Accuracy of Lostshows.com database

[KennyG]

I'm getting a bit concerned about how accurate the lostshows.com database, which is part of ITV's Raiders of the Lost Archive venture is. In fact, its inaccuracies may prevent lost shows from turning up. For instance:

This programme, which exists complete, matched your search.

AT LAST THE 1948 SHOW (1967)

Perhaps Bob Monkhouse stashed all the existing prints away under his bed? Seriously, though, it someone did stumble across a print and checked this database, they'd be under the impression that it wouldn't be worth returning....

[Fanny Craddock]

When Queen Victoria visited Scunthorpe in 1899, Bob Monkhouse's grandmother apparently recorded the local Tyne Tees bulletin on a very early wooden home video machine.

Apparently, the BFI have this tape and the machine to play it back. When is Dick Fiddy going to enlighten us about it?

By the way, when is the next 'Missing, Believed Recorded by Bob Monkhouse' event?

[Christopher Perry]

Hi Kenny

First of all let me point out the sentence on the opening page of the website:
Our information is good, but it's not perfect. There will be mistakes in it, and we know it's incomplete.

Secondly, you are quite right the db is showing a very odd entry for the 1948 show. I have checked the data in the db and they are quite clearly listed as missing on there so I don't know why it shows to the contrary. Thanks for flagging it up to us. We will look at the problem and get it fixed.

Chris

[Paul Reid]

Chris

You might care to take a look at "King of the Castle" (HTV)

Episodes listed as missing are in fact in store at the BFI/NFTVA ... HTV donated those for serials which did not exist entirely before the Granada buyout.

They hold episodes 1,2 and also 4,5,6 and 7.
Episode 3 also exists as a domestic copy.
So the whole serial is complete .. even though Granada only old episode 1 themselves!

Other HTV serials like "The Clifton House Mystery" might also need checking for similar

[KennyG]

Hi Chris,

I realise that there will be faults in any database but what I was trying to point out was that the accuracy of some entries is very poor.

Another example is Top of The Pops's listing which shows that an episode on 05.04.84 is missing, when in fact, there was a strike on that date so there was no broadcast. It also shows 04.09.80 as missing, even though there are no missing TOTPs after 1978.

[Christopher Perry]

The King of the Castle chestnut has knocked around for years.

I rechecked this about 7 weeks ago and the NFTVA replied they had no holdings and Granada said likewise.

I will check out the ToTP almost certainly a mistake as you say.

Thanks for your cross-checking.

c

[Paul Reid]

christopherperry said:

The King of the Castle chestnut has knocked around for years.

I rechecked this about 7 weeks ago and the NFTVA replied they had no holdings and Granada said likewise.

Fascinating ... as I believe Alistair McGowan actually viewed the latter episodes of the serial at the BFI for his research when writing "The Hill and Beyond".

I viewed VHS copies eps 1 and 2 there myself, in 2002 at Stephen Street .... alongside two episodes of" Georgian House" (1 and 7) .. and was emailed at the time saying that they also had eps 4-7 of KOTC.

A real head scratcher???

[The Borad]

The entry for Redcap is also out of date. It lists only one missing episode (The Moneylenders) but as we know from the recent Network release more are absent from the archives.

Is there any way that an email address could be set up on the lost shows site in order that people could suggest corrections such as these?

[LanceM]

Christopher,

The search engiune also lists items like Sierra Nine part 2 as missing as well as episodes of Boyd QC ( Open And Shut Case, Hurricane ) that do indeed exist. I also am having a hard time at finding the archive ststus of the Associated Rediffusion show This Week. Do all episodes of this series survive ? I heard someone say a while back that the BFI might have all episodes, but they were not certain. I found a listing for a early episode of this week existing on 35mm film: This Week : Leamington Spa teddy boys, tx 3.7.58. I was currious if this particular edition exists or not ? Any assistance would be appreciated.

Thanks, Lance.

[emitron]

lancem said:

Christopher,

The search engiune also lists items like Sierra Nine part 2 as missing as well as episodes of Boyd QC ( Open And Shut Case, Hurricane ) that do indeed exist. I also am having a hard time at finding the archive ststus of the Associated Rediffusion show This Week. Do all episodes of this series survive ? I heard someone say a while back that the BFI might have all episodes, but they were not certain. I found a listing for a early episode of this week existing on 35mm film: This Week : Leamington Spa teddy boys, tx 3.7.58. I was currious if this particular edition exists or not ? Any assistance would be appreciated.

Thanks, Lance.

The answer to your questions is yes, that exists. The BFI hold the individual film reports of the Rediffusion version of "This Week" and they total almost exactly 400 spread over 1956-68.

[C Perry]

Hi people

Thanks for your eagle-eyed spotting.


The KIng of the Castle thing is a real headache. We have been given so much contradictory info over the years from the NFTVA, I will recheck again.

Other HTV serials like Clifton House Mystery have always survived complete.

I reiterate what I said earlier about Boyd QC etc, we don't often go into message boards to look at what private posters say has been found, and the NFTVA are very bad at sending us posts to say stuff has been returned.

I have changed our data entries for all the show you mention and I am getting the TOTP checked at the BBC to be certain.

As for the Redcap, I fear you may be right though I reiterate what Is aid at Mauso Club 6 months ago, the Canal plus system still shows they all exist, but are just mislaid. I personally lugged the cans around about 15 years ago and they felt heavy then, the theory is that they were taken out and misfiled about 10 years ago. I will change the online listing though to save confusing people.

Thanks for all your help.

Chris

[rumbers]

They also list the 1968 Cliff Richard ATV play 'A Matter of Diamonds' as missing, when in fact it exists in their own archives.

The age old problem of too much uncatalogued ATV material still seems to be true i'm afraid. Shunted from owner to owner over the last decade (Polygram, Carlton and now Granada International) no one has really got to grips with it and gone through the Perrievale archive with a fine toothcomb.

[LanceM]

Which is what needs to be done before the film starts to deteriorate. How much uncatalogued film is suspected to be in the Perrievale Archive ? Possibly there is hope for more lost gems being found. Unfortunately it takes a lot of time and money to do what you are suggesting rumbers. I wish it were not so, and I had some better news. At least a strong possiblity for recovery exists, and that is good enough for me, for now.

Lance.

[h hartley]

the list shows

the BBC's action adventure film serial ' Vendetta' completely missing THREE SEASONS

I suppose like Forsythe Saga it was ineptly shot in B/W?

but how did they manage to loose 39 episodes?

[Alistair McGown]

C said:

The KIng of the Castle thing is a real headache. We have been given so much contradictory info over the years from the NFTVA, I will recheck again.

Other HTV serials like Clifton House Mystery have always survived complete.

Hi, a friend tipped me off that this was being discussed so I thought I'd just chip in my confirmation ... I did indeed view episodes 4-7 at the BFI back in, um, about 2001. These were on VHS taken from the donated 2" masters held at the NFTVA.

I didn't bother asking about 1 & 2, since I had rough VHS copies off those already. Ep 3 was already missing at that time (hence the donation of an incomplete serial?).

3 does not exist in broadcast format but there are rough VHS copies floating around (these might be from dupes made for a convention in the mid-80s?). I have a rough copy of ep3 myself.

The HTV serial I've often puzzled over is The Georgian House - 1 and 3 and 7 ONLY exist from this as far as I know (and I've seen all three). Any more for any more?