First Night
Gala Opening Night
Right. You've paid your extra 6 guineas for a new tuner to your 14"
Ferguson Table Model, which itself cost 59 guineas (including
purchase tax). You flip from the usual position up to now, Channel 1,
The BBC Television Service, to Channel 9 on 22nd September 1955.
What would you find ...
7.15 The Ceremony At Guildhall
7.15 The Guests Arrive
7.30 The Halle Orchestra
Cockaigne (in London Town) by Sir Edward Elgar
The National Anthem
7.45 Inaugural Speaches
The Lord Mayor of London, Sir Seymour Howard
The Postmaster-General, Charles Hill
Chairman of the ITA, Sir Kenneth Clark
8.0 Channel 9
A sparkling Variety show from ABC's Television
Theatre. Appearing tonight introduced by Jack Jackson are:
Shirley Abicair, Elizabeth Allen, Daphene Batchelor, Billy Cotton,
Reg Dixon, Lucille Graham, Hughie Green, John Hanson, Sheila Mathews,
Michael Miles, Bessie Rofers, Shirley Norman, Leslie Randall, Derek
Roy, Joy Shelton, Harry Secombe, Leslie Welch, Kip Van Nash, Theda
Sisters and the George Carden Dancers.
An ABC Production
8.40 Drama
Robert Morley Introduces:
The Importance of Being Earnest (excerpt)
Starring Dame Edith Evans, Margaret Leighton and Sir John Guilgud
A Towers of London Production.
Baker's Dozen
Starring Pamela Brown, Alec Guinness, Faith Brook.
A Towers of London Production.
Private Lives
Staring Kay Hammond and John Clements.
An Associated-Rediffusion Ltd Production.
9.10 Professional Boxing
Terrence Murphy v Lew Lazar
12 round contest for the Southern Area Middleweight Championship.
10.0 News and Newsreel
10.15 Gala Night at the Mayfair
Leslie Mitchell Introduces some of the guests.
10.30 Star Cabaret
With Music by Billy Ternant and his Orchestra.
10.50 Preview
A glimpse of some of the programmes to come on Independent Television
during the coming months.
11.0 Epilogue
The National Anthem and close-down.
Not surprising maybe that one quarter of people with Channel
9-equipped sets watched the BBC. Eleven per cent didn't watch
anything that night.
But there were many more to come.
