|
|
Post by William Martin on Dec 9, 2004 15:00:29 GMT
Colour definitely began on BBC-2 on 1/7/67. This was an official start date though, not on a testing basis (the testing period began in 1964 out of official programme hours, pre-PAL). It was stated that about 20% of programmes were in colour initially in July '67. By December this was ceremoniously upped to 80%. beat me too it. mens singles at wimbledon.OB does anyone know what and when the last BW broadcast was in the UK not including deliberate BW rather when the last monochrome equipment was retired. |
|
|
|
Post by Laurence Piper on Dec 9, 2004 17:35:22 GMT
Must have been when the 405 line service was finally ended. I think this was 1985.
|
|
|
|
Post by H Hartley on Dec 9, 2004 19:34:08 GMT
The VHF 405 line service carried on because they though there was a little old Welsh Lady stuck up in the mountains still using it. UHF does not like things like mountains. They expected a load of complaints when they had to switch it off as it was going to disrupt cell phones, but did not get one complalnt.
|
|
|
|
Post by CliveUK on Dec 9, 2004 19:57:39 GMT
beat me too it. mens singles at wimbledon.OB does anyone know what and when the last BW broadcast was in the UK not including deliberate BW rather when the last monochrome equipment was retired. I think it was around 1976/1977 , I think the Channel Islands finally got 625 colour around this time. Also I believe the 'Open University' were the last production area in the 'BBC' who were producing B&W material, when the OU moved fully upto Milton Keynes into purpose built 'Colour' equipped studio facilities. Note also, that 'Open University' were still regular broadcasters of B&W material on BBC1/BBC2 well upto the mid-80's. |
|
|
|
Post by Dave H on Dec 10, 2004 11:42:53 GMT
I think it was around 1976/1977 , I think the Channel Islands finally got 625 colour around this time. Also I believe the 'Open University' were the last production area in the 'BBC' who were producing B&W material, when the OU moved fully upto Milton Keynes into purpose built 'Colour' equipped studio facilities. Note also, that 'Open University' were still regular broadcasters of B&W material on BBC1/BBC2 well upto the mid-80's. It was 1976 for the Channel Islands due to the technical difficulties with providing a UHF link to the mainland. I'm sure that some B&W schools programmes such as Maths Workshop (?) were repeated well into the 1980s possibly right up to the point that O levels were scrapped (1987?), though some poorly-funded BBC local regions were still broadcasting local news bulletins in B&W during the early 1970s. What was the last live national B&W broadcast, and what date was the last BBC region converted to colour? |
|
|
|
Post by CliveUK on Dec 10, 2004 12:50:08 GMT
I was reading on one the the BBC old boys websites about an edition of Blue Peter in 1974 which was transmitted in B&W as BP had to decamp from TVC to Lime Grove and utilise a studio which was not colour equipped. All the studios in TVC were being used for the World Cup.
There was a mention that the studio in question had been decommisioned some time earlier which made me wonder if this edition of BP may have been the last B&W national network broadcast, except for the occasional B&W insert on Nationwide.
|
|
|
|
Post by William Martin on Dec 10, 2004 16:17:14 GMT
Nice responses, thanks all
and another question could be when was the first colour Tx in the UK, test or otherwise and what was it, if that's possible to know.
|
|
|
|
Post by Laurence Piper on Dec 10, 2004 17:04:59 GMT
First colour TX in the UK was BBC TV 1954 (I have a P as B for it somewhere) transmitted both from film and live - no VT in those days - on 405 line NTSC. There were more such broadcasts the following year. All of these were outside of programme hours and comprised short trade test-style films and live magazine / variety programmes. These were still going in the early '60s and carried over to 625 lines when BBC-2 began (from pre-launch in 1963) right up till July 1967 and beyond.
The general public could only see these transmissions in b/w of course (prior to 1967 anyway) although special sets were installed in the houses of those evaluating the tests. Also it was possible for the public to occasionally see display sets at the annual TV and Radio Shows at Olympia and so forth.
|
|
|
|
Post by John K on Dec 10, 2004 21:12:54 GMT
To add one more variation to the last B&W transmission, I always thought the last 405-line transmitter decommissioned by the Beeb was one in Birmingham in 1982 - though other companies could have continued longer of course. Could be wrong, but that's what I've always believed.
|
|
|
|
Post by Laurence Piper on Dec 10, 2004 23:56:45 GMT
I believe that date of 1985 is right (who can confirm?) and there's an Engineering Announcement floating around from round about then that mentions it, I seem to remember...
|
|
|
|
Post by lfbarfe on Dec 11, 2004 2:13:13 GMT
Colour definitely began on BBC-2 on 1/7/67. This was an official start date though, not on a testing basis (the testing period began in 1964 out of official programme hours, pre-PAL). It was stated that about 20% of programmes were in colour initially in July '67. By December this was ceremoniously upped to 80%. Sorry. What I meant was that the full colour service was officially launched in December. Big splash in the Radiotimes, etc. |
|
|
|
Post by lfbarfe on Dec 11, 2004 2:19:58 GMT
I believe that date of 1985 is right (who can confirm?) and there's an Engineering Announcement floating around from round about then that mentions it, I seem to remember... I seem to recall that Croydon and Kirk O'Shotts were the last sites to radiate 405 VHF, and they stopped doing so in January 1985. |
|
|
|
Post by lfbarfe on Dec 11, 2004 2:41:40 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by H Hartley on Dec 11, 2004 11:02:34 GMT
Take it from me, and I am not a doctor
VHF 405 lines were switched off in January 1985.
The last unofficial colour 405 line transmission could well be ' The Pub fighter' a Half Hour Story from 2/68
|
|
|
|
Post by lfbarfe on Dec 11, 2004 17:44:50 GMT
Take it from me, and I am not a doctor VHF 405 lines were switched off in January 1985. Yes, that's when B/W transmissions stopped, but I think some people are wondering when B/W production stopped. Would they really have been doing 405 line colour tests after the 625 line colour system had begun broadcasting? |
|
