ATV For Teenagers Only Archive status

[Kev Mulrenan]

Do any exist?

[Phil Leach]

I would have thought that the chances were very slim considering it was a local programme shown on ATV Midlands from the summer of 63 until October 1964 and would have been live (or possibly as-live).

If they weren't recording the much higher profile networked 'Thank Your Lucky Stars' I'd be surprised they were making film recordings of For Teenagers Only!

[lpmoderator]

Lucky Stars was a completely different company though, with different archiving policy and history (ABC, not ATV). ATV's programme survival rate is a lot higher than ABCs. No idea if any eps of For Teenagers Only survive though - unlikely i'd have thought, bearing in mind the regional nature of the show (not to mention it being about pop music, which wasn't being preserved very much at all at the time). Does anyone know for sure?

[Phil Leach]

It's true that it was different companies but it would have been a lot of the same personnnel and technical facilities ie Alpha Television at Aston. The studios and staff were shared between ABC and ATV Midlands. Although of course a lot of TYLS was done elsewhere in 63 I think Birmingham was the main base.

[Phil Leach]

I'd also doubt that ATV Midlands had any sort of archiving policy when it came to studio pop or light entertainment material. One of their big successes at the time was 'Lunchbox' and I think they kept one out of over two thousand shows! That was only recorded so people could see the show with a view to screening it I think. The only material that was kept was original film ie news inserts.

[lpmoderator]

No, I don't think ATV had any sort of "archiving" policy with regard to pop shows either. But what remains of their archive is a whole load more than what remains of ABC's, making the chances of an episode surviving a slight bit higher (but that's not saying a lot for the chances of this being so!)

[Stephen Doran]

Lunchbox episode is a extra on one of the Crossroads DVDS.