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Is It just me who finds Testcards eerie?

Yes it is (September 2007)

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JO
Joe
I see your point, but only a few guys on here (and we're definitely a minority ourselves) would do that, and the majority would rather see programming, even if it's just repeats.
MK
Mr Kite
Testcards are way creepy. I'm sure I saw that girl testcard on the screen on BBC North West Tonight in Manchester when they were in Liverpool showing the main newsroom in transition.

Not only were they visually creepy, when they had a continuous tone playing over it, it was way worse. You used to get that on teletext pages on BBC Two too. TVAM was always on though, or GMTV later on.
TV
TVdaz
jrothwell97 posted:
It's not there just for decoration.

You learn something new everyday, don't you.

That picture is quite sinister in a weird way. Just the fact that it is so old now, and has been used for so long and is 'famous' is really creepy to me. Hard to explain, but I'm sure a lot of people here will get it. It was so freaky when she spoke in 'Life On Mars'.
ST
stevek
DJGM posted:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/greg.mitchell3/misc/TestcardW.png

The all-time classic testcard ... in widescreen. And that god forsaken bloody clown puppet is still EVIL as ever.

It's EVIL I tell ya!





EVIL!


Laughing


forget the clown, the look on that girl's face used to freak me out as a kid Shocked
JR
jrothwell97
Yes, that image did have a test card. I would post the image put it's lapsed on the File Upload Service.
BF
Bewitched_Fan_2k
What have I started here. I'm not talking about the girl & clown here I just mean generally picture-less Test Cards just make me feel funny when I look at them

http://hub.tv-ark.org.uk/images/testcards/images/43_testcards/dubai.jpg

just all those colours arranged like that. I don't find it 'scary' you understand just eerie and it makes me feel funny, and I get the high whistle in my head. I think it just takes me back to days of 'analogue' sky when you channel hoped and you always saw em


Oh and in what way is the below a test card??

http://hub.tv-ark.org.uk/images/testcards/images/other/lineup_girl_granada.jpg
ST
Stuart
DJGM posted:
It's EVIL I tell ya!

EVIL!

Laughing

I have to agree. The clown always used to freak me out. The spooky girl didn't do much for me either Shocked
JR
jrothwell97
Bewitched_Fan_2k posted:


It tests colours (the panels on the left), whites and greyscales (the white furniture) and flesh tones (the girl in the middle).
DJ
DJGM

Awaits multicolured laser bolts to shoot from her eyes like something out of a Doctor Who episode!
I gotta say though ... she looks like a creepier adult version of the little girl from testcards F + W

As Nick Ross used to say (before he got sacked) ... "Don't have nightmares!"


(Right, I'm off to eat some cheese sandwiches for me supper!)
BF
Bewitched_Fan_2k
They would show that as a still image and play music/high pitch whistle??
DE
deejay
As far as I know, 'Colour Girl' has never been shown on broadcast television. It's used solely to line up multiple television cameras in one studio (usually). After using a greyscale testcard to get the camera exposure levels right, you point all of the cameras at 'Colour Girl' and tweak the colour levels until you get all of the cameras looking (a) the same and (b) natural. It's virtually impossible. I've spent hours looking at this particular image. After a while you become convinced she's plotting something against you.
PC
Paul Clark
Bewitched_Fan_2k posted:
What have I started here. I'm not talking about the girl & clown here I just mean generally picture-less Test Cards just make me feel funny when I look at them

I know where you're coming from.

When you do see such a pattern that is entirely still, full of sharply contrasting and vivid shades of colour and without any form of human accompaniment, the difference to 'normal' television programming and pres is so much now - that could be unsettling to switch on to.

It's something that in these 24-hr broadcasting days you generally don't see though, so I expect future generations might get further spooked by appearances for its unfamiliarity.

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