ATV - Announcers and Trails

This text 04/05/2003:

In the 1960s, Alex Trelinski writes, "The brilliant broadcaster Ray Moore spent a year as an announcer at ATV in Birmingham around 1964/65, after a stint at Granada. In his autobiography he said that he didn't enjoy it all, especially having to force smiles, and so he turned to radio, eventually leading to his presentation of his outstanding Radio 2 Early Show which had he had to give up in the late eighties because of cancer.

"In the late sixties I remember the announcing team being Pat Astley, Mike Prince, Mike Speke (perhaps only as a relief but he was to appear on Anglia for many years and Joan Palmer.

"[Joan] came from New Zealand and was the face that ATV used to promote the introduction of colour in 1969, with the campaign featuring a sea-lion! She would take the sea-lion around the Midlands with her for promotions, and it also appeared on the screen in promos! I think [Joan] left the station [..] in the early seventies but it was fair to say that she was the most popular of the announcers in the eyes of the viewers."

11/05/2003

Mike Prince, pictured here closing down ATV for the last time on December 31st, 1981.

Mike also used to announce for HTV.

Alex Trelinski writes: "I believe [Mike] may have started in 1966 as the youngest announcer in the country: I heard 16 being given as his age."

The MPEG attached to the picture is from Christmas 1981, and features an advertisement, a continuity announcement and the titles to the ITN News (with Non-Stop as the opening musc).

MPEG available (2.2Mb).

04/05/2003

Stewart White, doing a bit of Christmas in-vision continuity. Notice there's no sign of ATV's identity anywhere here.

Stewart was my mother's favourite announcer!

Alex writes: "Stewart White appeared in the late seventies, after working at BBC Radio Derby.

04/05/2003

Here's Kevin Morrison.

Stephen Hyden says that Kevin used to work for BRMB, the Independent Local Radio (ILR) contractor for Birmingham. He used to travel to ATV in Broad Street after working at BRMB during the day to announce in the evenings.

He only did daytime announcements at the weekends.

Alex Trelinski: "Kevin Morrison [..] was probably Stewart's predecessor, and I think he went to work behind the scenes at ATV in either their commercial or promotion department."

(Thanks to Stephen Hyden)

04/05/2003

On the subject of stand-in announcers, our correspondent Alex Trelinski writes: "[..] There were some fascinating "stand-in" continuity folk [during the seventies] on ATV. You've already featured Peter Marshall who is best known for his work on Thames, and Tom Edwards [also of Thames] did some stints. I also caught him [Tom] on Thames, Anglia, and Tyne Tees all in the same period of a fortnight!"

A menu from a Friday night.

I think I'll nip down to the pub after Play Your Cards Right...

Talk of the devil, here's Brucie now, presumably gesturing at the Dolly Dealers.

"What a marvellous audience, so much better than last week!"

Thanks to EMC for black-and-white stills above.

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