Sixties City - Sixties Television

1929
John Logie Baird was allowed to use one of BBC radio's main transmitters to make a demonstration transmission for BBC engineers.

1931
Experimental programmes were transmitted using a 30-line system.

22nd August 1932
The BBC decided to set up its own TV studio in Broadcasting House.

January 1935
A government committee recommended the immediate introduction of a public television service.

26th August to 5th September 1936
Closed circuit transmissions were demonstrated at the Radiolympia exhibition using the Baird 240-line and Marconi EMI 405-line systems. The Baird system was subsequently destroyed by fire which ultimately led the Postmaster General to later opt for the Marconi EMI system, using 50 frames/second.

2nd November 1936
The BBC, the world's first high-definition transmission service, was officially launched from a small studio at Alexandra Palace although only 300 receivers were available to pick up transmissions.

1937
The BBC acquired its first mobile unit for outside broadcasts. Three cameras were used to film King George VI's coronation.

28th March 1938
BBC TV's principle of Sunday night television drama was established by Cecil Madden. The first programme featured Pirandello's Henry IV.

November 1938
Freak weather conditions allowed British TV signals to be received in New York, the first transatlantic TV transmission, albeit unplanned.

Friday 1st September 1939
BBC transmissions were halted for security reasons. 11,000 receivers were now available to view the last programme,
Disney's 'Mickey's Gala Premiere'

Friday 7th June 1946
The Earl of Listowel, Postmaster General, re-opened the BBC TV service at 3p.m. One of the programmes shown was the cartoon that was interrupted in 1939. The transmission range was about a 40-mile radius from Alexandra Palace using 405-lines, 50 frames/second interlaced. One of the most successful pre-war and early post-war programmes was 'Picture Page', a one-hour programme twice weekly, covering various subjects with studio guests, presented by 'The Switchboard Girl' Canadian Joan Miller, and later Joan Gilbert.

15th September 1946
The first televised church service was broadcast from St.George's Chapel, Windsor.

1948
At the start of the year TV licences issued had risen to 54,000, to reach 61,000 by August and over 90,000 by late 1949.
The BBC established a Broadcasting Centre in the building that had been the Palace of Arts in the 1924 British Empire exhibition in order to be closer to the Olympic Games at Wembley and a special television cable was laid to the stadium.

1949
The standardisation of the 405-line system was announced by the Postmaster General.
The BBC bought Lime Grove studios from Gaumont-British.
The LCC approved plans for a new Television Centre at White City.
In the Autumn the first regional transmitter opened in Sutton Coldfield to service Midlands viewers.

March 1952
Combined sound and television licence issues had risen to 1,457,000 and was to top 2.1 million twelve months later as many Brits purchased televisions in anticipation of the Coronation. It is estimated that 56% of the adult population watched the Coronation on television. A 14" Bush television set sold for about 84 gns.

May 1952
The BBC carried out tests on the feasibility of a schools television service.

8th July 1952
Television programmes from France were transmitted by the BBC, the first time foreign TV standards had been converted for use.

1953
The first broadcast was made from a ship at sea.
The BBC decided to replace the Alexandra Palace transmitter with a more powerful unit sited at Crystal Palace.
Part of the White City complex began to be used.

1954
Early in the year the Conservative government introduced a bill to allow the introduction of independent television companies which led to the formation of the National Television Council and the Popular Television Association, the NTC being opposed to commercial television broadcasts.

15th June 1954
Thorn Electrical and Sylvania Electric Products Inc announced plans to set up a UK company to develop colour television.

5th July 1954
The BBC news was first broadcast at 7:30p.m. presented off-screen by Richard Baker. Also during the month the Television Bill became law

1955
In 1955 Somerset Plantagenet Fry, an Oxford postgraduate, became the first contestant on the quiz show Double Your Money's 'Treasure Trail'

22nd September 1955
The ITA started an inaugural service from Norwood. ITV officially opened at 7:15 p.m. when a dinner to celebrate the occasion was televised from The Guildhall, London. The transmission also included the first TV commercial - for Gibbs SR toothpaste - at 8:12 p.m. and the first TV news at 10 p.m. read by Chris Chataway.

Friday February 17th 1956
ITV in the Midlands programmes commenced with Leslie Mitchell the first face to be seen. About one and a half million viewers watched as Sir Kenneth Clark gave the opening speech before local dignitaries at Birmingham Town Hall. Guests included Prince Littler, Sir Philip Warner (ABC chairman), Val Parnell, Norman Collins, Howard Thomas, Philip Dorte, Roy Thomson and Lew Grade. The first ever commercial seen on ATV Midlands was for Cadbury's chocolates.

3rd November 1956
The ITA transmitter at Emley Moor, Huddersfield, opened

1958
In 1958 Granada covered the Rochdale by-election, the first election to be shown on British television.

DATE	SERVICE	AREA	NAME	OPERATORS / NOTES
September 22nd 1955	AR	Weekdays London	Associated Rediffusion	Broadcast Relay Services and Associated Newspapers
September 24th 1955	ATV	Weekends London	Associated Television	Associated Broadcast Development Company
February 17th 1956	ATV	Weekdays Midlands	Associated Television	Associated Broadcast Development Company
February 18th 1956	ABC	Weekends Midlands	ABC Television	Associated British Picture Corporation
May 3rd 1956	GRANADA	Weekdays NorthWest	Granada Television	Granada Theatres Limited
May 5th 1956	ABC	Weekends North	ABC Television	Associated British Picture Corporation
August 31st 1957	SCOTTISH	Central Scotland	Scottish Television	Start
January 14th 1958	TWW	South Wales and West	Television Wales and West	Start
August 30th 1958	SOUTHERN	South of England	Southern Television	Start
January 15th 1959	TT TV	North East	Tyne Tees Television	News Chronicle, Sidney Box, George and Alfred Black
October 27th 1959	ANGLIA	East of England	Anglia Television	Start
October 31st 1959	ULSTER	Northern Ireland	Ulster Television
June 29th 1960	BBC	National	British Broadcasting Corporation	BBC Television Centre opens in West London
April 29th 1961	WESTWARD	South West	Westward Television	Start
June 6th 1961	(Tuesday) In the U.K. the commercial television franchise for north and west Wales was awarded to Teledu Cymru, the Wales Television Association, and would go on the air on September 14th, 1962. It failed in less than three years.
September 1st 1961	BORDER	Scottish Borders	Border Television	Start
September 30th 1961	GRAMPIAN	North Scotland	Grampian Television	Start
September 1st 1962	CHANNEL	Channel Islands	Channel Television	Start
September 14th 1962	WALES WEST AND NORTH	West and North Wales	Wales West And North	Start
April 21st 1964	BBC2	London Area	British Broadcasting Corporation	Broadcasting on 625 lines, BBC became BBC1
March 26th 1965	WESTWARD	Isle of Man	Westward Television	Start

December 2nd 1967	BBC2	National	British Broadcasting Corporation	Broadcasting in colour - official start date. Limited transmission since 1st July
March 4th 1968	HTV	South Wales and West	Harlech Television	Harlech consortium took over contract from TWW
July 29th 1968	YTV	North Central England	Yorkshire Television	Telefusion Yorkshire took over contract from ABC
July 29th 1968	THAMES	Weekdays London	Thames Television	Amalgamation of Associated Rediffusion and ABC
July 29th 1968	ATV	Full Week Midlands	Associated Television	Took over contract from ABC
August 2nd 1968	LWT	Weekends London	London Weekend Television	London Television Consortium took over contract from ATV