ABC Weekend TV

Based in	Manchester, Birmingham, London
Broadcast area	Midlands (weekends) North (weekends)
Launched	24 September 1955 in the Midlands 5 May 1956 in the North
Closed	28 July 1968
Replaced by	ATV in the Midlands Granada Television in the North West Yorkshire Television in Yorkshire
Owned by	ABPC

Associated British Corporation (otherwise known as ABC Television or ABC Weekend TV) was one of a number of commercial television companies set up in the 1950s by cinema chains in an attempt to safeguard their business by getting involved in television which was taking away their cinema audiences. In this case, the parent company was the Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), who initially did not wish to become involved in the new broadcasting system, but were persuaded to do so by the Independent Television Authority (ITA) and the head of their Pathé News subsidiary Howard Thomas, who became the new company's managing director. ABC Television (UK) 1960s logo This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... This article is about the City of Manchester in England. ... This article is about the British city. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The north, the midlands and the south Northern England, The North or North of England is a rather ill-defined term, with no universally accepted definition. ... is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 125th day of the year (126th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A car from 1956 Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 209th day of the year (210th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British film production company active from 1927 until 1970. ... Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British film production company active from 1927 until 1970. ... The Independent Television Authority (ITA) was a body created by the Television Act 1954 to supervise the creation of Independent Television (ITV), the first commercial television network in the United Kingdom. ... Pathé Newsreels were produced from 1910 until mid-1956, when the newsreels in general stopped production. ... Howard Thomas (c 1909—6 November 1986) was a Welsh-born British radio producer and television executive. ...

History

When one of the consortia that had been awarded a franchise in 1954 collapsed, the ITA approached ABPC to step into the breach. Accordingly, the Corporation agreed to take up the franchises to broadcast on Saturdays and Sundays to the Midlands and the North of England. The contract agreeing to do so was signed on 21 September 1955, the day before Independent Television (ITV) launched in London. A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organisations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal. ... In law, an exclusive right is the power or right to perform an action in relation to an object or other thing which others cannnot perform. ... Year 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Independent Television Authority (ITA) was a body created by the Television Act 1954 to supervise the creation of Independent Television (ITV), the first commercial television network in the United Kingdom. ... is the 264th day of the year (265th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

This gave the new ABC five months to come on air in the Midlands, the service launching on 24 September 1955. Soon afterwards, they were also up and running in the North - they went on air there for the first time on 5 May 1956. is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 125th day of the year (126th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A car from 1956 Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

ABC's original presentation style was criticised by the ITA for being bland and too much attached to the existing ABC Cinemas brand. Taking this criticism to heart, ABC Television developed a strong corporate identity, effectively becoming the first British TV station to recognise the importance of corporate branding. Its new animated logo showed three triangles joining up to form a bigger triangle (in geometry the points of a triangle are often labelled 'A', 'B' and 'C'), accompanied by a xylophone playing 'la-te-doh' (or 'A-B-C' on the tonic scale).

Networked programmes from ABC included the drama series Police Surgeon,The Human Jungle, Redcap, The Avengers, the series of one-off plays in ABC's Armchair Theatre, the pop shows Thank Your Lucky Stars and Oh Boy!, plus the gritty dramas Callan and Public Eye (both of which continued as Thames productions after 1968). This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Redcap is the name that has been given to two separate TV series on British television. ... The Avengers is a British 1960s television series featuring secret agents in a fantasy 1960s Britain. ... For the album of the same name, see Armchair Theatre (Jeff Lynne album) Armchair Theatre was a British television drama anthology series, which ran on the ITV network from 1956 until 1968 in its original form, and was intermittently resurrected at various points during the 1970s. ... Template:Infobo Callan was the title of a British action-adventure television series that aired on ITV broadcasters over four seasons spread out between 1967 and 1972. ... // Introduction and background Public Eye was a British television series that ran from 1965 to 1975 (7 series in total). ...

Weekend franchises were scrapped - except in the London area - in the 1967 round of franchise renewals. ABC then looked further afield, pinning its hopes on the London weekend franchise, although they also picked the new Midlands seven-day contract as a second choice.

Goodbye To Associated British Corporation

After 12 years of brilliance, with a few early hiccups, ABC were determined to go out in the style their viewers had become accustomed to. Clips of continuity from their final two weekends on air reveal a real sense of fun - “sampling” Len Barry’s “1, 2, 3” during their weather announcement, and making jokes about the editor of the TV Times. The good-humoured billing in that organ for their farewell programme “Goodbye From ABC” - “put out the studio cat for the very last time” - reflects their good grace, but then, after all, they had a new London contract to look forward to in two days’ time.

The 1968 Contract Round

In the event, ABC were offered the London weekdays franchise on condition that it formed a joint company with Rediffusion, London. This was agreed, with profits being shared equally between the two but with ABC maintaining control over the new company, Thames Television. Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion London, was the British Independent Television (commercial television) contractor for London, on weekdays between 1954 (transmissions started on September 22, 1955) and July 29, 1968. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Thames Television in turn lost its franchise in the 1991-2 round of franchise renewals, although the company continues to exist as an independent programme producer, now a part of the FremantleMedia Group and known as talkbackTHAMES. FremantleMedia (formerly All-American Television and Pearson Television) is a division of RTL Group which holds the rights to the Goodson/Todman game show library which includes such classic game shows as The Price is Right, Match Game, Ive Got a Secret, and Family Feud, as well as non... talkbackTHAMES is a British television production company, a division of FremantleMedia (part of the RTL Group). ...

Names used

ABC Weekend's former studios in Didsbury, Manchester.

ABC Weekend's former studios in Teddington, Greater London.

Company names: Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1618x1056, 273 KB) Former studios of ABC Weekend TV in Didsbury, Manchester. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1618x1056, 273 KB) Former studios of ABC Weekend TV in Didsbury, Manchester. ... Didsbury is a suburb of Manchester, in North West England. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1668x1092, 231 KB) Summary Teddington Studios near London. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1668x1092, 231 KB) Summary Teddington Studios near London. ... , Teddington is an area of London, England on the north bank of the River Thames, between Hampton Wick and Twickenham. ...

• Associated British Cinemas (Television) Limited (1955-1968)
• Associated British Corporation (1966-1970s on exports and on continuing productions on Thames)

On-air names: Year 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ...

• Associated British (1956)
• ABC Television (1956-1968)
• ABC Weekend TV (1964-1968)

Initials used: A car from 1956 Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Also Nintendo emulator: 1964 (emulator). ...

• ABC (1956-1968)

Nicknames used:

• All Bloody Commercials (joke nickname attributed to Bob Monkhouse)

Slogans used: Bob Monkhouse presenting Celebrity Squares (Image copyright British Film Institute) Robert Allen Monkhouse OBE (June 1, 1928 – December 29, 2003) was an English entertainer in the traditional sense, though primarily known as a comedian and game show host. ...

• ABC - Associated British in the North (1956-1958)
• ABC - Associated British in the Midlands (1956-1958)
• ABC, your weekend TV (1958-1964)
• ABC, your weekend television in the north (1964-1968)
• ABC, your weekend television in the midlands (1964-1968)

Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

• Category:Associated British Corporation productions

External links

• ABC at Large from Telemusications (unofficial history site)
• Animated ABC logo, c.1960 from 625.uk.com (Macromedia Flash 6 or later required)
• Animated ABC logo, 1964 from 625.uk.com.