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Tonight’s Anglia Television… in 1973
26 October 2016 tbs.pm/9801
TVTimes tells us what was on YTV on Anglia on Friday 26 October 1973. Things worth noting include:
- The incoming Conservative government in 1970 deregulated the number of hours of broadcasting permitted to both the BBC and the ITV companies. ITV responded with a “12 to 12” strategy of coming on air at noon and going off at midnight. Add schools and the long evening film and Anglia has got more than 15 hours on air today
- Charmian, Karl and Julian doesn’t have the same ring that Rainbow’s (12.05pm) later trio Rod, Jane and Freddie had
- Twenty minutes of ITN at 12.40pm. The programme is named First Report in all the listing magazines but not named that on air for some reason
- Anglia repeat of adventure 3 of series 3 of Ace of Wands at 5.20pm, with the neighbouring regions showing it at various earlier times, except for YTV who slip in Timeslip instead. Ace of Wands was a nicely spooky fantasy series for children – 4.20pm seems a better place than 5.20pm, but what do I know – of which only 20 episodes survive, Thames having wiped the first two series
- Episode 10 of season 1 of Kung Fu at 7.30pm features a ten-year-old “Jody” Foster. Jodie Foster’s first appearance on television was in a Coppertone advert when she was 3; she hit big stardom in Columbia’s Taxi Driver in 1976. She wound down her career in 1980 to go to university, and had it stopped in its tracks when a stalker attempted to assassinate president Ronald Reagan to attract her attention; the media, and some of the public, as ever blamed her for his actions despite him having made her life miserable for over a year. Her return to popularity took a long time
- LWT starts what would end up as a 27-part reboot of the book/play/film Billy Liar at 8.30pm. As the listing points out, the originals were a huge hit. This version was not unpopular, but the moving of the timeframe (from the 1950s of the book and 1960s of the film) to the contemporary 1970s removed much of the whimsy. It also meant it has aged terribly
- Got to love regional television. Probe. What a wonderful name for a programme (10.30pm)
- The Late Night Movie at 11.05pm is the fantastic Hammer sci-fi thriller These Are the Damned (originally just called The Damned) from 1961, which wasn’t released until 1963 in the UK as the BBFC kept requiring further cuts to get it down to an ‘X’ certificate. It has since been rereleased uncut as a ’12’
You Say
15 responses to this article
Joseph Kristoff wrote 26 October 2016 at 2:28 pm
Macdonald Carey is best known in the U.S. as the star of the NBC soap opera “Days of Our Lives,” in which he played suburban doctor Tom Horton from 1965 until Carey’s death in 1994; he can still be heard in the opening sequence despite having died over two decades ago!
Richard Jones wrote 26 October 2016 at 3:06 pm
I think broadcasting hours were deregulated in January 1972 and the extra hours, which had crept up gradually before this point, finally became permanent in October of that year. A formal afternoon service was launched with Crown Court, General Hospital etc.
Paul Mason wrote 26 October 2016 at 6:03 pm
This was the template for 70s ITV afternoon viewing.
How can anyone ignore The Amazing World Of Kreskin? George Kreskin was an illusionist, and still is in his 80s, although he sticks to his own side of the pond these days. Although it says Tyne Tees production these shows were Canadian in origin although Kreskin did one British series with Keith Fordyce. Some regarded him as a psychic but at the end of each show a caveat came on screen stating his shows were purely for entertainment and not to foster belief in the paranormal.
ITV stuck to afternoon viewing but BBC1 went back to the testcard due to financial problems in the mid 1970s.
Paul Mason wrote 26 October 2016 at 6:23 pm
Other programmes to note: First Report was always FR until revised as News At One. Magpie (1968-80) only had one original presenter Susan St ranks for one more year(can’t imagine her at 77 but she is!). Magpie was like Blue Peter in flares.
Billy Liar was BRILLIANT as a sitcom. Helen – A Woman Of Today was an orgy of feminine middle class angst which my late mother loved. The drama had a very well known theme tune (SHE) which brought British fame to Charles Aznavour (now about 90).
Paul wrote 26 October 2016 at 7:46 pm
Note that Kath brownlow from Crossroads in Billy Liar
Victor Field wrote 26 October 2016 at 8:11 pm
Also, it’s been pointed out that Alison Fiske was the star of “Helen – A Woman Of Today,” but it the man who played her hsusband (Martin Shaw) was the one who became much better known. Bloody typical.
Raymond Oliver wrote 27 October 2016 at 3:14 am
Also note; Sally Knyvette in General Hospital. She would go on to play Jenna Stanniss in Blake’s 7. My schoolboy crush. (just thought I’d mention it!),
Arthur Nibble wrote 27 October 2016 at 12:42 pm
Looks like film night on Southern, who are also showing a not simultaneously networked “The Sky’s the Limit”.
Anglia missed a trick there – they could have given David Jacobs’ co-presenter full reign of their 10.30 offering and called it “Probing with Probyn”.
Arthur Vasey wrote 27 October 2016 at 4:30 pm
RAINBOW: Charmian – which, for some reason was pronounced Shar-main – was Charmian Dore – who, as Charlie Dore, had a hit in about 1980 or so with Pilot Of The Airwaves – Charmian was replaced by Jane Tucker and the two blokes were replaced by Rod Burton and Roger Walker (he does a fair bit of acting – his most famous role being that of Bunny in the ill-fated soap, Eldorado) – Roger was later replaced by Freddy Marks.
THE AMAZING WORLD OF KRESKIN: This can’t have been made by Tyne Tees – not one episode has ever been screened in the region! – I can only remember seeing it scheduled under Granada in my dad’s daily papers – how can Tyne Tees make a programme, offer it to the network and yet not show it to its own audience? A bit like ATV not showing Tiswas or Crossroads or Granada not showing Coronation Street or University Challenge!
Paul Mason wrote 27 October 2016 at 5:22 pm
Back to Billy Liar – these were new episodes and not rehashes of the book, play or film. In the film the Grandma dies but she is resurrected by May Warden. She played the eccentric widow in the 1960s comedy with Freddie Frinton which was made in Germany but is shown on the continent every New Years Eve. The title escapes me, but she is having a genteel house party with an increasingly drunk Freddie Frinton pretending to be all the guests.
Russ J Graham wrote 27 October 2016 at 5:34 pm
Dinner for One, aka The 90th Birthday. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FksV_7ZYbhY
Gunnar Solka wrote 13 February 2020 at 4:22 pm
I am looking for a scan of the TV program from Sunday, October 28, 1973, two days later.
The documentary “François Truffaut Filmmaker” by Michael Darlow with François Truffaut, Jeanne Moreau, Claude Jade and Catherine Deneuve was shown on BBC One, 22:20. The 60-minute documentation ran in the “Omnibus” collection.
Russ J Graham wrote 13 February 2020 at 4:24 pm
Please see here: https://www.transdiffusion.org/about/looking-for-old-programmes/
Spike Beecham wrote 23 May 2020 at 8:22 pm
Hi,
REsearching a book which involves UK TV listings in 1973. Can you confirm date and timings that the pilot episode of Kung Fu was first aired please. Thanks
Dean Hall wrote 16 February 2024 at 3:31 pm
An interesting schedule of what was broadcast on the very day and year i was born.
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