John Wyver writes: The afternoon of Saturday 22 April 1939 saw the first performance of Dallas Bower's production of Katharine and Petruchio, a radically shortened 'acting version' of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew that had originally been more
John Wyver writes: From 11.12pm on Friday 21 April 1933 viewers fortunate enough to own a 30-line television receiver could watch the half-hour Looking In, billed as ‘the first television revue’. Written by John Watt with music composed by more
John Wyver writes: On what from production photographs looks like a rainy Tuesday afternoon on 20 April 1937, the fledgling Television service at Alexandra Palace, ever in search of noteworthy elements to broadcast, elected to screen as a local OB more
John Wyver writes: Television's treat on the evening of Tuesday 18 April 1939 was the third Coliseum Night presenting the first half of the variety bill at Sir Oswald Stoll's flagship theatre in London's St Martin's Lane. Featured artists more
John Wyver writes: Just after 3pm on Saturday 17 April 1937 BBC Television began an 'outside broadcast' from the railway terminus adjacent to Alexandra Palace. Billed as Demonstration of Railway Locomotives, and organised with London North Eastern Railway, the transmission more
John Wyver writes: Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin was born 136 years ago today. To mark his 50th birthday on Sunday 16 April 1939, when Charlie was working on the script for The Great Dictator (1940), Alexandra Palace screened an more
John Wyver writes: Lest these posts give the impression that pre-war television from Alexandra Palace was all classical ballet and mimed Wagner, the evening of Saturday 15 April 1939 was one of seven occasions when the studio hosted more
John Wyver writes: At one minute past 3pm on the afternoon of Thursday 14 April 1938, Alexandra Palace switched over to a feed from a studio built inside the Ideal Home Exhibition. In a first 10-minute visit to Olympia, more
24 January 1938 John Wyver writes: As I am holiday this week I am posting again a number of my favourite OTDs to date. The whole of the afternoon schedule on Monday 24 January 1938 was occupied by a presentation of act more
9 February 1939 John Wyver writes: As I am on holiday this week I am taking the chance to post again a number of my favourite OTDs from the 122 published to date... The evening of Thursday 9 February 1939 saw a more