Comments for THIS IS ALPHA from Transdiffusion

Comment on ATV programmes and personalities – 1 by Vicki Heath

Vicki Heath — Sat, 03 Jan 2026 07:23:43 +0000

My dad worked at ATV in the 50s in the scenes dept, Peter Heath
He worked with Burt Chamberlain, Bernie Pain, Tom Smith, Tommy Powell and Ray Lodge. He has very fond memories of working on Lunchbox, Thank your Lucky Stars and After Hours.

Comment on “Let’s Go” by Russ J Graham

Russ J Graham — Mon, 28 Apr 2025 13:20:51 +0000

In reply to Bernard Robinson. You are arguing with an article originally published by Alpha Television in 1959, but your point is noted.

Comment on “Let’s Go” by Bernard Robinson

Bernard Robinson — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 21:43:49 +0000

Joe Loss & his band & EMF ten pin bowling which followed on ITV were separate programmes to ‘Let’s Go’ presented by Berkely Smith (former Director of OBs for ITA Southern Televison Ltd.?).

Comment on ATV programmes and personalities – 1 by Alison Fowles

Alison Fowles — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 17:41:29 +0000

I was Doreen Jones PA 1968-78
She was a young casting director along with Joan Brown and Rose Tobias Shawn
My maiden name was Alison Harding
I was in London today in the area and went to where ATV were in Gt Cumberland Place
It seems to be apartments now

Comment on ABC Midlands opening with Bill Steele by Russ J Graham

Russ J Graham — Sat, 23 Nov 2024 21:21:28 +0000

In reply to Michael Oliver.

I’m afraid your memory is slightly faulty, Michael!

Tyne Tees had a 7-day contract and didn’t hand over to ABC at the weekends. The area they covered wasn’t profitable enough for a 5-day contractor to prosper there.

And David Hamilton was a presenter on ABC in the north (what would later be the Granada and Yorkshire regions). He was on ABC in the midlands occasionally – and later on Thames and then Radio 1 – but the vast, vast bulk of his ABC work was in Manchester.

Comment on ABC Midlands opening with Bill Steele by Michael Oliver

Michael Oliver — Sat, 23 Nov 2024 20:49:57 +0000

I Was six or seven years old and living in the north east back in the early sixties I remember through the week we watched programs brought through Tyne Tees
Television and at weekends A B C and ATV TV brought our programs I remember
the start up intro sound with the three letters of the A B C TV coming down from
Left to right along with the sound ,These were great days watching television,
And to find out many years latter that one of my favourite radio DJs David Hamilton was a presenter for the midlands tv company was a suprise to me, However I still do
remember him back then .

Comment on Looking around Alpha – 2 by Garry Knox

Garry Knox — Sat, 02 Nov 2024 19:43:49 +0000

The lighting board and dimmer reactors ended up at the old Birmingham Repertory Theatre in Station Street Birmingham. I remember the dimmer board and saw the engineering drawings, marked as Alpha Television

Comment on ATV programmes and personalities – 1 by Malcolm Neal

Malcolm Neal — Fri, 03 Sep 2021 17:01:48 +0000

Wonderful pictures and memories. I worked there 1960-61

Comment on ATV Midlands starts the day in the 1960s by Roy Haywood

Roy Haywood — Mon, 21 Jun 2021 18:07:49 +0000

I remember the days before ampex recording when programs were live & some commercials, you really had to be very professional everybody in the u k saw mistakes Roy Haywood

Comment on Floor Manager by Roy Haywood

Roy Haywood — Mon, 10 May 2021 05:05:50 +0000

Great to see f/m Bob hope also there was terry yarwood floor manager

Comment on ATV Midlands starts the day in the 1960s by Roy Haywood

Roy Haywood — Tue, 04 May 2021 21:03:51 +0000

Roy Haywood cameraman atv/ abc television 1955/60

Comment on What is Alpha? by Mark Fisher

Mark Fisher — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 21:32:29 +0000

Great article Frank. Would you be able to answer a query in the ATV blog there is a photograph of a technician on a film editing bench and it looks like a very young guy by the name of John Moseley ?? Would you know if it is. The picture may have been taken at the Aston studios
Thanks for your help with this.
Kind regards
Mark Fisher

Comment on The last announcement from Alpha, 1969 by Derek Savage

Derek Savage — Tue, 25 Aug 2020 08:55:40 +0000

The last announcement from Aston was made at the end of Thursday night’s programmes on 25 September 1969, according to The Birmingham Post.
The next day’s edition reported ‘At 12.5am today, ATV bade farewell from its Aston studios, the former cinema which has been used as a TV studio since 1956. The announcer, Jill Palmer (sic) told viewers that all programmes would now be coming from ATV’s new headquarters, Paradise Centre.’
The same newspaper, on 5 September 1969, had reported that programmes for schools would be the first to be broadcast from ATV’s new centre – starting at 11am on Monday 22 September.

Comment on Looking around Alpha – 2 by Jean Griffith

Jean Griffith — Sat, 25 Apr 2020 20:12:24 +0000

Oh how I loved going here to watch ‘pop’ groups in 1964, I was 15. We were so innocent, I was given tickets by the local butchers assistant who I was madly ‘in love with’. We lived in Sutton Coldfield & went into Birmingham on the bus. What great times.

Comment on The last announcement from Alpha, 1969 by Russ J Graham

Russ J Graham — Fri, 06 Apr 2018 19:11:28 +0000

In reply to Andrew Hesford. Autumn 1969 is the best we can say.

Comment on The last announcement from Alpha, 1969 by Andrew Hesford

Andrew Hesford — Fri, 06 Apr 2018 18:42:16 +0000

What was the date of the last announcement??

Comment on Val Parnell by Russ J Graham

Russ J Graham — Thu, 11 Jan 2018 16:48:06 +0000

In reply to Anthony Anachronism. We changed it from "booklet" to "website" on purpose, because otherwise it looks ridiculous.

Comment on Val Parnell by Anthony Anachronism

Anthony Anachronism — Thu, 11 Jan 2018 03:30:07 +0000

” I am delighted to be associated with this website”

Shome mishtake shurely?

Valentine Charles Parnell died at the age of 80 on September 22nd, 1972, a time long before the notion of websites had ever been conceived.

He was the son of Fred Russell, a ventriloquist.

[Dogwhistle anti-semitism removed – Ed]