1991 ITV franchise auction | BBC News coverage | 16 October 1991

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

00:00:00 Intro 00:00:30 1100 News Summary 00:02:18 One O'Clock News 00:16:05 Six O'Clock News 00:28:00 Nine O'Clock News 00:39:44 Newsnight - Jeremy Paxman introduction 00:44:47 Newsnight - David Plowright, Granada 00:47:07 Newsnight - Phil Redmond interview 00:49:16 Newsnight - David Levy report 00:56:41 Newsnight - Michael Grade, Channel 4 01:00:24 Newsnight - tomorrow's newspapers 01:01:07 END

[@johnking5174]

BBC must have watched this with absolute delight, as originally the 1986 Peacock Committee on broadcasting was set up by Thatcher to get the BBC to use advertising. Instead the report said no to that and turned its fire to ITV, leading to the 1991 franchise auction rules. BBC dodged a bullet, and sat back and watched ITV take the bullet that was aimed at the BBC

[@rtc9063]

No outsider would ever want an ITV franchise today.

[@adultmoshifan87]

I actually hope ITV get shut down soon, they’re giving the Tories and Starmer a free pass!

[@ThinkDifferent97]

This might one of the largest collections of News surrounding the 1991 ITV Franchise Auction which was a huge turning point in ITV and British broadcasting in general. Lovely to see all the different reports on it. Looking forward to seeing the rest of it!

[@goodiesguy]

Thames should've never have lost, they were THE ITV company.

[@robertcomer2767]

As Richard Dunn said when Thames lost - companies with no track record were given licences. F*** only knows what s*** was in that Carlton application because they never delivered anything least of all quality. And just like Lady Plowden at the IBA and then George Russell never had to answer to anyone for removing ATV and Thames

[@istvanvilmos8400]

Definitely when you consider the quality of its output such as The Bill for example.

[@dw7920]

As someone who was a Thames staff member on that very grim day it's both painful and nostalgic to see all this again. I well remember all the cameras and reporters camped out on the Euston Road..! As the BBC reports all mention, there was more than a little bitterness and anger felt by the Thames workforce who were very much of the view that the company was punished for the infamous 'Death on the Rock' episode of This Week, broadcast in 1988. ITV - indeed the whole of the TV broadcasting industry - was due to undergo seismic shifts in the coming years due to the advent of multi-channel broadcasting and later the Internet, and Thames et al would have had to move with the times. But this 'highest bidder wins' tactic was - I believe at least - deeply cynical and was the starting gun for a marked downturn in quality on the network. Thanks for posting this - it's a fascinating snapshot of a most formative time for broadcasting in the UK.

[@channelname6069]

carlton overbid, thats why thames lost

[@revinhatol]

​@@channelname6069Worse, the ITC would have even disqualified Thames for the business plan protocol.

[@johnnyballenatl]

From an American perspective: When they bought MTM (makers of the Mary Tyler Moore Show, Newhart, WKRP in Cincinnati, St. Elsewhere, and Hill Street Blues among many iconic shows), it would be the beginning of the end for TVS.

[@thatleeburton]

I wonder if Anna Ford got a little kick out of reporting the demise of TV-am...

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

I wondered that too! Wasn’t there an incident of throwing glasses of champagne?

[@thatleeburton]

@@vhs_videohomesystem Not sure if it was champagne - but it was definitely wine and it definitely went over Jonathan Aitken.

[@japi2k9]

I second the motion.

[@JJVernig]

@@thatleeburton on HIGNFY she told that she had a half full glass of red wine and first had it filled up..🤣

[@johnking5174]

I don't think so, as come 1991, the management who were the ones who sacked her in 1983 were long gone by 1991, and she always had sympathy for the hard working staff at TV-am - she blamed the 1983 management, not the rest of the staff.

[@brucedanton3669]

Thank you for this of course, which is most interesting too. The 1991 ITV franchise auction round did definitely make the channel different from January 1993 onwards, as we now know. Sadly in a way not for the better somehow, as many others have said before too. Well done though too.

[@brucedanton3669]

Thank you there for that so too.

[@blueknight07]

This was a massive blow to Thatcher. The Peacock report did the exact opposite of what she wanted. The loss of TV-AM was also particularly hard as she was close to the Aitken Brothers and Bruce Gyngell.

[@johnking5174]

BBC must have watched this with absolute delight, as originally the 1986 Peacock Committee on broadcasting was set up by Thatcher to get the BBC to use advertising. Instead the report said no to that and turned its fire to ITV, leading to the 1991 franchise auction rules. BBC dodged a bullet, and sat back and watched ITV take the bullet that was aimed at the BBC.

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

I wasn’t aware of the Peacock report. Very interesting. Amusing that the licence fee recommendations were not what the Conservative government had hoped for. Almost 40 years later governments are still trying to figure out how to replace the licence fee. The ITV ‘secret bid’ franchise auction was not the fairest way to keep it competitive.

[@brucedanton3669]

Yes you are of course so right there then too. I remember reading about the Peacock Committee report in the now magazine of old The Listener in July 1986 at the time. For those who do not know, The Listener was a kind of sister magazine to the Radio Times, published then by BBC Publications, although it later was jointly owned by ITV as well but sadly ended though in January 1991so too.

[@brucedanton3669]

Thank you for the reply there so then too.

[@Remote60]

​@@brucedanton3669ITV Network

[@Remote60]

​@@vhs_videohomesystemIndependent Productions

[@Sheffield_Steve]

When The South Bank Show did an episode in the late 90s discussing Coronation Street like it was high art, that was the beginning of the end of ITV as a respected broadcaster as far as I'm concerned!

[@eIucidate]

It must have been pretty exciting growing up with this on the cards every 10 years. I was born in the late 80s so never got to experience it.

[@jamesmitchell8922]

The Ulster logo was shown in its wrong way

[@Vinnytv7679]

And also they wrong the Channel Television logo

[@rtc9063]

15:50 - Strong powers to penalise, fine or remove the franchise - so why wasn't that done to Carlton? Oh hang on because not long after George Russell got his feet under the table at the ITV Network Centre and was never brought to account on the disaster he put in place.

[@plechaim]

This was interesting thank you

[@ianmorris3998]

Since Meridian took over TVS the South has seen a down grade in Television. They got rid of a great company TVS and let a not so good Meridant take over. Quality TV has gone down the pan.

[@jdgreen5422]

Completely agree, TVS was a quality company.

[@christopherhulse8385]

​@@jdgreen5422 Southern Television was good too

[@PhilReynoldsLondonGeek]

@@christopherhulse8385TVS should never have won in the first place, though Southern should perhaps have had to take on board some of their plans.

[@safirahmed]

Oracle text service on ITV was replaced by Daily Mail's Teletext text service on 1 January 1993.

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

I forgot that changed too. A pointless change.

[@safirahmed]

@@vhs_videohomesystem TV Whirl has images and information on both Oracle and Teletext pages.

[@Remote60]

​@@vhs_videohomesystemBBC ITV.

[@thepowerman1000]

I believe I have on VHS an edition of This Week, from Thames, with Ray Snoddy looking at this prior to the awards. I'd love to post it here.

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

That would be interesting to see. Do you have the ability to upload it to your KZbin channel?

[@thepowerman1000]

@@vhs_videohomesystem sadly I don't. I'd have to dig the tape out of the loft and I do still have a VHS device to play it on, but no way of converting it

[@thepowerman1000]

@@vhs_videohomesystem would you like me to find the tape and send it to you? Before long I won't have a TV with a SCART port to connect the VCR. At least if you can convert it and upload it won't be lost. If so, can you message me somehow off group?

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

That’s an interesting idea! I’m not sure how you’d get it to me - I hope you understand I wouldn’t want to give out my home address. I’ll have a think.

[@thepowerman1000]

@@vhs_videohomesystem please do. As I say it'd be a pity to lose it.

[@rtc9063]

Is there anybody out there that looked forward to all that local crap they were forced to make? At ATV, we had gardening in a greenhouse, Chris Tarrant with fish. The only show that was worth watching was Central Weekend Live

[@dlamiss]

And within a year David Plowright was booted out at Granada

[@jamesdelboy]

If North West TV had won the franchise Brookside and Grange Hill would have moved over to ITV

[@adeforeman86]

While Coronation Street would probably have gone to Sky

[@jamesdelboy]

@@adeforeman86 It could have done

[@Sheffield_Steve]

Granada had knowledge of the bidding process and how they won, which was that they helped draw up the bidding process so had inside knowledge of what the ITC would be looking for. But if they lost, they would've possibly sold Coronation Street to Sky or possibly put on one of their Granada Sky Broadcasting Channels.

[@jamesdelboy]

@@Sheffield_Steve Granada Plus did show Classic Coronation Street

[@Sheffield_Steve]

@@jamesdelboy I was referring to the current showing of Coronation Street that would've gone on there or maybe even Sky One might've had it, forcing fans to get a dish if they wanted to see it.

[@grahamnancledra7036]

How wrong they got it with TSW and WestCountry. TSW made programmed for the region, watched by the region, by passing some networked ITV programmes maybe. But West Country did nothing except a regional news programme, watched by no one as the BBC's Spotlight was so superior.

[@jasejj]

Unfortunately I think the ITC got it right with TSW. 16 million was far too high. You only have to look at poor old Tyne Tees so see the path TSW would likely have taken. TTTV was a larger region than TSW, not massively so but significantly, and they bid £15m. The result was catastrophic for regional broadcasting in the North East - they were gobbled up by Yorkshire almost immediately, who proceeded to tear the Newcastle station to pieces. Tyne Tees wouldn't have lasted 1993 out on its own IMO. I'd actually say from what I've seen of Westcountry, that even the Tyne Tees cut off at the knees managed to maintain a better non-news service to its viewers than Westcountry did, but I would say that TSW would have been in an even worse position - the numbers just didn't add up. Now, a TSW that only paid £8m to the treasury would be a very different story.

[@Over_Sky]

I notice that the losers all begin with the letter ‘T’. TV-AM, Thames, TSW and TVS.

[@chriswathen9612]

Yep, Tyne Tees was the only 'T' to survive

[@ferndalemanmk6]

Have the franchises ever been put out for tender since? especially now as one company owns ITV (excluding STV)?

[@johnking5174]

The ITC had planned that these new franchises would be in place for possibly 20 years. However come 2003, Granada and Carlton owned all of England and Wales franchises, which led them to merge in 2004 and become ITV plc, with all the regions minced. So any franchise renewal after then was just a rubber stamping method from Ofcom. 1991 was the last proper franchise round.

[@bnsandp05]

B&N FSTV only has regional franchise names does use national ones

[@RosettaGR396]

George Russell, I initially thought a name sounded familiar

[@johnking5174]

8:50 - ITC allowing Granada to get the franchise again for a mere £9 million a year was a classic example of how Coronation Street was so much needed to the network that the ITC was always going to turn down high bidders. Granada was always going to win. Thames had great networked shows, but nothing as regular as three nights a week, all year round of a key cornerstone in the weekly schedules of ITV. If Thames had had a successful soap opera, they might have won.

[@johnking5174]

October 1991 and local news on ITV was thriving. Along with dedicated local current affairs and magazine shows. Every region had their own full dedicated news team. Now in October 2024 we have merged local newsrooms at ITV with the bare bones basic local news offered, including the three blink and miss them updates during Good Morning Britain, at no set time, as GMB doesn't give a crap about local news.

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

Thanks for all your comments. Really interesting.

[@johnking5174]

@@vhs_videohomesystem Thank you, flad to help. Just on the local news at ITV - back in 1991 ITV had 16 main local news centres in operation. Today in 2024 they have merged local news gathering for all of Scotland into entity, merged Tyne Tees with Border, with all of Border news now produced at Tyne Tees. They merged all of Meridian into one news centre. West and South West all merged into one newsroom in Bristol. All of the midlands now one newsroom, all of Yorkshire and Anglia both have just one newsroom each. Before this, they all had separate opt outs, different studios for dedicated local news. Today it is a shadow of its former self. Disgraceful

[@jamesmitchell8922]

Scottish TV old logo is seen at its time.

[@centrevezgaming4862]

Anna was relishing this moment when TvAM went under after firing her years earlier.

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

Yes, the irony!

[@Sheffield_Steve]

I noticed BBC reporter John Fryer didn't do his research. He started his report saying "When ITV started in 1954...." Actually John, it was 1955!

[@johnking5174]

Technically he was correct. The legislation for commercial television to exist in Britain happened in 1954, along with the agreement to the two original providers of ITV for London - Associated Rediffusion and ATV were given permission to get going, and they needed a year to get ready for the launch in September 1955.

[@Sheffield_Steve]

@@johnking5174 Only technically! 🤭

[@johnking5174]

@@Sheffield_Steve But still correct. Yes, I know I sound like a barrister here, but it is correct.

[@Sheffield_Steve]

@@johnking5174 Technically ATV were only given a licence to broadcast because the ABDC had insufficient money to operate it.

[@johnking5174]

@@Sheffield_Steve Technically in December 1980 ATV won their franchise back. In reality they had massive management changes and a name change to Central Television, but technically ATV won the 1980 franchise renewal.

[@mattjones1154]

I bet Anna Ford was smiling inside as she announced TVam had lost their franchise...

[@thought-drops]

00:16:31 Anna Ford thinking about karma perhaps?

[@dwho19951]

Central and STV should've faced further competition at the time

[@Candolad]

Carlton ended up buying and taking over Central anyway. ATV/Central was probably the best ITV franchise and it was killed off at the hands of Carlton. ITV was never the same from around 1989 when the ITV network gave up in-vision continuity and was effectively merged and called Channel 3 and ITV.

[@dwho19951]

@@Candolad Okay

[@Thebustermann]

​@@Candolad that didn't happen in all regions. TVS for example refused to fall under the 89 ITV look. In vision was already on the way out by then.

[@johnking5174]

Thames Television was the biggest loss and what caused the most destruction at ITV. Yes they survived as an independent producer, but they were needed as a bedrock for the network. Thames prided itself on being a great sustaining service for the other regions. Actually their predecessor Associated Rediffusion was also great at this. Carlton couldn't ever dare do the same as their two predecessors. They couldn't care less about being that sustaining service.

[@andrewbass6837]

If I was government I would revoke all the Itv plc owned franchises from Itv plc & auction them off to small independent production companies with maybe 1 or 2 big regions like London & Wales being nationalised

[@Einveldi]

There just isn't the money in television that there was even then. Small independent companies would never make their money back.

[@anglosaxon361]

Quite good picture for a VHS video, quite interesting. ITV has all merged together now, I wonder what they pay for it now?

[@80sandretrogubbins25]

Unless it's been upgraded a bit, I would say the picture quality is reminiscent of one of the early-generation VHS tapes.

[@vhs_videohomesystem]

I used to always buy Scotch tapes. The weird teenager that I was, was always thrilled with a pack of blank Scotch tapes for Christmas. Sometimes I’d do tape-to-tape dubs if I wanted to archive something using the minimum amount of tape. It was a fine balance between finances and an archiving obsession.

[@rajnirvan3336]

Sunrise never even escalated. Would eventually become GMTV

[@jamesdelboy]

To tell the truth GMTV was actually going to be called Sunrise but as Sky News's morning programme was also called sunrise that's why the name was changed

[@rajnirvan3336]

@@jamesdelboy that I heard

[@jamesdelboy]

@@rajnirvan3336 Ok that's fine

[@AlanTaylorCRSmusicproduction]

I was raised watching Thames TV and it's weekend variant LWT and it was great. Think of all its classic productions. Minder, The Sweeney, The Bill, Benny Hill, Armchair Thriller, Magpie, Spitting Image etc. No one I knew in London watched the BBC, it was all Thames/LWT. Anyone remember what Carlton brought to the table? I really miss those TV idents before programmes started. As for Granada, apart from Coronation Street it had nothing, especially after it cancelled World in Action, but it kept its licence. Now ITV is national and its rubbish. Same old popularist "entertainment" crap such as Britain's Got Talent etc and no interesting regional variation. Bad decision by the ITC.

[@jasejj]

That comment that TSW lost because it offered "nothing spectacular" is complete tosh. We know that all of the incumbents passed on programme quality - else the conversation about finances would never have been had. Quality was considered first - if they passed, and there wasn't a case of exceptional circumstances, it went down to the money. It was never the job of any company to offer a "spectacular" service. They just had to pass the threshold. TSW lost, because £16m would have bankrupted them in short order. You're talking about a smaller company than Tyne Tees, whose successful £15m bid was a disaster for NE viewers, and a company not much larger than Ulster.

[@rtc9063]

If smug Leslie Hill was so clever with his £2,000 bid, why wasn’t he ready to buy out LWT or Granada? No doubt he earned millions when Carlton bought out his shares

[@dominewimbury2039]

This and 31st December 1992 were the two worst days 😡 Thames was mine! Sod Carlton. That was shit! Sorry but it was

[@Sheffield_Steve]

You're absolutely spot on! 👍

[@johnking5174]

Carlton - Television for Morons.

[@jeffreyweitzman6463]

Programmes might even improve - yeah right! It absolutely sent a demolition van through the quality engine that ITV easily into the early 90's and up to then still was...yes LWT and Central still existed after but only for so long before those very inferior replacements such as Carlton seeking to and succeeding in destroying the whole ITV regional setup and yeah - mission succeeded in destroying the model that ITV and the likes of Thames etc. once was.

[@tsr207]

Gus (later Lord) MacDonald's finest hour- Scottish Television's bid was laughable - but now it would be inconceivable that ITV would be allowed to take over STV- owing to the backlash that would arise !

[@johnking5174]

Never say never - everyone thought UTV in Northern Ireland would never taken over, and boy it was and now is minced into ITV

[@pacuk01]

Worse thing that ever happened. No longer local. Glorified BBC with adverts. What ever happened to independent television

[@rtcp2020]

Where girls cried: Titanic Where men cried:

[@dwho19951]

So what would've happened if everyone in the 20th century commonly said "Margaret Thatcher"?

[@coreysothwell3269]

Itvshow1991

[@waynewhite1295]

This is when oitv went downhill