They sing and act a feeble sketch as two grown-up toddlers.
Most poignant appearance is by the great showman Jack Buchanan, only two months before his death. He rambles on and, a little ignominiously, gets the hurry up call from the wings before singing with audience participation the immortal I Belong to Glasgow. He had been introduced by ITN newscaster Ludovic Kennedy, who was later to read the ITN News that night from the Scottish studios.
The Clyde Valley Stompers provide some more lively music, accompanied by "The Rock and Roll Sinners," at least that's how the opening credits describe 'em. One of the few gaffes in a generally very impressive debut for the station. There is some background noise, as scenery is shifted, perhaps unavoidable in a live performance, but this doesn't detract from the overwhelming sense of national achievement that this opening night happily conveys. Aye, it was only a pity that after this blossoming, for 10 years the company was very much in the wings of the ITV network.
In STV's 50th anniversary celebration, Jimmy Nairn, the announcer whose voice was the first heard on the 1957 programme agreed the opening night "went well." This 2007 tribute had a nice touch, in that one of the 1957 stars, Stanley Baxter, narrated the programme
To Opening Nights . . . Documentary Menu
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Anglia TV Opening
(October 27th 1959)
At the ungoldly hour of 4.14pm (maybe Anglia had learned from other opening night bores)
a clock started ticking as a voice announced "one Minute to Zero. This is Anglia Television."
At 4.15 aerial shots of the Mendelsham transmitter were followed by flying sequences from towns and small villages around Anglia. This had been filmed by second cameraman Peter Fuller.
Then at 4.20 Sir Ivone Kirkpatrick, Chairman of the ITA, declared the station open, as the famous Anglia knight in shining armour lit up to the Anglia theme tune.
Viewers were given a brief tour of Anglia House in this opening half hour programme plus details of local and national programmes to look forward to, introduced by chief announcer Drew Russell. Some live musical numbers were also performed before a rather small looking audience. A rather odd producer, Philip Bray, introduced the talent on the forthcoming Midday Show, which included young Susan Hampshire.
To Opening Nights . . . Documentary Menu
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Men Women and Clothes (1957) -
Experimental BBC colour film
How Fashions Come and Go- No.1 in a series of 6 films made at the Museum of Costume, Eridge Castle, narrated by Doris Langley Moore
This is the BBC (Wednesday 29th June 1960) -
On the Opening Night of the BBC Television Centre, transmitted at 7.30pm was Richard Cawston's self-portrait of the BBC. It got the thumbs up from this critic who wrote "Cawston should have subtitled it This is How a Documentary Should Be Made." It showed 24 hours in the life of the BBC, compressed into 65 minutes. Indeed it won the British Film Academy's 1959 Award for Best Specialised Film. For me what comes over is the chumminess of the chaps in charge. What the programme sadly lacks is any captioning, though I did not at all mind missing today's disease, the deadpan narrator.
Some of those in the film are: Richard Murdoch (Housewives Choice), Dimbleby's team preparing Panorama, Kenneth Horne at rehearsals, John Gregson in make-up, Roy Plomley (Desert Island Discs rehearsal), Muir and Norden preparing a Whacko script, Jennings on radio, Eamonn Andrews with a quiz (Crackerjack?), Richard Baker (6 O'Clock News), Tonight with Cliff Michelmore, and Janie Marden in a late night experimental tv show.
Face to Face-
John Freeman's probing discussion with Tony Hancock
Leeds Piano Competition 1966 -
Showing the drama behind the scenes, and clips of some stunning pianists, today this would surely be done as an elimination by phone voting. What is however seriously missing, what would be an essential in a modern programme, is an insight into the judges' deliberations on why they have selected the winner who receives a measly first prize of £750.
Women Alone -
directed by Charles Denton. A chirpy 22 year old from Barnes, plus her 33 year old rather dowdy older friend, both single mothers. She's frank, an early example of that odd desire to bare one's feelings to the camera. Most fascinating quote: "Men have a much more interesting life than women." There's also a clip of Dusty Springfield singing, though no Swinging Sixties in sight at all here
Elgar -
Ken Russell's celebrated drama documentary
The Brains Trust-
with Malcolm Sargent and Yehudi Menuhin, discussion on music was always bound to predominate.
London to Brighton in four minutes.
This was a classic of speeded up filmwork, with the Brighton Belle leaving Victoria at 3pm, arriving in Brighton amazingly at 3.04pm. The fact that the filmmakers show a different train at Brighton is a slight error, but otherwise it's wonderful, with, in the other direction, nostalgic steam trains flashing past. With scary tunnels, the impressive Ouse Viaduct and a jolly soundtrack, this is tremendously enjoyable. I assume that one could rerecord it at the correct speed these days to show the whole one hour trip, though I suppose it would come out rather jerky!
Documentary Menu
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