The 1950s
The 1950s is generally seen as the formative decade of
television, when the medium moved from its scientific origins to
its place as a ubiquitous household item. The fifties certainly
marked the medium's most rapid growth, surpassing even that of
radio broadcasting in the 1920s.
In the early 50s very few homes
possessed a television set, and in Britain there was only one TV
station - the BBC. Most people went to the cinema if they wanted
to see moving pictures and the wireless was the king of home
entertainment.
The British nation came to a standstill on June 2nd 1953 as 20
million people across the country huddled in corners peering
avidly at a small piece of furniture with a grey screen. They were
watching magic pictures of the coronation of Elizabeth II in
Westminster Abbey. For many it was their first glimpse of an
invention that has gone on to change the face and behaviour of the
world.
Fewer than two million British homes owned a TV set at the
beginning of 1953, and these were mainly in London, Manchester,
Birmingham, Cardiff and Glasgow. But in the build-up to the
coronation, 526,000 sets were sold as coronation fever swept the
nation. The first commercial British channel, ITV, was launched on
September 22 1955. ITV's impact was immediate. The British public
were fascinated by its newscasters, cash quiz shows and American
programs - and commercials!
 The 1960s
If the Fifties were the innocent childhood of television, the
Sixties were definitely the period of rebellious adolescence. Just
as the world underwent dramatic social and cultural change, so
television led the way in reflecting the Swinging Sixties.
In the USA until 1965 - and in England until 1967 - television
was in black and white (if you wanted colour you went to the
cinema and watched a movie) and everyone was learning on the job.
Viewing hours were also limited. TV did not broadcast 24 hours a
day. It did not even broadcast continuously. There were scheduled
breaks throughout the day and during the sixties there were many
unscheduled breaks as well during which a piece of cardboard would
be slung in front of the camera urging "Please do not adjust
your set."
The 1970s
The 1980s
There was a massive growth in video recorder ownership in the
1980s, so we were now able to have more control of things (if we
could work the timer), and the VCR became the new necessity. In
1985, 94% of American households had a television set, and 50% had
a videocassette recorder - double the number from only a year
earlier. Ah, but which to buy? Beta? VHS? Beta? VHS? One of the
most pressing decisions in the early 80s was which video system to
choose for your expanding home entertainment unit. By 1982 there
were nine VHS manufacturers and three Beta. The term 'Beta Loser'
entered the lexicon as that format went the way of 8-track
cartridges.
Also revolutionary, and very pernicious to networks and
advertisers, was the invention of the remote control which first
appeared in 1983. For the first time viewers were able to take
control, flip channels and avoid commercials. Meanwhile, with
satellites now in orbit around the Earth, news reports became
instant and the world shrank. Television made us see more and made
some of us care more. When the Chinese students were trying to
democratise their world we saw it happening live. In fact, we knew
of the events in Tiananmen Square before people elsewhere in
Beijing did!
There was much more television too. British commercial
television's second channel (Channel 4) was launched on Tuesday 2
November 1982 at 4:45 pm. The very first program broadcast was
Countdown with Richard "Twice nightly" Whiteley and
Carol Vorderman (then Mather), long before she turned up on every
other program and commercial in Britain. By the close of the
eighties, the box in the living room (and the ones in the bedrooms
and the kitchen!) became unquestionably the main source of our
entertainment.
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