ITV, 28th July 1966

There is much talk these days of networking, opt-outs and suchlike. But back in the mid 60s, each ITV company was utterly autonomous when it came to scheduling. If I may, I'd like to illustrate this with the following snapshot of a day in the life of ITV. I have chosen a day in the summer of 1966 that neatly illustrates just how autonomous things were.

Abbreviations used as follows;
RED = Rediffusion (London ch.9)
ATV = ATV Midlands (chs.8,12)
GRA = Granada (North of England chs.6,9 & 10)
ANG = Anglia (East of England chs.6, 7 & 11)
SOU = Southern (South of England ch.11, South-East England ch.10)
STV = Scottish (Central Scotland ch.10)
BTV = Border (North West England, Isle of Man and Southern Scotland chs8, 11 & 13)
GPN = Grampian (Northern Scotland, chs 8, 9, 11 & 12)
TTT = Tyne Tees (North East England, ch.8 )
WTV = Westward (South West England chs.9 & 12)
TWW = West of England (ch.10)
WWN = Teledu Cymru (Wales, chs. 7, 8, 10 & 11)
UTV = Ulster (Norther Ireland, chs 8 & 9)
CHA = Channel Television (Channel Islands, ch.9)

THURSDAY 28 July 1966

2.15 (ANG, SOU, BTV, GPN, TWW, WWN, WTV, CHA) RACING FROM REDCAR
2.45 (RED, ATV, GRA, STV, TTT, UTV) RACING FROM REDCAR
4.15 (ANG, SOU, BTV, GPN, TWW, WWN, WTV, CHA) Intermission
4.20 (SOU, GPN) CROSSROADS
4.35 (ANG, GPN) THE ROMPER ROOM
(TWW, WWN) CROSSROADS
4.38 (WTV) WESTWARD NEWS
4.40 (BTV) ANNIVERSARY
(WTV) GUS HONEYBUN'S BIRTHDAYS
(CHA) PUFFIN'S BIRTHDAY GREETINGS
4.45 (RED, SOU, BTV, TTT, UTV, WTV, CHA) SMALL TIME
(ATV) TINGHA & TUCKER
4.50 (GRA) GOOD EVENING
(STV) FOR THE YOUNGEST SCOT
5.00 (ALL exc TTT) JUNIOR CRISS CROSS QUIZ
(TTT) SECRET SQUIRREL
5.25 (RED) THE MAGIC BOOMERANG
(ATV) FURY
(GRA) MR. PIPER
(ANG) STINGRAY
(SOU) THE LITTLEST HOBO
(TTT) GANGWAY
(STV, GPN, TWW, WWN, UTV) MOVIE MAGAZINE
(BTV, WTV, CHA) THE FOREST RANGERS
5.55 (ALL) ITN NEWS
6.05 (ATV, ANG, SOU, STV, BTV, GPN, TTT, TWW, WWN, UTV, WTV, CHA) REGIONAL NEWS
(RED, GRA) REPORTING '66
6.10 (GPN) THIRSTY BOOTS
6.18 (CHA) OUTSIDE IN
(UTV) TEATIME WITH TOMMY
6.20 (WWN) GILLIGAN'S ISLAND
6.25 (GPN) WEAVERS GREEN
(CHA) SPORTS ROUNDUP
6.30 (RED, ATV, ANG, BTV, UTV, WTV, CHA) CROSSROADS
(GRA) MISTER ED
(TWW) I DREAM OF JEANNIE
6.35 (SOU) O.K. CRACKERBY
6.40 (STV) CROSSROADS
(TTT) BATMAN
6.45 (WWN) TWW REPORTS ON WALES
6.53 (UTV) ULSTER NEWS
6.55 (RED) POPEYE
(ATV, ANG, BTV, TTT, TWW, UTV, WTV, CHA) WEAVERS GREEN
(GRA) ALL ABOUT YOU
(GPN) ENSIGN O' TOOLE
(WWN) O GWMPAS Y WLAD
7.00 (RED) FILM: THE BURNING HILLS
(SOU) WEAVERS GREEN
7.05 (STV) FILM: THE SPANISH GARDENER
7.25 (ATV, GRA, ANG, BTV, GPN, TTT, WTV, TWW, WWN, UTV) THE WORLD CUP
(CHA) UNDER THE SOUTHERN CROSS
7.30 (SOU) FILM: THE SHIP THAT DIED OF SHAME
8.25 (CHA) ESPIONAGE
8.55 (RED, SOU, STV) ITN NEWS
9.10 (RED, SOU, STV) THIS WEEK
9.20 (ATV, GRA, ANG, BTV, GPN, TTT, TWW, WWN, UTV, WTV, CHA) ITN NEWS
9.35 (ATV, GRA, ANG, BTV, GPN, TTT, TWW, WWN, UTV, WTV, CHA) THIS WEEK
9.40 (RED, STV) YOU CAN'T WIN
(SOU) SERGEANT CORK
10.5 (ATV) THE RIFLEMAN
(GRA) FILM: KISS THE BLOOD OFF MY HANDS PT.1
(ANG) FILM: THE LITTLE HUT
(WTV, CHA) OUR MAN FROM ST. MARK'S
(BTV, GPN, TTT, TWW, WWN, UTV) PEYTON PLACE
10.35 (RED, SOU, STV) THE WORLD CUP
(GRA, WTV, CHA) ITN NEWS HEADLINES
(TTT) CLOSE UP
(BTV, TWW, WWN, UTV) THE WORLD OF BEATRIX POTTER
(ATV) FILM: THE GIRL FROM JONES BEACH
(GPN) SERGEANT CORK
10.38 (GRA) SCENE, POLICE FIVE AND NORTHERN NEWSCAST
(WTV, CHA) SIXTH FORM CHALLENGE
11.5 (GRA) FILM: KISS THE BLOOD OFF MY HANDS PT.2
(BTV) LATE NIGHT THURSDAY
(WTV, CHA) THE WORLD OF BEATRIX POTTER
(ANG, TTT, TWW, WWN, UTV) ITN NEWS HEADLINES
11.7 (ANG, UTV) DATELINE
(TWW, WWN) COURT MARTIAL
11.10 (TTT) THE WORLD OF BEATRIX POTTER
11.17 (ANG) THE LITTLE HUT
(UTV) EPILOGUE, CLOSEDOWN
11.20 (RED, SOU, STV) ITN NEWS HEADLINES
11.22 (RED) PEYTON PLACE
(SOU) SOUTHERN NEWS
11.30 (GPN) ITN NEWS HEADLINES
(STV) LATE CALL
(CHA) NEWS AND WEATHER IN FRENCH, CLOSEDOWN
11.32 (SOU) THE WORLD OF BEATRIX POTTER
11.35 (WTV) DATELINE
(STV) CINEMA
11.40 (TTT) NORTH EAST NEWSCAST
11.45 (BTV) BORDER NEWS, CLOSEDOWN
(GPN) FARM PROGRESS
11.47 (WTV) EPILOGUE
11.50 (ATV) DATELINE
(TTT) EPILOGUE, CLOSEDOWN
11.52 (RED) ROYALIST AND ROUNDHEAD
11.53 (WTV) WEATHER AND CLOSEDOWN
11.55 (ANG) ANGLIA NEWS
12.00 (ATV, ANG, SOU) EPILOGUE AND CLOSEDOWN
(GRA, TWW, WWN) CLOSEDOWN
12.05 (STV) CLOSEDOWN
12.12 (GPN) EPILOGUE, CLOSEDOWN
12.22 (RED) DATELINE
12.32 (RED) FRIENDS IN NEED, CLOSEDOWN



Of particular note: The World Cup 3rd/4th place final wasn't networked live to everyone. ONLY the 5.55 news was seen in every region. And as well as providing two main bulletins for different parts of the network, ITN had to provide Late news headlines at four different times.

Changed days!

This is very fancateing to see this, also to see the amount of programmes to placed all over the shop ie crossroads. Really surprised stv had it that late, I was always under the impression stv kept it 3.40 slot until 1972. I wonder how bt lines would be needed just to keep running.

Wonder why stv, gtv, southern and London never took that match

STV, Rediffusion and Southern took a recording at 10.35. Presumably none of them thought the 3rd/4th place playoff would reach sufficient of a peaktime audience.

Most companies had two network lines incoming and one or two lines outgoing.

How come TTT only joined the Racing at 2.45 when it's likely they were producing it as an outside broadcast (or if not, Granada who also joined late)?

Yes indeed the Redcar coverage was TTT originated. Hours of transmission was a black art involving as it did the ITA and the number of commercial minutes available. I never understood it but I know that sometimes it wasn't in your best interests to open up too early.

Thanks Tony -- I would guess that union arrangements probably also had their influence as well...

I think it's quite telling that even WWN had what would have later been considered a reasonable spread of variation with TWW!

I have to say this is fascinating stuff, I keep looking over the list and finding more curious bits and pieces as you say. But would it be fair to say that this day is, even by the standards of the time, a special case? The decision by some contractors not to take the WC has thrown the entire schedule into chaos, and I'm quite sure that a lot of pres-nerds at the time who had access to DX equipment will have had a field day. Kind of makes me wish I was born 20 years earlier really, 1966 was before my time

Not to open to early? but STV used to have the one o'clock gang? Also Schools programmes had to be slotted in aswell.

I have notice that a number of time in the early 60s Schools programmes went out after 3pm on the odd occasions , you would have thought it would have been a bit pointless?

1) In order to accommodate the One O'Clock Gang, STV had to close around 11pm. When the lunchtime progs were dropped, STV carried on much later.

2) Schools programmes were exempt from time rulings but as a result were not allowed to carry any advertising either during or between schools programmes.

3) Don't know about your school but we didn't get out until 4pm.

And I didn't get out of school until 3.30pm, and this was in the 1990s. It's only in the last few years that they've started leaving at 3pm.

Do I take it, since this summer holidays there was no School programmes, meaning that start up would have come on around 2pm on many of the stations?

Many thanks for posting this, Tony. Very interesting!

So at what point did we start to see a more common schedule introduced across the regions? Would it be when the scheduling committee came about, with scheduling decisions largely controlled by the 'big five'? Although, would I be right in assuming that right up to the days of consolidation in the 90s/00s, each individual company still had the right to schedule programmes as they wished - STV or Tyne Tees could have scheduled Corrie on a Saturday afternoon and played, say, Blockbusters at 7.30pm instead had they wished to - and that following a common schedule or 'network feed' as such was more for logistical reasons than a case of being obliged to do so?

Im sure most Saturdays had very little differences, from 1979 onwards expect from maybe the first two programmes,