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1968
will forever be summarised by social historians as a year in
which the ideals of the "Summer of Love" disappeared
in a cloud of anarchy and gunsmoke, with tragedy being one of
the outcomes. Paris declared a state of emergency, Enoch Powell
made the controversial "rivers of blood" speech, and
one of the main advocates for peace, Martin Luther King, was
assassinated. Everywhere was chaos and confusion, and this would
eventually bring about the emergence of the more radical
elements of the hippie movement, who believed that they would
lead a youth revolution to a better world.
Unfortunately,
this movement – while possessing a sense of sincere purpose
– attracted dangerous elements, and it is all too easy to see
how the last great sixties gathering at Woodstock in July 1969
led to the December 1969 Altamont incident, in which one of the
audience watching the Rolling Stones was stabbed to death while
they were playing.
So
much for the wider sociological considerations. Surely the world
of television could be cosy, secure and straightforward?
Apparently not, according to a review of the year in ITV 1969,
price 10s 6d, available from all good booksellers.
The
changes had been rung as early as 1964, when Dr. Charles Hill
became chairman of the Independent Television Authority. Hill
was of traditional political stock, often couching decisions in
vague and oblique fashion in (personal) hope of showing a level
of balance. The outcome of some of his statements had very
definite ramifications on the ITV contractors that would echo
through the years.
Hill
had but one objective in mind: that Independent Television
should be open to new companies, and that appointment of a new
contractor would not, and should not, be viewed as a criticism
of an existing contractor. Unfortunately, in at least one case,
it was perceived that way, despite denials from the ITA.
The
first sign of insurrection was a protracted battle with TWW,
made worse by the simple fact that the Earl of Derby (one of the
original supporters of commercial television in Britain) and
Lord Hill were friends. Concessions were made to the company and
its shareholders, with offers made to take a share of the newly
appointed Harlech Television.
TWW
stood firm and said no: eventually, they decided to withdraw
from their franchise four months early, selling this time to
Harlech. They were not ready for this, however, and an interim
service was mounted, referred to as Independent Television
Service for both Wales and the West and Teledu Cymru, until the
new contractor began their service on May 20th.
Harlech did not exactly set the TV scene alight, despite their
line-up of famous faces, and it could be said that they never
really got into their stride until the 1970s.
The
new London Weekend Television started off with a mixture of
ex-BBC and Rediffusion staffers, and a promise to up the ante by
offering sophisticated, intelligent programming. They faltered
on a number of levels, principally because the high ideals of
LWT’s programming did not take into account that the vast
majority of the viewers wished to be entertained, and not
lectured to. The company produced some excellent sitcoms in its
first year, thanks to Frank Muir : "Please Sir" and
"On The Buses" which have stood the test of time, but
at the time, these were not networked and were badly scheduled
by other companies. This was principally because the other ITV
incumbents, no longer held back by Monday to Friday schedules,
could now expand their own programming and pick and choose
whichever shows they wanted to fill the schedules. Eventually
LWT succumbed to market forces to ensure their survival,
attempting to emulate – and partially succeeding in doing so
– ABC Television in its mid 1960s prime.
Talking
of which, ABC was originally expected within the industry to be
appointed as the ITV company for London weekends, for after all
it was a favourite of the ITA and had proved itself as a
producer of quality programmes. LWT put paid to that, but the
company was to be offered a chance to serve London weekdays in a
new guise, by forming a new company in partnership with
Rediffusion. At first, Thames Television appeared to falter in
its aims, but use of the legacy of the parent companies –
"This Week", "Armchair Theatre" and
"Opportunity Knocks", to name three examples –
ensured that audiences remained loyal.
The
rest of the ITV companies were able to retrench themselves
regionally, notably ATV and Granada, but the latter company
suffered from a brief loss of identity in 1968. "From The
North", the previous slogan, seemed portentous and outdated
then, especially as Yorkshire Television had been given half of
their previous franchise area, and the ident changed to a very
plain logo. However, this was a brief malaise, and the company
has become a worldwide brand in broadcasting, owning several ITV
incumbents, and interests in digital broadcasting.
Yorkshire
TV quickly became a major player in ITV, producing network
programmes with Alan Whicker, comedy with Les Dawson and plays
of quality, notably two of the Joe Orton plays previously vetoed
by Rediffusion, which were produced by Peter Willes.
Bringing
us full circle, the summer of 1968 was marked by a technician’s
strike that saw a truly national ITV service for the first and
only time. This brief period saw many shows being pulled off the
shelf and broadcast at a moment’s notice, and the on-screen
identity and continuity was basically ABC-like: this service
came from the old ATV London HQ in Britalian House, Foley
Street. The effect of this was to delay the establishment of the
new companies’ on-screen identities. Oddly enough, this
receives no mention at all in the ITV yearbook other than a
brief table of audience figures.
Colour
and UHF was just around the corner at that time, and notably ABC
and ATV were making a number of programmes in colour for the
USA. The promise of a colour ITV service was pencilled in for
late ‘69/early ’70, and transmitting stations were being
updated and constructed to meet this target.
In
conclusion, the world was in ferment, man had not yet landed on
the moon, The Beatles had just formed Apple, "2001"
was on at the Abbey Cinerama, and ITV had gone through its first
major shake-up. Despite the implications of this, some benefit
did indeed "accrue to the system", as the late Radio
Doctor would have it, and compared to the later franchise
changes, the effects were relatively mild. But the health of the
ITV system was uppermost in Dr. Hill’s mind, and although the
patient spent 1968 in intensive care, the years ahead would see
ITV rehabilitated and in fine fettle. |
