Did the BBC keep stereo audio from R1 simulcasts of TOTP?

[David Huggins]

Just discussing this with a friend and wondered if any of the experts here might be able to help.

We're wondering whether the BBC kept the stereo soundtracks of music programmes that were broadcast on TV with mono audio but simulcast on Radio 1 in stereo?

In particular I'm thinking of broadcasts prior to the launch of NICAM stereo in August 1991, where some music programmes (such as Top of the Pops, Live Aid etc) would be simultaneously broadcast on Radio 1 in stereo. My memory is that TOTP2 has re-run clips in mono that would have aired on R1 in stereo.

Would the one-inch videotape masters from that period contain the stereo soundtrack, or just the broadcast mono mix? And, if so, did Radio 1 keep a separate archive of all those editions of Top of the Pops that they simulcast in stereo? Perhaps they could be redubbed with the stereo audio for reuse. Thanks for any insight on this!

[Richard Marple]

Dr Who started being made in stereo in 1988 so I'm guessing TOTP used similar mastertapes, but I might be wrong.

[Peter Lynch]

Yes, we recorded in stereo on the 1"C studio recordings in television centre . Bit of a fudge in VT as the rooms were set up for mono. Lots of tie lines and extra boxes with stereo PPMs and stuff... Happy days...

[David Huggins]

Thanks for the info on this, it's much appreciated!

Here's a nicely done YouTube video... an off-air VHS recording of a 1988 edition of Top of the Pops, with high quality stereo sound from the Radio 1 simulcast. The uploader has several more such clips on his channel.

[markboulton]

Nice. I had a few friends in the late 80s who recorded shows to Hi-Fi Stereo VHS using their new-fangled 'Synchro Record' dubbing feature, whereby the Line In Audio could be recorded instead of the sound from the TV channel. Mind you, at the time I had no VCR at all, I still had a while to wait before I even got a mono one - and I think it's fair to say those friends didn't even keep their recordings for much longer than a couple of years.

[Andrew Walmsley]

Hi, glad my uploads are of interest. I used to use Hifi VCR to dub stuff from other sources due to its high dynamic range, you could not tell the difference between a disc or cd and the recording.
It means i have a lot of "inadvertant" tv video with audio dubbed over from another source, but of course i was one of only a few folk who recorded these simulcasts on these machines in 1987, they were an exorbitant amount of money, i think the JVC725 which still works well to this day was about £650, a good month and half wages for me ! The machine was hammered for over 10 years in daily use, and i cannot believe its longevity.
Regds Andrew

[markboulton]

Well I finally went Hi-Fi in 1994 and I used the feature to its max too once I had it. Especially useful for long FM radio broadcasts and, dare I say it, shock horror, copies of CDs lent by my girlfriend! At the time I had a Kodak Photo-CD Player which was really a Philips and used Bitstream conversion. Routed through to my trusty Sony SLV-E700 VCR, it made copies that sounded better than the same CDs played on other decks. It went fubar however in 2000 and since then I've "made do" with supposedly top-of-the-range Panasonic and JVC VCRs which did no justice either to the video or the Hi-Fi audio. Thankfully, just a fortnight ago I managed to snag a Sony SLV-E700 on eBay, and finally all my old recordings have come to life again!

[Andrew Walmsley]

Hi, new batch of simulcast stereo TOTP uploaded from xmas 88 and the 25th anniv prog in 89

www.youtube.com/channel/UCdeWPThgUSHxbkYNTvvpblQ/videos

Andrew

[Matthew North]

Me to Loved my Sanyo Hifi Stereo VHS had individual record level controls too. even now some of the recordings I made off the radio with it were very good indeed.

[Deleted]

Previous to Nicam stereo videos etc, in the 70's, the BBC did keep audio of shows like `Sight and Sound In Concert', and various one off simulcasts that the OGWT did from time to time. I'm assuming a separate mono mix was made for TV.
I don't recall TOTP being broadcast simultaneously on VHF though. Live Aid was recorded in its entirety on stereo 1/4" tape and has lived in the BBC security cupboard ever since, presumably due to rights issues ! (BTW, I am new here although have lurked from time to time....I worked in the BBC Sound Archive from 1988-1999, so have a fairly decent knowledge of what they do and don't have music wise)

[Richard Marple]

I did read of a Cliff Richard Concert on the radio in quad in the early 1970s, what this televised as well?

Omnibus had a radio night in the early 1990s sometime.

[Andrew Walmsley]

From my recollection Live Aid was simulcast on Radio 1 or 2 in stereo, as well as TOTPs later in 1988, this must have been one of the earliest broadcasts of this type but was unfortunately a couple of years prior to me acquiring the HiFi VCR, as my VHS copies are in mono

[scotttelfer]

I'm not entirely certain on this specific example, but I remember reading somewhere that the BBC's policy for many years was to keep any radio programme that contains either an interview or a "live" music performance (and a random selection of other shows, about two in every three produced in total). I would presume Top of the Pops may still have their full stereo audio on the grounds of the latter condition, but it would depend on when that policy was implemented (as far as I can tell full archiving for radio was never considered a priority and the BBC kept on either wiping or not recording shows for a long time, the move to the iPlayer probably changed that because if you are storing it for a week you might as well hold onto it).

[Phil Chappell]

I think the first TOTPs to have a stereo broadcast on radio was the 1,000th edition, back in 1983. I used to have the soundtrack on cassette for a long time that I recorded off the radio. I also remember a showing of the film 'Tommy' which they broadcast in stereo on the radio too, round about the same time.

[nicadare]

Oct 5, 2014 8:24:59 GMT Phil Chappell said:

I think the first TOTPs to have a stereo broadcast on radio was the 1,000th edition, back in 1983. I used to have the soundtrack on cassette for a long time that I recorded off the radio. I also remember a showing of the film 'Tommy' which they broadcast in stereo on the radio too, round about the same time.

Indeed it was in 1983.