Television History

John Logie Baird

New Waves & Military Manoeuvres

Jeffrey Cohen's article on early secret experiments with television with a view to its military advantages

The Pioneers

Television Timeline - 1817 to 1923

A credit to all those who played their part in the development of television, from 1817 to 1923

The Pioneers

Television Timeline - 1923 to 1931

A credit to all those who played their part in the development of television, from 1923 to 1931

The Pioneers

Television Timeline - 1931 to 1936

A credit to all those who played their part in the development of television, from 1931 to 1936

The Pioneers

The Invention of Television: The Pioneers

Introduction to Television History

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 2

Here's Television - A first hand account of the BBC's formative years

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 3

The BBC hires presenters and announcers as they gear up to begin daily television broadcasting in 1936

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 4

The BBC begins broadcasting television from Alexandra Palace with transmissions between three and four o'clock every afternoon, and between nine and ten o'clock every evening. There was no television broadcasting on Sundays

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 5

On 12 May 1937 the BBC captured a Coronation on television for the first time.

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 1

From humble beginnings in 1922 to the dawn of television - Teletronic takes a look at the history of the British Broadcasting Corporation....

John Logie Baird

John Logie Baird - Television, Secret Experiments, Sabotage, Lies - Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - Progress and Secret Experiments

John Logie Baird

John Logie Baird - Television, Secret Experiments, Sabotage, Lies - Chapter 3

John Logie Baird - Chapter 3: Television Discovered

John Logie Baird

John Logie Baird - Television, Secret Experiments, Sabotage, Lies - Chapter 4

John Logie Baird - Chapter 4: Sabotage

John Logie Baird

John Logie Baird - Television, Secret Experiments, Sabotage, Lies - Chapter 5

John Logie Baird - Chapter 5: Marked "Classified"

John Logie Baird

John Logie Baird - Television, Secret Experiments, Sabotage, Lies - Chapter 6

John Logie Baird Chapter 6: After the War

John Logie Baird

John Logie Baird - Television, Secret Experiments, Sabotage, Lies

The fact that John Logie Baird invented television only scratches the surface of his story. In this biography, Teletronic investigates his secret experiments, work with the Forces, and the lies that to this day still hide the truth...

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 10

Designed for Women was Alexandra Palace's first women's programme - until it began in 1949 the one thing that had been missing was a women's programme made by women

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 11

Norman Collins - An Independent Man

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 12

It was on 2 June 1953 for the Coronation of Elizabeth 11 that television really came into its own. This was the day that Britain began its eternal love affair with 'the box.'

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 6

As War inevitably loomed, the BBC were put on notice by the British Government

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 7

On 1 September 1939, BBC television closed down and would not start up again until the end of the war in 1945

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 8

The BBC ceased television because (officially) it was feared that the German air force would use the transmission signals from the aerial of Alexandra Palace as a navigational aid. In fact, the aerial was to be used for transmitting signals of an entirely different kind

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - Part 9

On an October day in 1945 the Government announced that it wanted the BBC to start television again, on the pre-war technical system. Within a few days those television engineers who had been demobilised were back inside Alexandra Palace

History Of The BBC

History of the BBC - First Sight

Michael Hackworth remembered the early days of BBC television and the day it closed down. In 1952 he wrote an article for the Television Annual for 1953 and it is this article that is reproduced here

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 1

Within a few years of BBC television restarting, there were already suggestions that perhaps the Corporation's monopoly on broadcasting was restricting the type of programmes available to the British public due to the limit that public funding imposed

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 2

With the Government agreeing to Independent Television in Britain for the first time, on 25 August 1954 an advertisement was placed for applicants for regional franchises. Six companies applied but not all of them were successful, including the most likely to succeed.

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 3

With the proposed launch of ITV in September 1955 and the franchises awarded it was London that would take to the air first. But at the last minute, major backers began to pull out...

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 4

ITV brought something new into the homes of the British viewing public: television advertising. As Briton's finally saw an end to rationing and the Government was keen to encourage public spending to boost the economy, it was an opportune moment for all concerned

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 5

Ad-Mags aka Shopper's Guides tried to bend the rules on television advertising. For years they were a hit with the public, but the authorities were less impressed. And they very nearly cost the ITA their franchise licence

The History of ITV

ATV Company Profile

A 1963 article profiling one of the most prolific producers of television shows

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 6

ITV faced its toughest test yet. A government white paper on the state of television found it wanting, while the BBC escaped any criticism. But did the government have their own agenda when they ordered the infamous Pilkington Report?

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 7

Had any of the existing companies felt complacent about their future they should have taken heed of Lord Hill's earlier warning that 'all bets were off' on the next franchise round.

History Of The BBC

A Short History of the Television Play

The beginnings and early days of the television play on British television

The History of ITV

The Armchair Theatre Effect

The story of Britain's foremost drama series - Armchair Theatre

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 10

One of the founding fathers of Independent Television, Sidney Bernstein managed, in a small amount of time, to stamp his indelible imprint on British television to create a multi-million pound empire that thrives today.

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 11

The story of ITV’s first truly rural regional programme maker

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 8

The annals of British television history boast a handful of giants whose impact upon the medium has conferred upon them the status of legends. However, towering above them all is a single larger than life figure.

The History of ITV

The History of ITV - Part 9

By the late 1940s Val Parnell had established himself as one of Britain's foremost theatre managers and impresarios. Through his association with Lew Grade he was also instrumental in the popularisation of television following the launch of ITV in 1955.

World Television

The History of Television in Ireland

There was a suspicion about the type of 'British' broadcasting viewers could expect and the negative influence it would undoubtedly have on the Irish

TV Archives

John Cura's Telesnaps

Another sorry tale of how pieces of British television history might have been lost forever, had it not been for one man

TV Archives

Missing, Believed Wiped - Television's Lost Treasures

The story of how British television lost some of its most precious archive material

Television Merchandise

TV Tie-Ins: Disney to Daleks and Beyond Part 2

When Supercar arrived on British TV screens in 1961 it captured the imagination of its young audience like no other series before it. Before you could mutter the word 'merchandise' there were wooden puppets of most of the characters

Television Merchandise

TV Tie-Ins: Disney to Daleks and Beyond Part 3

When in 1964 the first Dalek toys went on sale, they became so popular that literally hundreds of by-products were launched

Television Merchandise

TV Tie-Ins: Disney to Daleks and Beyond

The rapid rise of TV-tie-in toys in the 1950s demonstrated how the industry quickly responded to a change in the cultural landscape once television became established

Biography

Galton and Simpson - The Writers' Tale - Part 2

The second part of Galton and Simpson - the founding fathers of British sitcom writing

Biography

Galton and Simpson - The Writers' Tale

The founding fathers of British situation comedy. "Without them all our lives would have been filled with a lot less laughter."

Biography

Joan Gilbert

Described as one of the early BBC's most provocative personalities - Joan Gilbert once recalled that she read a television article that said "You either love her or hate her" before discovering that "the writer was referring to me!"

Television Merchandise

TV Express - A Most Superior Comic

How the Daily Express junior newspaper, designed to build a loyalty among young readers who would then stay with the newspaper through adulthood, grew into one of the most superior children's comics of the 1950s and early 60s

Study

Navigating the Path: Situating Pathfinders Historically

A study on the development of science fiction on British television

Study

The Commercial Factor: The X Factor and ITV

A television study placing The X Factor as commercial television in the context of television generally, both in relation to 'Reality TV' and other programmes

Television Merchandise

Britain's First Television Magazines

In the early days of television, if you wanted the most in-depth information on broadcasts and the stars they featured, one of the last places you'd find much in the way of useful information was the Radio Times

Interview

Matt Zimmerman Interview

In 2001 we spoke to actor Matt Zimmerman about his career and how he became, for a generation of children, one of the most recognisable voices on television.

Interview

Michael Bangerter Interview

Michael Bangerter talks about his career from his first appearance in a controversial 'Sunday-Night Play' to the series 'Capital City' almost thirty years later

Interview

Mike Berry Interview

The British singer is known for his top ten hits in the 1960s. But despite a singing career spanning nearly 60 years, Mike Berry is probably best known for his appearances as Mr. Spooner on the British sitcom Are You Being Served?

Interview

Mollie Sugden Interview

In 2003, Bob Furnell and Bonnie Gale interviewed one of Britain's best known and best loved sitcom actors who became a cult figure in her own lifetime

Interview

Ray Cusick Interview

Forever remembered as the creator of the Daleks, Ray talked to us about his long association with the BBC and his brief flirtation with directing back in 2001

The Big Events

The Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla

The Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla was the third great Royal television set piece in under a year - there was a real danger of "pageantry fatigue"

The Big Events

The Queen's Funeral

The lying in state and funeral of Queen Elizabeth II

The Big Events

The Queen's Platinum Jubilee

The celebration of Queen Elizabeth II's "Platinum Jubilee" was first and foremost a television event, as have been all the big Royal Events in the 21st Century...