TV Home Forum

40th anniversary of the ITV strike

10 August – 24 October 1979 (August 2019)

This site closed in March 2021 and is now a read-only archive
VM
VMPhil
JKDerry posted:
VMPhil posted:
News 39 on BBC2 looks interesting, and, as I'm sure many others here would, I’d certainly stay up to watch a classic episode of Closedown. But I’m not sure much else would appeal to me. This is all coming from a 2019 perspective, of course.

What was "Closedown"? Was it just someone sitting there, reading from a book?

Well, I was assuming it was just a normal BBC closedown but making a joke out of it Smile
Inspector Sands and uktvwatcher gave kudos
NL
Ne1L C
JKDerry posted:
In Ireland, their second national channel RTE 2 launched in November 1978, and their typical programming on a Wednesday in the autumn of 1979 actually look more tempting than BBC1, BBC2 or Channel TV, below is a typical example of what they would have aired:

NB: RTE 2 did not start their weekday broadcasting schedules in 1979 until 6.50pm.

6.50pm Switch On: Community Announcement
7.00pm This Is Your Life (Imported from Thames Television)
7.30pm Coronation Street (imported from Granada Television, and many episodes behind Britain)
8.00pm Star Trek
9.00pm Botanic Man
9.30pm World Week - RTE current affairs show
10.00pm Porridge (BBC sitcom first airing on Irish television)
10.35pm The Dick Emery Show
11.10pm - Newsnight - RTE Late Night News
11.25pm - Night Light, the epilogue
11.30pm - Transmission Ends


Star Trek, Porridge and Dick Emery. Sounds good.
IS
Inspector Sands
VMPhil posted:
News 39 on BBC2 looks interesting, and, as I'm sure many others here would, I’d certainly stay up to watch a classic episode of Closedown. But I’m not sure much else would appeal to me. This is all coming from a 2019 perspective, of course.


These are from August which was traditionally a scheduling graveyard but old TV schedules rarely look that enticing to modern eyes.

For every Fawlty Towers or Two Ronnie's there's lots of long forgotten shows, cheap imports and dull worthy programmes.
MA
Markymark
JKDerry posted:
Brekkie posted:
I'd say BBC1 looks pretty decent actually.

OK, everyone has their own taste. It seems very dull to me.


Were you actually alive in 1979, it's easy to sneer from 40 years into the future, but back then this was all considered normal family entertainment
JK
JKDerry
VMPhil posted:
JKDerry posted:
VMPhil posted:
News 39 on BBC2 looks interesting, and, as I'm sure many others here would, I’d certainly stay up to watch a classic episode of Closedown. But I’m not sure much else would appeal to me. This is all coming from a 2019 perspective, of course.

What was "Closedown"? Was it just someone sitting there, reading from a book?

Well, I was assuming it was just a normal BBC closedown but making a joke out of it Smile

The advertised "Closedown" was said to have Georgine Anderson read from "The Cat about Town" - so I wonder what was the programme, an adult version of Jackanory?
JK
JKDerry
Markymark posted:
JKDerry posted:
Brekkie posted:
I'd say BBC1 looks pretty decent actually.

OK, everyone has their own taste. It seems very dull to me.


Were you actually alive in 1979, it's easy to sneer from 40 years into the future, but back then this was all considered normal family entertainment

I am 34 years old, and I have been talking with my parents and family who were alive back in 1979, and I got their views on the strike and television - one of the little habits you develop when you love history.
MA
Markymark
JKDerry posted:
Markymark posted:
JKDerry posted:
OK, everyone has their own taste. It seems very dull to me.


Were you actually alive in 1979, it's easy to sneer from 40 years into the future, but back then this was all considered normal family entertainment

I am 34 years old, and I have been talking with my parents and family who were alive back in 1979, and I got their views on the strike and television - one of the little habits you develop when you love history.


You're almost a generation younger than me (I'm almost 56), my parents were born in 1930/31, so their perception of what was good/bad/dull/important/trivial will probably differ to yours, and everyone is a product of the environment they grew up in. It's not a criticism at all, just an observation.

Goodness knows what people born today, will make of this current decade !
SC
Si-Co
JKDerry posted:
In Ireland, their second national channel RTE 2 launched in November 1978, and their typical programming on a Wednesday in the autumn of 1979 actually look more tempting than BBC1, BBC2 or Channel TV, below is a typical example of what they would have aired:

NB: RTE 2 did not start their weekday broadcasting schedules in 1979 until 6.50pm.

6.50pm Switch On: Community Announcement
7.00pm This Is Your Life (Imported from Thames Television)
7.30pm Coronation Street (imported from Granada Television, and many episodes behind Britain)
8.00pm Star Trek
9.00pm Botanic Man
9.30pm World Week - RTE current affairs show
10.00pm Porridge (BBC sitcom first airing on Irish television)
10.35pm The Dick Emery Show
11.10pm - Newsnight - RTE Late Night News
11.25pm - Night Light, the epilogue
11.30pm - Transmission Ends


Botanic Man was a Thames TV natural history series presented by David Bellamy, which was shown in the UK during as part of schools television (possibly as well as appearing elsewhere in the schedule). I guess BBC2 might have shown their version a series like that around 9pm, so not completely out of place on a second channel.
JK
JKDerry
Channel Television on Thursday 30th August 1979:

1.20pm until 1.30pm - Channel News
5.00pm - Puffin
5.05pm - Caii It Macaroni
5.30pm - Lost Islands
6.00pm - Report Extra
7.00pm - Al Oeming: Prairie Zoo
7.30pm - The New Avengers
8.30pm - Film: Lacey and the Mississippi Queen
10.00pm - Channel News
10.05pm - Theatre: Angel Against the Night
11.05pm - News in French and Weather
NL
Ne1L C
Markymark posted:
JKDerry posted:
Brekkie posted:
I'd say BBC1 looks pretty decent actually.

OK, everyone has their own taste. It seems very dull to me.


Were you actually alive in 1979, it's easy to sneer from 40 years into the future, but back then this was all considered normal family entertainment



We're applying 2019 habits and our embarrassment of riches in terms of choice to a vastly different tv culture. I will admit that the schedule isn't appetisting but I've been spoilt.
RW
Robert Williams Founding member
JKDerry posted:
VMPhil posted:
JKDerry posted:
What was "Closedown"? Was it just someone sitting there, reading from a book?

Well, I was assuming it was just a normal BBC closedown but making a joke out of it Smile

The advertised "Closedown" was said to have Georgine Anderson read from "The Cat about Town" - so I wonder what was the programme, an adult version of Jackanory?

A short story or poem read out-of-vision, accompanied by some still images. This type of closedown on BBC2 ran from 1974 until 1979. Here is an example, from 17/03/1977:

SP
Steve in Pudsey
Had the regions finished doing their own continuity in BBC1 in the evenings by this point? Complete with long closedown sequence in some areas.

Newer posts