Testcard BBC 1 (Extended Authentic Music Version)

[@dvidclapperton]

Bring back the Test Card to replace the hours of daytime garbage that's on BBC1 and BBC2 now.

[@Hedgehogsinthemist123]

I’d spend hours playing along to the music on my toy piano as a kid

[@BruceDanton-xw6eg]

If only too somehow there.

[@SanFran51]

In case you are wondering yes the BBC did get mail asking if they can get a copy of the music. Of course it's stock music used by TV broadcasters which sadly means it wasn't for sale.

[@riceboy1701e]

Dear God...I favorited this one five (six? seven?) years ago, and it's still here. Man, this is THAT good!

[@rockradio928]

The X on the blackboard was where we lined up the static convergence of the three colour guns.

[@MrHairyNeck]

I'd rather watch this than most BBC and ITV programmes, especially crap like Strictly and X Factor. Thanks for posting.

[@BruceDanton-xw6eg]

You are so right there too.

[@playpenproductions1287]

The three pieces are: 1. High Ball played by the Otto Keller Band 2. Fings Ain't What They used to Be played by the Oscar Brandenburg Orchestra 3. The Alamo played by the Joe Palmer Orchestra All three were transmitted only on BBC2, not BBC1.

[@WB0916]

This was posted a month after I was born.

[@davidthomas9190]

this makes me feel old more than anything else i've ever looked at on youtube

[@fixman88]

Thank you for showing me the 625 site! There's a ton of amazing things there! Believe it or not I have no less than 8 different Flash clocks going right now (BBC1 '82 '84 '85, BBC2, Yorkshire TV, Rediffusion, Thames TV, and Border Television!) I also downloaded 5 or 6 screensavers! Thanks ever so much!

[@mikesoundcity]

Hey Doug. That takes me back! I started in the tv trade in1967BC (before colour Lol). Loved all the tc music. ITV daytime tc music was my fave though. Still in the tv trade now!! :-( :-)

[@JohnTheRails]

I did that too back in the 1960s. Still have some of the recordings too and some of them have been uploaded if you're interested.

[@JerryNapper]

i'm 21, and my granddad loved this sorta music, when he was around, i used to put this on, i'm going before 2003 and i still love the songs :)

[@digitalbroadcaster]

Thanks Ajay. Much appreciated. He has a long long battle ahead of him at the moment unfortunately and doesn't want to breath on his own at the moment. He tries his best though. Thanks once again.

[@buzby303]

That's because time didn't matter then! Those were the days... I use this now for when i' m getting ready to go out on a Saturday night.

[@MikeFairman]

Daytime television at it's best! All we need now is a couple of colour trade test films. The only other things I remember being shown during the day was Play School & the cricket. When switching between BBC1, BBC2 & ATV some testcards would look faded & bleached, perhaps my telly was on the blink........

[@CatbushAndLudicrous]

Way back, there was only a few broadcasting hours a day. When they ran out of stuff to show, they put on the test card until the next program came on. :)

[@digitalbroadcaster]

At last! Fifth attempt that was! Must have been the code that KZbin didn't want to digest.

[@lollygaggle]

Does anyone remember the TV trade test transmission films from about 1970? These featured heavily in my early memories. There was one called 'The White Horses' (I think), which was about power boats and the music for that was fantastic. It was on about 15:50 in the afternoon before 'proper' stuff was broadcast like Jackanory. Anyone else recall it?

[@mbow555]

NOW - if only someone somewhere could post up those brilliant Shell/BP film shorts that were used as part of bbce trade test transmission around 1968. That would be awesome! Does anybody remember the one with girl at the petrol pump station waiting for customers to turn up. A cult classic. Does anybody have info' about these films? Hope so. AM WAITING!

[@excommune]

Yes! Birth of a Rainbow was another - about river trout, another instructional film was about high voltage safety including the acronym Switch Insulate Dump Earth. I was in the industry and Rank Bush Murphy had a free standing panel about 10 foot square generating a video test signal in a ground floor lab. We produced the first ever all solid state colour TV in the 1960s.

[@brhodes0]

thanks for putting this up and best wishes to you!!

[@Tonyncher]

This actually made me feel a bit tearfull lol, I'm living in America now all these years later. This made me feel really homesick and very old......and yes I used to be freaked out by the 'Frankenstein" thing too, but I knew all the tunes...

[@fraserkatie]

@nedster01 The girl on the test card is a girl called Carole Hershee , and the doll was Bubbles the clown, and that was to show colour and the noughts and crosses game was to show the quality of the television of the sharpness of the picture. Carole Hershee i=was chosen as she was an engineers daughter!

[@brucedanton3669]

Her name actually was Hersee by the way without the h, although I know what you mean though too. Others have put that on here too I know as well. Thank you!

[@fixman88]

I actually watched the whole thing (I was also watching Mythbusters, but still...) You animated the clock, too? I wish there was a version I could put on my computer desktop!

[@trckfl1f2lds3]

Thank you for this info on the artists ! Great music.

[@timonline2000]

Great effort. Thanks!

[@stigmundfreud]

what a brilliant bit of history, I used to sit watching this waiting for telly to start. It wasn't until I was in my teens I realised that it was just girl and a doll, I thought the green jumper of the doll was the head of a green man - then I believed what my mum said about eating sugar cubes

[@Kalper7]

@tubedougz This video is linked to on the Rock Paper Shotgun video game review website on article called "Please Stand By".

[@robhingston]

Will miss you so much

[@digitalbroadcaster]

Thanks for the kind words. Saw him today (a daily ritual) and managed to pick him up in his incubator. He's like a moving childs doll. I'm positive about him and just really wish I could 'will him' to survive. Everything is such a turmoil at the moment as you read about these families but then you become one of them! So surreal and worrying. My fingers are crossed anyway. Regards. DAve

[@jamessharpleymyru3886]

Groovy Baby!

[@digitalbroadcaster]

Carol Hersey (the girl) hated this card as she was ridiculed at school about it. Her dad was the BBC engineer who designed it and stuck her image with her toy clown (Bubbles - she still has it) into it. Lots of technical stuff with this pic. I remember these well. TV wasn't on all the time and closed at midnight normally. Nobody missed it much though. Then=Appalling shows. Now=Appalling shows. No change then! Just good memories.

[@fireblade9299]

musics sounds like something from a carry on film. very hypnotic picture.

[@starlord2112]

We really need an HD test card. Setting up a perfect picture can be a bit of a mare!

[@Hedgehogsinthemist123]

I’d spend hours in front of the screen playing along to the music on my toy piano as a kid

[@Nat23]

this is so good i used it for the ending music on one episode!!

[@trckfl1f2lds3]

Great upload. Thank you.

[@ItsABeautifulDay.]

I love the caption omg

[@digitalbroadcaster]

Hey? Nice gesture. Thanks. Well the little guy is now off the ventilator and onto CPAP . He's fighting. Everything else? Ha! My luck has been so bad, it wouldn't surprise me if a satellite fell from orbit and landed on me. Christmas is cancelled (but not for the kids). My family has just been cheated out of Christmas by a heartless ex-employer. Apart from that....things are fine (we still have shoes!). :o)

[@mathsart]

i love testcards if only you could buy them!!

[@cbak12sg]

I recognise Fings Ain't Wot They Used To Be! I used to drive my Mum up the wall by turning the volume up when the tuning signal came on!

[@leatherpuppy78]

ach! Just seen the UK site! 69 pence you can't beat that!

[@MrHairyNeck]

Same here. And I thought I was the only one. ;)

[@g7mzh]

@johnmik67 Carole Hersee. She is a dressmaker and lives in Hampshire.

[@7554EdwardG]

Breezy and very listenable. Does anyone have the track listings and artists for these 3 pieces of music?

[@digitalbroadcaster]

Haha! You could always tell what boys kissed the screens back then as their hair was always quiffed at the front due to constant static electricity pulling it forward. Maybe all those Teddy Boys had VT of Carole and thats how rock and roll started with the quiffs? Maybe its pre-tech-speak for ROCK the TV set to stop picture sync ROLL...aim mouth...and kiss the screen. LOL.

[@andy240190]

The girl and the clown were so creeping I so glad they were not on Irish tv

[@MarkAJAgi]

Blue Peter never followed Play School. Play School was normally the first childrens program of the day (Repeated from BBC 2) then possably Jacknoary a few more programs and Blue Peter the last one.

[@lumpfish99]

i remember this as a kid but i never got what it was....btw what happened to the girl any clue? she must be like 50 now.....

[@Nat23]

thanks! i added you as friend

[@leatherpuppy78]

I only really want that one track, but let me think about it!

[@totalrod2]

Love it! I collect library music (KPM, DeWolfe, Carlin, etc.). Syd Dale is one of the greatest composers of all time....period! Is there any way you can share the track listing info for your test cards? Perhaps not here, but maybe someplace else? Please let me know. Thanks again for the nostalgia!!

[@jaggy-snake]

If I stared long enough I could swear her hand moved... Exciting childhood eh?

[@sibionic]

Funny you should say that. It's *exactly* what I thought it was for my entire childhood. The clown's hand becomes the alien's nose, correct?

[@digitalbroadcaster]

looks like that link failed. Search for Carol Hersee. Look for the en.wikepedia/carole_hersee link. Click on it. Click on the Carole Hersee: Talking about the test card link. Enjoy the content and seethe at another never before seen aspect of Bubbles the clown!

[@pikachops]

ME TOO and it scared me as well

[@TahreyUK]

Blimey, they're really going for it, aren't they...

[@TheJlook2000]

haha re tape recorder i did that as well - its funny how you think you're the only one who did that at the time

[@sircles-net]

She’s aged well

[@buzby303]

.. It gets me in the mood ! Hahahahaaa!

[@amck72]

When I used to look at the test card, the more I looked at the clown the more scary it looked. Does anyone know the name of the first song playing ?

[@digitalbroadcaster]

Are we the only two sad 43 year old gits still up on KZbin from Wales and Winchester? LOL. Maybe you kissing those chrome images of Carole gave way to the term 'flies back, transform her' Shortened to flyback transformer. Oh dear, my jokes are tired now so its off to sleep I think. Have a critical condition newborn son (3mnths prem) in hospital for next 3months so have my usual daily visit tomorrow A.M. Gotta be strong for all. C/ya. Dave.

[@TullioWalker]

Have you checked Apollo Sound records? They have a large collection of Test Card cds. Is better to have them on cd than mp3. These are old recordings and mp3 is much compressed. Bad sound, IMHO.

[@johno4521]

being pedantic here, but there's only four seconds between the clock markers!?

[@jexplink]

You still haven't told me what a "gonk" is!

[@digitalbroadcaster]

telegraph dot co dot uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2007/05/25/nosplit/bvtvtestcard25.xml This link is about Carol as she is today. I'm having a bit of trouble posting this so hopefully it'll work THIS time. Nice one KZbin for failing! Change the 'dot' words for .'s

[@karlrandom]

Ha ! Ha! Ha ! and don't forget that kisses (X) are blown as well as bubbles (O) ! This condition is referred to as the TESTOX syndrome....the very fear of the Test card coming to life after endless hours of goggling leads in some unfortunate cases to a fantasy of bubbles and kisses being blown in a never ending game of Noughts and crosses....it's a Cat's game... no one wins...the only cure... DETESTOXIFICATION (aka 24hr TV) !!

[@OscarWilkins]

Great music! What's the name of this track?

[@amck72]

The clown used to scare the shit out of me, very creepy.

[@TahreyUK]

1/ Google is that way > 2/ "pm" is in the afternoon, genius.

[@loralloyd4053]

Can play the music for the TV dog barking

[@7554EdwardG]

Playpen - many thanks for this information. As a matter of interest, do you know this because you are part of a Test Card forum or group or are you just an afficionado of test card music?

[@leatherpuppy78]

Love this one! Anyone know where I can get hold of the "Loose Cover" song, have searched for years without success!

[@octagon79]

They played Aphex Twin over this for a while, Rhubarb if I remember correctly

[@koopa-y9i]

And i think this was the cool thing about BBC1but it just plays a beep noise cuz of TV enjeerning

[@barriep9]

Hairy neck I couldn't agree with you more

[@TommyInVancouver]

I watched a bit and then skipped forward. Didnt see anything other than the test card. Was something supposed to happen?

[@SPTSuperSprinter156]

This is neat. I'm a bit young to remember testcards very much although I have seen it a few times. What was the point of it, to allow you to calibrate the TV set perhaps?

[@lukasmadrid1945]

Well back then the gaps between TV shows were long and with no adverts this would work as a test and entertainment

[@pp312]

+NoYouCant HaveMyName Yes, it was used to calibrate the set. The grid lines were used to eliminate bowing and distortion (there were controls for all this--height, width etc). One could spend quite a lot of time getting everything--literally--squared away, but at least there was music to relieve the boredom. You young whippersnappers...you don't know how easy you have it these days. :)

[@SoakingTheDog]

@RamTerritory Why wouldn't it?

[@andrewmullen5034]

pretty girls 1978 tape - bart status quo get hold of this remodel it into a 2015 hit..

[@McPfoot]

Rock paper shotgun.

[@karlrandom]

@tubedougz Ha ! Ha! Ha ! and don't forget that kisses (X) are blown as well as bubbles (O) ! This condition is referred to as the TESTOX syndrome....the very fear of the Test card coming to life after endless hours of goggling leads in some unfortunate cases to a fantasy of bubbles and kisses being blown in a never ending game of Noughts and crosses....it's a Cat's game... no one wins...the only cure... DETESTOXIFICATION (aka 24hr TV) !!

[@redmercer]

what in the goddamn hell is Blue Peter what the hell are you Brits watching in the morning

[@borgduck]

Red lorry yellow lorry red wire yellow wire..

[@TruthThanks]

this could of been used on fall out 3

[@koopa-y9i]

I would actualy watch this more than BBC1 than ITV stuff cause its boring:(

[@TV-pi8xp]

서정은 얘가 코 했어요 하지마라 안돼

[@garychap8384]

Erm, I really don't want to be _"that guy"_ ... ... but that's a BBC1 test card F yet the music is from the BBC2 roll... also the "returning" text is wrong and the clock must be a millenials attempt as they clearly don't understand how analog clocks work _(In Britain, we have 60 seconds in a minute - we're kinda funny like that)_ ... ... regardless, it still beats most of the utter shit that's on TV these days : ) Hands up if you remember the 'BBC for schools' clock with the disappearing pips ... schoolkids up and down the country used to 'shoot' the pips out with finger-guns while the teacher lined up "Look, Listen and Learn" and other weirdly trippy programming : ) Ah, memories : )

[@davidthomas9190]

shit was boring before satellite tv and games consoles

[@chiefofspace0]

Video games are pretty boring to me.