One of the most unusual and for a lot of people, one of the most popular programmes on the television in the 1960s was University Challenge presented by Bamber Gascoigne.
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University Challenge
The Avengers
One of the most iconic and 1960s defining series ever to be screened on TV, The Avengers celebrates its 50th Anniversary – can it really be that old?
I have to admit that I rarely understood the plot in any depth but that really didn’t matter, it was the spectacle that was important. I can say that it was a story of secret agents and espionage during the Cold War and took place amid the backdrop of what was later called the Swinging Sixties. It was, of course, pure fantasy but what set it apart was the emphasis, especially later in the series, on fashion and style, giving it a look that is quintessentially both British and Sixties.
Watching TV In 1965
Sunday was a lazy day (except for Mum) when, after morning church, almost everyone was at home for the rest of the day in the 1960s. It really was a day when you wore your ‘Sunday best’ and then sat quietly on the settee or pursued a hobby at the dinning room table after dinner.
Remember, there were no supermarkets open, no garden centres. So, for those who could afford one, what was on TV on a typical late summer Sunday in 1965?
By the mid-60s a good many people had taken the plunge, dipped into their saving and purchased one of the new TV sets. And what sets they were! In the early 60s we had a set that boasted a large wood veneered case complete with doors that would be unbelievable today. However, it was only a 12 inch screen and what my mother wanted was a 17 or 20 inch modern set made of plastic.
Eventually we did get one and I thought it was the most fantastic thing I had ever seen!
Bonanza!
I noticed in the shops this last weekend in the UK that there was the start issue of a series (either weekly or monthly, I’m not sure) of a magazine which features episodes from the Bonanza TV series of the 1960s.
One of the problems with old TV shows is that it’s hard to find them on the internet to watch and Bonanza was a very popular TV series.
However, I did an article here in this blog in May of this year which may be of interest as it contains a history of the show and of the Bonanza name. A link to the article is below. The article also contains a link to the series on DVD on Amazon UK which is still valid (and at the time I write this) at half price.
Read my article in my blog here.
Posted in Entertainment
Tagged 1960s, 60s, 70s, adam, ben, Bonanza, cartwright, hoss, little joe, ponderosa, series, sixties, tv, western
Entertainment TV The Baron
An excellent classic TV series from the mid-60s, the writing was by John Creasey (of Gideon’s Way fame) and the television adaptation by the same team of Robert Baker and Monty Berman at British, ITC Entertainment.
Produced in the same mould as Danger Man and The Saint, this all action series was about a character known as The Baron (the character’s name being John Mannering).
In a change from the books, The Baron was created as an American, and not British, so as to appeal more to the American market but his sidekick, the character’s name was Cordelia Winfield, remained British.
The lead, The Baron, was played by an American, Steve Forrest while the character of Cordelia Winfield was played by the lovely Sue Lloyd (who went on for many years in the 70s to play Barbara Hunter in Crossroads).
Posted in Entertainment
Tagged 1960s, 60s, baron, colour, drama, Entertainment, itc, tv
Entertainment TV Inspector George Gently
We looked at a 1960s black and white police drama last week now here is a bang up to date one from the BBC.
I said it last week and I will say it again, the tried and tested formula is for a maverick police detective to go it alone against all the odds and solve the case and here we are again. Inspector George Gently is played by Martin Shaw and is a detective of the old school with good old fashioned values. His sidekick and foil is played by Lee Ingleby as DS Bacchus.
The action is set in Northumberland in Great Britain in the 1960s which allows for some lovely scenery and locations to be used.
Posted in Entertainment
Tagged 1960s, 60s, books, George Gently, hunter, Inspector, sixties, tv
Entertainment TV Gideon’s Way
Cops and robbers have never gone out of fashion and many say that the very best programs where those made during the 1960s.
Gideon’s Way is another ITC entertainment program from 1964 based on books written by John Creasy (which he wrote as J J Maric). They are set in London’s East End and starred John Gregson as Commander George Gideon of the Yard and each week there was a different crime to solve.
Produced in black and white, there were 26 episodes, each of the usual 55 minutes duration. The series was, so far as I recall, well filmed and very popular and it also relied on a lot of location scenes. At the time these were just part of the series but now, of course, they represent a snapshot of the East End of London as it was then. For reasons you will see below, it is not possible to develop this idea.
Posted in Entertainment
Tagged 1960s, 60s, cops, drama, Gideon's Way, gregson, london, police, tv
Entertainment TV The Prisoner
No, I don’t understand it but, like so many other people, that only adds to the mystery and the enjoyment!
The Prisoner was a spin off from Danger Man that I wrote about recently and stars the same actor, Patrick McGoohan. It’s about a secret agent who resigns from his job, that’s in the introduction to each episode of the series, and then gets kidnapped and finds himself in ‘The Village’. His captors are trying to find out why he resigned (I think).
Posted in Entertainment
Tagged 1960s, 60s, books, partick mcgoohan, sixties, the prisoner, tv, tv shows
