More likely UTV didn't open up until 1200 during the holidays as there was nothing on the network and they were too hard up to fill the mornings with their own material.
Generally each company had to fend for itself in the mornings during the school holidays until the mid to late 80s.
I can vaguely remember times when STV were still closed in the mornings during the holidays in the mid 70s... but later on they were always open from around 9.30am unless there was an exceptional reason. For instance, there were a few days just before Christmas 1978 when STV was closed until sometime between 11am and 12 noon. I later found out this was because of an overtime ban and not a scheduling decision.
More likely UTV didn't open up until 1200 during the holidays as there was nothing on the network and they were too hard up to fill the mornings with their own material.
Generally each company had to fend for itself in the mornings during the school holidays until the mid to late 80s.
I can vaguely remember times when STV were still closed in the mornings during the holidays in the mid 70s... but later on they were always open from around 9.30am unless there was an exceptional reason. For instance, there were a few days just before Christmas 1978 when STV was closed until sometime between 11am and 12 noon. I later found out this was because of an overtime ban and not a scheduling decision.
That did not included the Saturday 23rd Which did start at 9:00 Tarzan 9:45 Saturday Banana
EDIT: just to make this a been clear:
SO apart from what Sesame street at 09.30 and film at 10.30 it was not that interesting most of the time During the School holidays back then
Last edited by A former member on 14 November 2009 11:13pm
The machines that Channel had (and are now in my basement) were Sony High-Band U-Matics, which were not considered broadcast quality. At that time, the IBA set strict technical standards and regularly inspected television and radio contractors' facilities to measure their equipment specifications.
U-Matics were essentially industrial grade machines - better than a home VHS but hardly broadcast quality.
The machines that Channel had (and are now in my basement) were Sony High-Band U-Matics, which were not considered broadcast quality. At that time, the IBA set strict technical standards and regularly inspected television and radio contractors' facilities to measure their equipment specifications.
U-Matics were essentially industrial grade machines - better than a home VHS but hardly broadcast quality.
I take it then Channel got in to trouble with the IBA?
The machines that Channel had (and are now in my basement) were Sony High-Band U-Matics, which were not considered broadcast quality. At that time, the IBA set strict technical standards and regularly inspected television and radio contractors' facilities to measure their equipment specifications.
U-Matics were essentially industrial grade machines - better than a home VHS but hardly broadcast quality.
I take it then Channel got in to trouble with the IBA?
No, as I said they were given special dispensation by the IBA to use the U-Matics to timeshift Crossroads.
At that time (early 1980s) the only broadcast spec VTRs that existed were 1 inch C or B format. The cost of those were prohibitive for a tiny station such as Channel. The IBA normally allowed the use of U-Matic, and later Betacam tape formats, for news only. In fact they initially didn't even allow BetaSP (launched 1986) to be used, even for promos and stings. C4 had a battle with them, because they wanted to use a Betacart to playout their idents and promos. This meant C4 were still playing out their 'spinning blocks' idents from 1inch almost to the end of the 80s (or at least that what they told the IBA )
The machines that Channel had (and are now in my basement) were Sony High-Band U-Matics, which were not considered broadcast quality. At that time, the IBA set strict technical standards and regularly inspected television and radio contractors' facilities to measure their equipment specifications.
U-Matics were essentially industrial grade machines - better than a home VHS but hardly broadcast quality.
I take it then Channel got in to trouble with the IBA?
No, as I said they were given special dispensation by the IBA to use the U-Matics to timeshift Crossroads.
At that time (early 1980s) the only broadcast spec VTRs that existed were 1 inch C or B format. The cost of those were prohibitive for a tiny station such as Channel. The IBA normally allowed the use of U-Matic, and later Betacam tape formats, for news only. In fact they initially didn't even allow BetaSP (launched 1986) to be used, even for promos and stings. C4 had a battle with them, because they wanted to use a Betacart to playout their idents and promos. This meant C4 were still playing out their 'spinning blocks' idents from 1inch almost to the end of the 80s (or at least that what they told the IBA )
But surely some one form the IBA could spot the difference on screen? if not that does open up the question why the IBA did not like it
Always worth remembering that the TVTimes (and Look In!) listings are not a 100% accurate guide to what was broadcast - more a statement of intent. Tony may know the exact details, but the TVTimes schedule had to be submitted several weeks in advance because of the complexities of producing so many different editions of a glossy magazine.
Radio Times had a later deadline but, of course, printed on newsprint then and only really varied the Scottish, Welsh and NI tv pages substantially.
I remember STV being closed in the mornings in the week before Christmas 1978 clearly. My school broke up for the holidays on the Wednesday afternoon... and come Thursday morning, of course, there was nothing on the telly. BBC1 and 2 were on strike while on STV I was amazed to see the IBA test card F.
Years later, when I was at uni and often in the Mitchell Library, I looked up some old editions of TVTimes and saw that STV should have been on the air from 0930 or so on these days... so thought my memory must have been playing tricks. But the Daily Record and Glasgow Herald revealed what actually happened!! An overtime ban and work to rule had forced STV to issue a revised schedule with a later opening time in the morning and earlier closedown in the evening.
No, as I said they were given special dispensation by the IBA to use the U-Matics to timeshift Crossroads.
At that time (early 1980s) the only broadcast spec VTRs that existed were 1 inch C or B format. The cost of those were prohibitive for a tiny station such as Channel. The IBA normally allowed the use of U-Matic, and later Betacam tape formats, for news only. In fact they initially didn't even allow BetaSP (launched 1986) to be used, even for promos and stings. C4 had a battle with them, because they wanted to use a Betacart to playout their idents and promos. This meant C4 were still playing out their 'spinning blocks' idents from 1inch almost to the end of the 80s (or at least that what they told the IBA )
What about adverts, they were being played from cassette cart systems for many years - 1 inch being impractical and film being obsolete.
I know Thames were using MII (a rival format to Beta SP) for their and C4s adverts at the end of their franchise so they must have invested in that format in the IBA days
The machines that Channel had (and are now in my basement) were Sony High-Band U-Matics, which were not considered broadcast quality. At that time, the IBA set strict technical standards and regularly inspected television and radio contractors' facilities to measure their equipment specifications.
U-Matics were essentially industrial grade machines - better than a home VHS but hardly broadcast quality.
I take it then Channel got in to trouble with the IBA?
No, as I said they were given special dispensation by the IBA to use the U-Matics to timeshift Crossroads.
At that time (early 1980s) the only broadcast spec VTRs that existed were 1 inch C or B format. The cost of those were prohibitive for a tiny station such as Channel. The IBA normally allowed the use of U-Matic, and later Betacam tape formats, for news only. In fact they initially didn't even allow BetaSP (launched 1986) to be used, even for promos and stings. C4 had a battle with them, because they wanted to use a Betacart to playout their idents and promos. This meant C4 were still playing out their 'spinning blocks' idents from 1inch almost to the end of the 80s (or at least that what they told the IBA )
But surely some one form the IBA could spot the difference on screen? if not that does open up the question why the IBA did not like it
I spent much of the 80s conducting IBA Code of Practice acceptance tests on VTRs and cameras (as their manufacturer). Staff from ITV companies would tell me all sorts of stories of tricks and games. However, subjectively on an image as 'clean' as C4's CGI'd blocks it would have been hard to tell whether you were looking at BetaSP or 1 inch. The saturated chroma would have been the 1 inch's main problem, being a composite format, so you'd have probably been better off with BetaSP anyway, (although of course the idents were mastered on C Format in the first place). The IBA's initial reservations to Beta SP was its luminance frequency response, it actually beat 1 inch on almost ever other video parameter ISTR.
No, as I said they were given special dispensation by the IBA to use the U-Matics to timeshift Crossroads.
At that time (early 1980s) the only broadcast spec VTRs that existed were 1 inch C or B format. The cost of those were prohibitive for a tiny station such as Channel. The IBA normally allowed the use of U-Matic, and later Betacam tape formats, for news only. In fact they initially didn't even allow BetaSP (launched 1986) to be used, even for promos and stings. C4 had a battle with them, because they wanted to use a Betacart to playout their idents and promos. This meant C4 were still playing out their 'spinning blocks' idents from 1inch almost to the end of the 80s (or at least that what they told the IBA )
What about adverts, they were being played from cassette cart systems for many years - 1 inch being impractical and film being obsolete.
I know Thames were using MII (a rival format to Beta SP) for their and C4s adverts at the end of their franchise so they must have invested in that format in the IBA days
They did. The IBA finally relented around 1988, but I recall over a year of battling from 86 to get the IBA to accept the idea of component video VTRs. I visited TVS on a service call in Oct 87. They were still running breaks off the air from their ACR-25 and compiling them onto 1 Inch (because the ACR was on its last legs). They were desperate to switch to a Betacart for commercials by that stage.
Last edited by Markymark on 15 November 2009 1:43pm - 2 times in total
I remember STV being closed in the mornings in the week before Christmas 1978 clearly. My school broke up for the holidays on the Wednesday afternoon... and come Thursday morning, of course, there was nothing on the telly. BBC1 and 2 were on strike while on STV I was amazed to see the IBA test card F.
Years later, when I was at uni and often in the Mitchell Library, I looked up some old editions of TVTimes and saw that STV should have been on the air from 0930 or so on these days... so thought my memory must have been playing tricks. But the Daily Record and Glasgow Herald revealed what actually happened!! An overtime ban and work to rule had forced STV to issue a revised schedule with a later opening time in the morning and earlier closedown in the evening.
My listings from what I have been able to look up was not from tv times, there come from a number of local papers which only get there listings a couple of days in advance.
Which did start at 9:00 Tarzan 9:45 Saturday Banana
