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Associated Television

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Associated Television
ATV color.jpg
Founded September 24, 1955
Closed December 31, 1981 (became Central Independent Television)
Company Associated Communications Corporation
Notable Series The Muppet Show
Timeslip

Associated Television (ATV) was a television station in the United Kingdom.

History

The station was one of the first two to be franchised by the British ITV network when it began operations on September 24, 1955 as the UK's second commercial TV station. It was created through the merger of two prospective applicants for ITV contracts, the Associated Broadcasting Development Company (ABDC), headed by Norman Collins, and the Incorporated Television Programme Company (ITC), controlled by talent agents Lew Grade and Prince Littler. ABDC won a contract but was insufficiently funded, while ITC failed to land a contract due in part to a perception by ITV's then-governing body, the Independent Television Authority (ITA), of conflict of interest because of Grade and Littler's related entertainment businesses. ITC underwent plans to continue as a programming producer and supplier for the ITV franchises when the ITA recruited Grade and Littler to bring their company into ABDC, giving ABDC the needed funding to begin operations.

The newly-merged entity was originally known as the Associated Broadcasting Company (ABC) upon sign-on, but the Associated British Picture Corporation (a film production and distribution company which also owned and operated the Associated British Cinemas chain) objected, noting that their choice of the ABC acronym for their proposed ITV franchise, ABC Television, predated that of the original ABC, which then had to change its name to ATV on October 8, 1955 after operating under the ABC name on-air for three weeks.

From the station's beginning (as the first ABC) and throughout its existence, ATV used a widely-recognized logo based on that of American network CBS, designed as what was called a "shadowed eye" with the ATV initials contained within. ATV's station identifications combined the logo with a three-note jingle played on vibraphone and celesta during the station's early years; when ATV switched to color broadcasting in 1969, it introduced its famous "In Colour" ID, with an orchestral jingle incorporating the three-note chimes as three colored circles merged into a white circle above the words "In Colour" and morphed into the ATV logo on a blue background. For syndication to American markets, the alternate spelling "In Color" was used for the ID. For shows that were still produced in black-and-white by ATV at that time, a monochrome station ID, using a shortened orchestral version of the ATV "In Colour" jingle, was used instead.

ATV served as the weekend ITV contractor for London beginning on September 24, 1955 (two days after London weekday contractor Associated-Rediffusion), and began broadcasting as the weekday franchise for the Midlands region on February 17, 1956 (one day before ABC assumed the Midlands weekend contract). In 1966, ATV and ITC (which had become ATV's subsidiary following the original merger, serving to syndicate ATV programming overseas) both became subsidiaries of a new company, Associated Communications Corporation (ACC).

ITV underwent major reorganization with the 1967 franchise renewal period, with the elimination of weekend franchises outside of the London area and geographical changes to several ITV regions. ATV lost the London weekend contract to London Weekend Television (which went to air on August 2, 1968), but it gained a full seven-day contract for the Midlands.

ACC successfully had ATV's Midlands contract renewed in the 1981 franchise round through the creation of a shell company called ATV Midlands Limited (created to return the station to a regional focus), but the Independent Broadcasting Authority (the successor to the ITA by this time) expressed concerns about ATV's lack of regional programming and production. As a condition of its contract renewal, ATV was required to be based more clearly in the Midlands, to have separate studios for the East and West Midlands, and to have ACC sell 49% of ATV Midlands and rename the station.

ATV signed off under that name for the final time on New Year's Eve 1981 and became Central Independent Television (now ITV Central) on January 1, 1982.

Notable programs

External links

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