ITV in the Face Episode 12: Night Time

Made in 2015 to celebrate 60 years of ITV, a look back at a time when it wasn't a single channel but a conglomerate of regional channels, all with their own idents and identity: occasionally bizarre, often charming, this is the show that looks the history of ITV in the face.
Episode twelve: Night Time. The story of the late, late shift, starring a cat, some owls, some dancing light and Dani Behr.
bobthefish.org.uk

[@danmcdaid]

"without further ado, lets join Timmy Mallett" well, if we must

[@samholden4171]

I used to watch the nighttime stuff when i couldn't sleep.I miss all of this now😢

[@jasejj]

There is a bit missed out here; Yorkshire TV scrapped "Night Shift" in late 1994 shortly after they introduced their new ident set, and created a set of YTV-branded idents which had some night-time like elements but no branding as such. This meant that Tyne Tees went locally-branded as well. However they did not receive any specific through-the-night idents, so interestingly this meant that TTTV, I think uniquely at the time, had no night branding at all -- the standard idents, with Newcastle-based announcers (pre-recorded of course) went out until 6am. YTV had no through-the-night branding during the C3 era either. This changed in early 1998 when they started using the "dancer" idents just like the London service. However this was different to the standard until August/September (when they started taking the London service completely); during early 1998 YTV did use the idents (with Leeds announcers) but seemed to almost exclusively use the dark-blue, slow-moving one for whatever reason, and did not use any "next..." animations. This gave the whole thing a very dull and moody look generally. Of course, TTTV had never had much enthusiasm for the overnight strand. They initially put out JobFinder and stated this was as far as they were willing to go. When Granada's NT service came along they were not one of the regions initially due to take it, as they were considered large enough to go it alone, but they weren't having any of it. Eventually they (very reluctantly) took Granada's service, stating they would scrap it by the end of the year if the money wasn't adding up. Then in 1990 they stopped bothering selling ads for the service after 2am and left it running ad-free overnight, remaining unconvinced of the worth of the whole thing. I don't think it helped very much that Granada went through a phase around that time of not signalling the CATS advert insertion protocol correctly and TT (and I assume other stations) ended up putting out ads at the wrong times or not at all as a result.

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

I know that's what it was actually called, and even what it's logo was, but seeing Tyne Tees referred to as TTTV just feels *wrong* somehow...

[@jasejj]

@@TheSmart-CasualGamer Just to make it sound even more weird, internally within ITV Tyne Tees was (and possibly still is) referred to as "TTV" (Thames was "THA" since they came later than the North East station). Each company had a three letter code, although quite why they didn't just use "TTT" is a mystery.

[@briansergeant]

Jobfinder, America's Top 10 with Casey Kasem, Phil Donahue, Get Stuffed, Quiz Night, The Hitman and Her, The Big E, Cue the Music and er..James Whale! That was real ITV Night Time not that Nightscreen pish!

[@johnking5174]

@CreeWilly James Whale was always shown on Ulster Television and was popular with Ulster audiences, even James Whale got regular appearances on Ulster's hugely popular Friday night talk show "Kelly" in the early 1990s.

[@annoldham3018]

Get stuffed was hilarious. A sort of student Masterchef. 🥰

[@jgdsgh]

Didn't they also show Married With Children or Sledge Hammer?

[@danmcdaid]

Don't forget Cinemattractions!

[@Dunbar0740]

Not forgetting Friday night essential viewing: 'Raw Power'! Which was rebranded 'Noisy Mothers' after a legal dispute.

[@johnking5174]

Over night TV in the states is just as appalling as in the UK. An example here is what the three main networks in Los Angeles offer after their talk shows end: KNBC repeats of NBC Nightly News, Kelly Clarkson Show and then local news from 4am. KCBS Comics Unleashed, paid programs, repeats of CBS Evening News, CBS overnight news and then local news from 4am. KABC offers ABC rolling World News Now until local news from 4am.

[@johnking5174]

How hard would it be for ITV in 2019 to fill 1.00am until 6.00am with movies. There are plenty of movies available out there from the 1930s until 1980s that could fill the five hour void overnight at very little cost. How hard can it be?

[@31cify]

Excellent point John. All they’re interested in now is shit like Jackpot 747, Judge Rinder and Loose Women. The magic of the old ITV regional variations was ruined when we moved towards digital free view boxes. The bastards then went and switched off the analogue signal. It might not be completely relevant to what you’ve said but I suppose it relates to the video.

[@heggy_69]

Even better, how many of those silent movies are public domain now? Would it be so hard just get a bunch of those on a loop or something? Wouldn't need to pay anyone for rights

[@johnking5174]

@@heggy_69 Exactly, but now ITV is run by a bunch of morons - there are no Lew Grades anymore at ITV

[@jgdsgh]

Why don't they show some of the American shows on ITV2 as well

[@johnking5174]

@@jgdsgh What type of American shows were you thinking of?

[@StuFlyboyReay]

I used to always watch night time when I was coming down off loads of acids. It’s burned into my brain, Prisoner Cell Block H was amazing TV My old mate Fire RIP used to ring me when it was on ❤️😊

[@chloejones1548]

The bottom line is, ITV only tries when it has to. There is now so much competition for night time programmes from 100s of Sky channels that it simply doesn't need to bother

[@rachel.mcgowan]

Doesn’t bother much during the day either. I guess they have secured a sufficient audience of easily pleased people.

[@reginahyde1488]

Amen to that!

[@flemishdog]

It's 2022 and every time I think about EMI, I hear "a plan whose success is best measured by the fact that there is no EMI anymore, and no one can remember what Thorn even was in the first place"

[@jgdsgh]

"Make Sure you're turned on" that could be interpreted in many ways

[@mixtapesfrommylatepartner]

Think that was their intention

[@carolfan4466]

Elise Rayner would do that! 😉😈

[@CJODell12]

20:41. “I told you they were rich. They could afford a black cat with eyes.”

[@Sheffield_Steve]

The ITV Nightscreen looks like something you'd find on a corporate VHS tape! Especially when it is promoting Martin Clunes in Dirty Tricks, looks like some DTP on an Amiga 500/600!!

[@97channel]

12:14 I immediately recognized the backdrop to that ident. It's the very start of the 1966 Batman intro, but played in reverse and looped. The mystery is, why? And the mystery on top of the mystery, is that it has been analyzed by Batman enthusiasts and identified as a spinning New York fire hydrant. But nobody has ever been able to conclude why.

[@Dunbar0740]

Bats come out at night?

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

Maybe they misunderstood the term "The Dark Knight"?

[@anthonyperkins7556]

ITV Nightscreen has been replaced with a new feature 'Relax With ITV', caught a bit of it this morning.

[@bigbabatunde1218]

Saw images of pigeons and ducks around a pond with ambient music over the top.

[@areasquirrel]

Must be a requirement for bellends to do radio on the telly. I remember Chris Evans did it on Sky 1 for a time. My vague memories of Night Time are limited to it being on as background noise for Mum when I couldn't sleep and Dad's doing the night shift. Always Donahue. Second place scary ident for me... NIGHT TIME. If I'd seen Channel 4's at the time, I'd have never gone to sleep again.

[@MegaCheesypeas]

Thank you for this. I was a teenager on the 90’s and I would often have difficulty sleeping, so I would see a lot of this as I’d leave my tv on overnight. I was in the central region and I remember Job finder & the equaliser. In 1995 I remember the neon disco dancer idents which I loved . After nights out late 90’s coming home to cybernet, & Americas top ten. Such a shame we don’t get anything other than gambling and rubbish day time repeats now.

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

This isn't relevant to anything, but can I just say that I love your username?

[@pwskelly]

@MegaCheesypeas it was around the mid 00s when i was a teenager the gambling shows were on. i remember watching quizmania at the time and fancying Lee Baldry

[@goodolgranite8247]

If I had a say in naming a night time tv service, I would call it Nightwatch (or Night Watch (with a space between the two words), I don't know which spelling to choose).

[@saxongreen78]

_RAGE_ (music videos) on ABC was the first all night broadcast we got in my hometown in rural Australia...I remember staying up all night at a friend's house (he had his own small TV and permissive parents) - as an 11yo it felt like we were edgy outlaws!😂

[@janicerobertson1507]

Who was the man with the scary voice saying "night time"? I was petrified thinking he would get me and so would the cat

[@FlyingHeadbutt100]

I could do a pitch perfect impression of that voice.

[@johnking5174]

11:00 - The reasons why Ulster Television were the last to adopt late night television was partly due to union issues, but also this was 1988, and 1980s Northern Ireland was not the place to be working overnight. I had heard that Ulster Television preferred closing down at 12.30am, staff went home and return at 8.00am for first local transmission at 9.25am. Bomb scares, bombs, shootings, tit-for-tat killings were the norm in Belfast, so working to put out an overnight service was not on the list of priorities for Ulster, even having a handful of staff in Havelock House ensuring Granada's service went out was risky, but they had to provide one, so they did from October 1988.

[@jgdsgh]

Actually the reason was due to them initially deciding to take the overnight schedule from Central in Birmingham but at the last minute they switched to Granada's Night Time service

[@anthonyperkins7556]

Yes, it would be no good running a night time service knowing the studios could be bombed or attacked at anytime, so I understand the logic and rationale behind not doing it.

[@georgeholland2934]

I remember when the weird unbranded gyrating neon figures were shown in the Westcountry region in the mid 1990s. They ditched those in favour of their own giant see-through W idents, minus any continuity announcements. Meridian had a community announcement programme called FreeScreen which was shown at 5am and purported to be made by it's security guard. It probably had a four figure audience at best. In addition to Hotel Babylon there was the ghastly Live From The Lilydrome (before Lily Savage/Paul O'Grady hit the big time), God's Gift (presented by a young Davina McCall) and other cheap and nasty programmes produced mainly by Granada and LWT to fill up airtime in the graveyard slot. ITN had an Early Morning News bulletin at 5:30am before GMTV came on air.

[@bigbabatunde1218]

I remember the Hit Man and Her even though I was a bit too young to be properly interested in club music at the time and mostly turned it off after a few minutes when it came on or had to wait for it to finish if there was something I wanted to watch due to come on after it, but I did look forward to Raw Power and Noisy Mothers as I was more into metal music back in the 90's. Channel 4 redefined through the night tv when they did 4 Later, even though some of that was a bit dodgy and not to be encouraged. My favourite of all was an ITV show called Cyber Net, a fairly family friendly video games show from Yorkshire television that was bizarrely broadcast later and later in to the 3 and 4am slots.

[@brucedanton3669]

What about Pyjama Party with Katie Puckrick that ITV showed at night-time in the early part of 1996 I wonder too? I vaguely remember that being on at the time, although I don't think it lasted that long somehow-oddly. I think that it too was shown at different times in the 15 different areas. I also remember God's Gift being on in the listings, but I don't think I ever saw it though.

[@brucedanton3669]

And the late 1980's into the 90s on ITV The James Whale Radio Show, produced by Yorkshire Television in Leeds at the time. This was shown eventually in all the ITV areas at the time, although I seem to remember that here in London it was not shown until April 1989, once Night Network had ended in the March time. James Whale's show later became Whale On, although I don't remember when it ended though. I know when I used to see the other ITV areas panel in the TV Times, later the Radio Times also, you could tell who else was showing whatever at a particular time. Of course later like now, since the 2000s or so, all areas-even STV in Scotland-seem to show much the same thing. But then I guess that is due to ITV now really being all the same company or so, although of course STV is still separate. Thank you of course anyway!!

[@brucedanton3669]

I know for instance too that Central would show different night-time series to most of the surrounding ITV areas at the time. Anglia, Thames/LWT London (later Carlton/LWT of course); Granada; Yorkshire; TVS (later Meridian); HTV West; HTV Wales; TSW (later Westcountry); Channel; Border; Tyne Tees; Scottish/STV; Grampian; Ulster/UTV; although of course TV-am, later GMTV was all the same though too. Central would show Central Weekend on a Friday night after News at Ten, and then they did not take Night Network at all, unlike all the other areas in the end. I know that during the week Thames would show some local series, whilst on a Friday night LWT would show The London Programme sometimes after News at Ten at times. It was a shame really that a lot of these series ended, but so they did too I guess.

[@brucedanton3669]

Pyajama Party-I am not too sure on that one though??

[@anthonyperkins7556]

Over the years ITV's beancounters and auditors moved in cutting costs, and they replaced the cheap movies and filler programmes with teleshopping, gambling, repeats, and boring itv nightscreen because they knew nobody was watching.

[@opentellyonyoutube]

Interestingly, Night Network was also shown as a programme. I remember seeing a Granada Night Time lineup with NN included.

[@brucedanton3669]

Yes, Night Network ran on ITV from mid 1987 to early 1989; although that was only from the start in the Anglia, LWT and TVS regions; all the other ITV companies joined in from September 1988 until it ended; although Central chose not to take it at all oddly. Thank you!!

[@brucedanton3669]

It was August 1987 to March 1989 for Night Network here in the London LWT/Thames area; also Anglia, Channel/CTV, and TVS at the same time. The other ITV companies joined in September 1988 apart from Ulster in the October that year, and Central not at all somehow. However whereas here it was shown Friday to Sunday nights from 1.00am to 4.00am; in the other areas-because it was recorded-they showed it at slightly different times, often later than that.

[@j0hnf_uk]

I remember the initial novelty factor of watching TV in bed, (thanks to having a television set of my own), back in 1987. Being in the Yorkshire region, as I was then, I'd seen video recordings of Music Box, thanks to my brother's video recorder, but was never in the position to watch, 'live', night-time TV until about a year after that finished. That was, until I became unemployed for the first time and, with having next to nothing to get up in the mornings for, it felt perfectly natural to just keep watching TV rather than going to sleep at night. I know.. I was young at the time. The fascination of watching TV, 'into the night', with headphones on, when everyone else was asleep, lasted about 2 weeks in all, mostly because there was generally nothing worth watching on at 2 am in the mornings, unless you happened to like 20+ year old American sitcoms/TV series. Even Jobfinder, which I sort of had a slight vested interest in due to my circumstances at the time, (but there was never anything close to where I lived and most jobs fell squarely into the experienced category), didn't get much of a look-in. As with day-time TV, it's the idea of it that was appealing, initially, but the execution and what they actually fill the air-time up with soon wore thin. Night-time TV did have a tiny bit of a revival for me, of sorts, a couple of years later once I'd got myself a video recorder and would tape those shows that interested me, particularly those shown over the weekends, so I could watch them the following day. But even that didn't last too long. Like most things, once you'd experienced it, you soon ticked it off your list, and moved on.

[@gary.h.turner]

What! No mention of Anglia Television's wonderful "Anglia Through the Night", with the quirky Keith Martin as the continuity announcer? Best night-time programming ever!

[@rtc9063]

So the whole of ITV got 'Night Network'. God only knows why Central took the decision not to show it when we got the utter crap they called 'C' (rap).

[@JennyAnnTea]

When I came in from working in the nightclub the Tyne Tees tv offering was either “The Hit Man & Her” or “Eurotrash”. Both trash. That was the early 90’s.

[@robertcomer2767]

But no mention of the one thing that most people stayed up for in the early days 'Cell Block H'

[@janicerobertson1507]

I used to make my Mum turn off the tv as soon as Cell Block h ended

[@brucedanton3669]

or Prisoner: Cell Block H I guess. That series too, like many in the daytime then, was shown in different episodes at different times-oddly. I wonder if the regions ever caught up though?

[@mixtapesfrommylatepartner]

Carlton's nameless effort probably had more to do with the fact they hoped one day the entire network would be called CARLtON.

[@brucedanton3669]

No doubt they did too.

[@KaleunMaender77]

Oh yay, naming the entire network after a single club in a single place in the entire union which otherwise means nothing to the good people of York, Newcastle, Plymouth, Southampton, Liverpool and Manchester, and Birmingham... If it was a true aspiration of theirs, thank the Good Lord above it didn't come to fruition. And if it was not, there was at least one ounce of good sense in the midst of all that crap 🤢 all in all, thank goodness Granada formed partnership instead of letting Carlton decide everything. Although, that last point is super hollow. Had it been all Granada's to play with, eventually what happened in 2002 would have had to have happened and all the ITV regional stations would have to have dropped the regional identities and just formed ITV as we know it today. When the local news is the only thing that comes out of the studios of eleven of the thirteen regional stations, so much for maintaining regional identity...

[@brucedanton3669]

@@KaleunMaender77 I am sure you are right there too. Odd fact when you think about it: Carlton and Granada were the only ITV companies whether older or newer whose names did not have anything really to do with the areas they served somehow. Whereas Thames, LWT, perhaps not ATV but Central did, Yorkshire and so on all had a relevance to the areas they served. You could say that HTV did not, although that stood for Harlech in Wales anyway. Scottish then became STV and so on. Anglia, Border, Channel, Tyne Tees, Grampian, Ulster became UTV. Southern/TVS/Meridian; Westward/TSW/Westcountry. Perhaps North West would have suited Granada; and of course Carlton was London too anyway.

[@Spi-AU]

@@brucedanton3669 I can imagine the ITA and later IBA preferring the more regional names, otherwise there wouldn't have been the push to change ATV's name rather than just getting them to acting more like a Midlands-first station. It probably made sense that the original "big four" of ABC, Associated-Rediffusion (which did, admittedly, put the London name in belatedly), and of course ATV and Granada, didn't have regional names - they were all companies with and/or wanting much larger remits (such as ABC and Granada in theatres) in the mid-50s than a fledgling commercial television industry. Beyond that... Carlton would be the most obvious example. Harlech may count, especially once it quickly became the empty initialism of "HTV" to placate those on the English side of the Severn. TVS of course took on the same fate of having its initials officially mean nothing in the 1980s, but at least it didn't start like that.

[@brucedanton3669]

@@Spi-AU You are of course so right there then too in those words as well-thank you for them too!

[@5340robert]

It`s worse now they have bloody ideal world for 3 hours. You also missed quiz mania, the mint etc 2005/2007

[@bigbabatunde1218]

Teleshopping is just the worst and more and more channels are signing up for it. Makes Night Screen look like a triumph. Quiz Mania was brilliant for the entertainment with 'Greggles", Debbie somebody and that guy who would occasionally talk about his cat. Those were the dying days of through the night tv bit even they were better than the utter nonsense that's getting broadcast now.

[@shaann11]

Please please, bring back the Night time...!!

[@iamtnarea1503]

Anyone remember Gods Gift, hosted by Davina McCall and Claudia Winkelman. A dating show with voice overs from, and i'm not making this up, Jimmy Saville and Stuart Hall!!

[@davepoole9520]

Why didn't any of the companies consider 'The Night Watch' or 'Night Watch' as a title? That's my ©️ now BTW if ITV want to revive the strand and fancy nicking my title.

[@antster1983]

Here is Peter Victor's article from The Independent, published 5th January 1996, on the Hotel Babylon/Heineken/ITV debacle: --- The multinational brewing giant Heineken was at the centre of a race row last night after it said there were too many "negroes" in the audience of a new television show it is sponsoring. Hotel Babylon, a youth culture and music show, is being produced by Planet 24, the television company set up by Sir Bob Geldof to launch The Big Breakfast. The new show will be broadcast tonight on ITV by Granada Television. Pilot editions of the show featured Dani Behr, a former presenter of the "youth" show The Word, announcing live music acts such as soul singer Seal and the reggae artist Shaggy from a mock hotel bar, with Heineken products on display. But last month Justus Kos, from Heineken's sponsorship department at its head office in Amsterdam, faxed Planet 24 demanding more "Heineken-ising" of the show. "More evidence of beer is not just requested but needed." His 20 December fax also criticised studio audiences: "The audience should be aspirational but not too much on the edge. There was a too high proportion of negroes. Although the audience group seems to be a mixture, director and/or camera crew have a tendency towards selecting just extravagant people. Also 'normal' people should be filmed." The fax from Heineken - advertising slogan: "refreshes the parts other beers cannot reach" - also called for "less men drinking wine, preferably masculine drinks like beer, whisky". Sir Bob Geldof [sic], a founder and still major shareholder in Planet 24, yesterday said Heineken could "go f... themselves" as far as he was concerned. "I heard about the infamous fax and I hooted with derision. It is our programme, not Heineken's." Bernie Grant, Labour MP for Tottenham, wrote to Heineken this week demanding an explanation for the fax. "This is a reflection on the privatisation of television where increasing amounts of airtime are devoted to private productions," he said. "Inevitably, powerful multinational sponsors will seek to influence editorial control. One can't help being deeply concerned when this influence has a racist guise." Last night Karel Vuursteen, chief executive of Heineken worldwide, reacted to the fax with dismay. Replying to Mr Grant, he said: "Having read the original, only one thing can be said about it: it should never have been written. I am truly shocked about the content of the paragraph you refer to, since it is totally against everything Heineken stands for. Heineken denounces all discrimination and will live up to that. I hope you can accept my sincere apology and I can assure you that proper steps will be taken to prevent recurrence." A spokesman for Heineken said its export brand was sold in 177 countries and was the most widely drunk beer in the UK, with 125 million pints consumed each year. He refused to comment on Mr Kos's fate, but he promised: "There will be no repeat of this."

[@mondegreen9709]

"Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!" - Dennis Hopper in 'Blue Velvet'

[@jacksugden8190]

I remember Thames Television’s nighttime which was pretty naff with crap graphics and programming, offered nothing new, just a licence to print money through advertising.

[@johnking5174]

How hard would it be for ITV in 2019 to fill 1.00am until 6.00am with movies. There are plenty of movies available out there from the 1930s until 1980s that could fill the five hour void overnight at very little cost. How hard can it be?

[@brucedanton3669]

Oddly I don't remember much of Thames' nighttime, even though I live in what was their area then.

[@Sheffield_Steve]

The best thing on late night ITV was LWT's "In/Still In Bed with MeDinner" presented by Bob Mills! 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Especially the episode mocking Miss Yorkshire Television 1977! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@sophie_drachen]

If they were to do "through the night" broadcasting in this decade. I reckon how it could work is just by chucking old reruns of older shows, maybe public domain films (silent films), I know that BBC Two air old films in the afternoon, films from the sixties and fifties. Anything older than fifty years should be in the public domain, surely. I think any silent film is definitely in public domain. _Anything_ would be better than an endless loop of a screensaver of a lake with ambient music over it, teleshopping and those godawful roulette shows.

[@reginahyde1488]

In the mock-up of the Carlton dancey idents at the end, is that you?

[@paulmurphy5614]

Great video! I didn’t realise Night Time was restricted to only a view regions. The programming was pretty good, Sledge Hammer, Tour of Duty and most importantly WCW Wrestling!

[@RobDavison]

Thanks for this. Interesting stuff! Btw, at 13:02 that's from a song called "Cassanova" by LeVert. A bop imo.

[@Westy1971]

Central did show some archive stuff. There was 'The Time Tunnel' & 'UFO'! First time I ever saw those series.

[@bigbabatunde1218]

Just goes to show that every area seemed to be doing its own thing as I lived elsewhere in the country and remember The Time Tunnel but never saw UFO until recent years on Forces TV. I probably would have loved watching all that colourful purple haired eye candy through the night back in the 90's even though the adult me nowadays couldn't be bothered with it when it was broadcast on Forces TV over recent years.

[@danielwilliamson6180]

Colin Weston hated the cat in the ITV night time ident at 10:41.

[@tommytaylor4139]

I use to be freaked out by all the eyes and the cat,sure there was a version with the voice over man saying "night-time" in a scary voice?,use to love Donahue,James Whale,Hit man and her,crappy movies,other stuff I can't remember,I'm 46 now,so going back nearly 30 years!!

[@janicerobertson1507]

He freaked me out that man

[@johnking5174]

ITN started to provide overnight news bulletins for the various ITV late night strands. There was a problem, that since there were various versions, no one schedule was the same. So ITN decided to produce a short two minute news summary at 1.00am and 3.00am and it was up to each late night strand to decide where to place the most recent bulletin. This is why all ITN overnight news never had a welcome introduction from the newsreader and it always ended with "I will be back with more news later" - never providing a specific time. ITN Morning News at 5.00am was the signal of the end of each strands overnight service.

[@jasejj]

Interestingly I have had debates with others who are knowledgeable about the workings of ITV who were completely convinced that these bulletins were always live - as you point out this was not the case.

[@peterwilliamskelhorn6675]

@@jasejj i don't think they were apart from the morning news

[@jasejj]

@@peterwilliamskelhorn6675 Correct, they weren't as John King mentions.

[@johnking5174]

@@jasejj Hi, yes only the Morning News was live. The summaries were live in some regions, but not in every region. ITV overnight schedules were not all the same for the entire country. Different franchises offered different programming, which led to a headache to schedule the overnight news summaries. So a compromise was reached, ITN would provide a two minute news summary at 1.00am and 3.00am, but it was up to the regions to decide where to place them. For example Granada may have a Midnight Movie airing from 12.00am - 2.00am with the news summary placed at 2.00am, whereas Thames might have a US import at 12.00am with the news summary at 1.00am.

[@jasejj]

@@johnking5174 It was always clear that they were prerecorded - you could tell just as a viewer due to the different ways the various companies dealt with these bulletins. Granada (and therefore Tyne Tees) would always place a continuity announcement after the bulletin but before the next programme, but YTV would crash straight from the news into the programme. When the next show was networked, this resulted in the same bulletin being shown ten seconds later on YTV than was the case on TTTV - impossible if they were both live. Although, these bulletins often went out around 12:30, so I think the first recording will have been done at midnight rather tham 1am.

[@andytheblacksmith]

The eyes of the woman at the end of the night time logo are of Pamela Franklin and is from the film Legend of Hell House. Miss these things on TV just fitted in perfectly at nighttime TV slots atmosphere along with public information films on at same time

[@SamuelBlack84]

I still clearly remember the Night Time segment as a kid I felt as though I were the only person still awake in the entire world of darkness and silence It was like entering into a new and mysterious world

[@john26874]

HTV night club was far better than Granada`s effort. Loved seeing that opening again!.

[@darkhall8227]

Granada had some great shows late night. The Equalizer being one of them. I could recieve Yorkshire, Central and htv from Granada land back them.

[@peterwilliamskelhorn6675]

​@@darkhall8227the cat night time logo was done by my region Granada

[@darkhall8227]

@@peterwilliamskelhorn6675 Yes i live in the same region

[@peterwilliamskelhorn6675]

@@darkhall8227 which part. I live in Liverpool

[@darkhall8227]

@@peterwilliamskelhorn6675 Blackpool

[@rogerswift1983]

1:17 1 frame from reccess .... (I think)

[@CJODell12]

10:24. What is that music anyway?

[@brucedanton3669]

As before, thank you for this-it is most interesting of course!

[@georgehenry8761]

I can't believe you didn't mention "The Hitman and Her", who is doing the narration is it ex-snooker player Neal Foulds

[@danmcdaid]

Look at the size of that Cornwall!

[@sfreud15]

Great video loved the granada nighttime idents especially the funny and scary ones if you have the funny dubbed ones can you post them please

[@centrevezgaming4862]

or children of the night

[@PaddyWV]

I saw the 24 hour service - kick off on Central, TVS, HTV and by a strange quirk, possibly, Granada too, I think. TVS (where I usually lived) was funny. Central was brash and seemed vlpretty trendy. The heavy beats and swirling, flying around globe ident adding to the fast pace.

[@MarkPentler]

I'm sure I remember seeing the London-based ITV Niiiiight Tiiiiiime in the Granada region. But like, how could I have? Edit: maybe on our Welsh aerial... Edit: I think I've Berenstein bearsed this into existence.

[@leediffusion]

Anglia TV had its own Night Time strand with Paul Lavers as "Mr Midnight!" working from the continuity booth in Norwich

[@twitchygiraffe4636]

@bob the fish productions: Sorry to myther you further, but have you seen the Bay City Rollers night time continuity that i’m talking about, and if so do you know anyone who’s got it on YT or can upload it from a personal file they have?? Good video by the way! About time someone did a video talking about the curious story of ITV night time broadcasting!!!!

[@bigbabatunde1218]

Channel 4's 4 Later segment was full of diverse and interesting stuff as well.

[@mixtapesfrommylatepartner]

Sick Night was a themed offering that stayed with me. Loads of bizarre creative animation.

[@bigbabatunde1218]

@@mixtapesfrommylatepartner Don't remember that.

[@brucedanton3669]

They also showed Network 7 series around 1987-88 (or was it 89?) from what I recall too at the time.

[@brucedanton3669]

on Channel 4 that is, not the BBC or ITV by the way of course.

[@bigbabatunde1218]

@@brucedanton3669 ITV showed lots of interesting music shows throughout the nights back in the 90"s. Raw Power, Noisy Mothers and Cue the Music, as well as other shows. Remember seeing a recording of Girlschool live at the London Marquee being shown late through the night. You'd also get to see clips of bill filling jazz singers as well. Then there was the longest running and greatest computer and video game show of them all 'Cybernet' that got broadcast somewhere between 2am and 5am.

[@twitchygiraffe4636]

I grew up and still live in the Manchester Granada region, and I remember that night time continuity like it was yesterday! There must’ve been some serious hipsters doing the spooky “it’s behind and it’s going to kill you” ident, cos I remember one such piece that had the bay city rollers on it, where they suddenly paused the screen with Derek Longmuir on it and moved his blonde fringe over his face and shoved the night time logo over it?! Can’t find it on YT though? Can only find the “musical interlude” taken from the same rollers programme from the mid 70’s with Lieutenant Pigeon and Mrs Mills as guests which was also used!!!!

[@darkhall8227]

hit man and her

[@DavidSmith-648]

Night Network's logo is basically that of Ulster Television.

[@jamierobinson9097]

Angie Brown calling from Eastleigh in that clip from Daytime UK….my hometown FACT!

[@kangdiamond4358]

Night Time scared me beyond belief

[@janicerobertson1507]

And me, especially the man with scary voice

[@TetraIdents]

[sorry guys, commented on the wrong video. keep scrolling]

[@TetraIdents]

Sorry, I forgot about the whole "Google Forms" thing!

[@TetraIdents]

OH MY GOD I COMMENTED ON THE WRONG VIDEO

[@applemask]

I was wondering what the fuck any of that meant. Thanks for making the day more interesting. @@TetraIdents

[@goodiesguy]

James Whale may be a bell-end, but he's bloody entertaining.

[@johnking5174]

He is on talkRADIO now

[@rachel.mcgowan]

Yeah I like him. James Whale is just about the only programme on talkRADIO I still listen to. Most of that station nowadays is dire

[@JennyAnnTea]

I must admit I did enjoy watching The James Whale Radio Show

[@samholden4171]

Loved the James whale show at nite😀👍

[@JennyAnnTea]

I quite liked watching James Whale

[@MePeterNicholls]

And radio went to bed too!

[@heggy_69]

Granada's night time ident looks like a shoegaze music video lmao

[@Flamboyant-randomist]

To those mentionening the 'scary voice' from ITV night time, I think that may have been Frank Welker or at least someone who sounded very much like him.

[@IssacLHunt]

And you sir sound like A utter useless wheelchair bound spastic.

[@jamesdelboy]

Some ITV night time strands would show a cartoon from what I remember The Trap Door James Bond Jr(a cartoon I hated )and The new adventures of he-man

[@gloomyvale3671]

Best logo and tune for night tv ever, nighttime very eerie and smooth sound unlike the brash ear splitting nonsense of the other channels.

[@Flamboyant-randomist]

Not sure which one you're referring to but if you mean Channel 4, in the mid '80s the tune was Dreamtime by David Vorhaus. I wanted to know for years what it was called then a couple of years ago I saw a clip from about 1987, used Shazam & hey presto.

[@clubadebisi]

i love this video

[@MarkPentler]

Maaaatt! The style guide from LNN, do you have it? I love style guides.

[@applemask]

i.imgur.com/WQ5Q3D7.jpg i.imgur.com/ZdoddSN.jpg i.imgur.com/cm9JoCk.jpg If those work.

[@BobtheFishProductions]

I posted some links but KZbin seems to have thrown a wobbly

[@movesky6696]

have you seen sit up & listen itv london

[@johnnycasinosob6596]

After watching quite a few of these and quite interesting, however the guy narrating has the most opinionated Boring voice I've ever had the misfortune to hear

[@applemask]

If it wasn't opinionated it would be even more boring

[@rachel.mcgowan]

I find the narrator’s voice quite pleasant, slightly soporific.

[@sophie_drachen]

If he wasn't opinionated, it would be like watching paint dry, boring. I really enjoy Matt's dry humour, especially the " _TV with Attitude_ " bit, marketing people literally have *no* idea what young people want.

[@peterwilliamskelhorn6675]

​@@rachel.mcgowani remember the cat logo a little but i remember the 1995 to 1999 logo

[@neilforbes416]

22:00 Not regional "channels", rather regional *STATIONS!* Channels have no regions as they are ethereal. It is the *STATIONS* that have regional presence, like TTTV, Granada, HTV, LWT & Thames, Trident, Yorkshire, etc.

[@neilforbes416]

@@Dog1818YT No they don't! A channel has *NO* physical presence. It is merely a range of frequencies on the VHF or UHF bands while a STATION is a large building occupying a sizeable chunk of real estate anywhere within a city or town, housing all studios and equipment necessary for production and transmission of TV programmes, plus sales and administrative offices. A transmitter tower and housing for the transmitter itself may be on-site(e.g. Station TCN-Sydney's studios formerly in the Sydney suburb of Willoughby) or the transmitter and tower may be away from the studios and the signal sent to it by microwave link(e.g. Station NBN-Newcastle, the studios & offices at Mosbri Crescent, Newcastle, and the transmitter located on Mount Sugarloaf, out past West Wallsend). You can actually *visit* a station and look around but you can't do that with a channel because of its lack of physical presence.

[@jasejj]

Trident was never a station. It was a holding company for a period of just under a decade in the 1970s and early '80s that owned Yorkshire and Tyne Tees. Technically they were not "stations" either as most ITV companies broadcast from more than one transmitter and some of these split services were "stations" in their own right, with separate presentation and news, and in a few cases, some other programming.