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Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion London, was the British ITV contractor for London, on weekdays between 1954 (transmissions started on September 22, 1955) and July 29, 1968. Its headquarters were at Television House in Kingsway, London.
Development
The company was originally a partnership between British Electric Traction (BET) and its subsidiary Broadcast Relay Services (trading as Rediffusion Limited) and Associated Newspapers, owners of the Daily Mail. In the aftermath of the fearful financial losses that the new ITV system made in its initial years, Associated Newspapers sold the majority of their share to BET and Rediffusion, although the company did not drop the word "Associated" from their name until 1964. Associated Newspapers later owned a stake of Southern Television.
Captain Thomas Brownrigg RN (Retired), the general manager of Associated-Rediffusion from 1955, had a very clear idea of what his new commercial television station was to be like - the BBC Television Service, with advertisements. To this end, the station had a heraldic-style on-air clock, referred to as "Mitch" by staff (after chief station announcer Leslie Mitchell, who had not only made the first announcement when A-R went on the air in 1955, but had done the same when the BBC TV service started in 1936). A-R was determined to be the long arm of the 1930s extending into the 1950s, continuing the notion that Britain and the Empire counted for something in the world.
The strategy allayed any fears that the new commercial TV service would be aimed at the bottom of the market. Associated-Rediffusion made ITV respectable. A-R certainly introduced popular game shows, but can also take credit for providing a raft of quality programming across all genres and for gaining a massive audience both in its own London area and, as the ITV network grew, for programmes shown across the country.
The company was based at Television House, Kingsway, London, which previously had been known as Adastral House when it was the headquarters of the Air Ministry - this gave its name to A-R's logo, the 16-point Adastral Star, which appeared not only at the start and end of each commercial break but also between each advertisement. (The motto of the Royal Air Force is "per ardua, ad astra" - "through adversity to the stars"). There was also an electrical rentals chain related to Associated Rediffusion called Rediffusion that was once common on high streets which was bought by Granada Rentals in 1984 and had featured the Adastral Star on shop signs and marketing
Rediffusion London
In 1964 the directors had a change of heart, pensioning off Captain Brownrigg to the south coast and a directorship of the TV Times, and rebranding the station as "Rediffusion, London", with a very hip 1960s style, the face of swinging London in the shiny prosperous new Britain. However, the new Rediffusion did not survive for long - in 1967 the Independent Television Authority announced that there was no place for Rediffusion in the redrawn franchise pattern. The parent company, BET, took a 49% stake in the successor company, Thames Television, which was formed by Rediffusion and ABC Television. Most of the staff went to work for London Weekend Television and some to the new Yorkshire Television.
Programmes produced by Associated-Rediffusion and Rediffusion London included Double Your Money, Take Your Pick, Ready, Steady, Go!, Do Not Adjust Your Set, This Week, Crane, Riviera Police, No Hiding Place, Top Secret, Five O'Clock Club, and At Last the 1948 Show.
Overseas Rediffusion
BET and Rediffusion Limited had strong links with the former British colonies. These included holding the concessions for wired and over-the-air radio and television stations. A subsidiary company, Overseas Rediffusion, operated these stations and also sold advertising time and programming for them. Stations included the radio station Rediffusion Barbados, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the wired television service Rediffusion Hong Kong, the latter now known as Asia Television.
In the 1990s, the name "Associated-Rediffusion Television" and the adastral trademark were acquired by Victor Lewis-Smith, and are now used by his production company.
James Thurber once claimed that "Associated-Rediffusion" sounded more like a rare neurological disorder than a television company.
Names used
Company names:
On-air names:
- Associated-Rediffusion (1955-1964)
- Rediffusion London (1964-1968)
Initials used:
- AR-TV (1955-1964)
- A-R (1955-1964)
External links
- Television House from Telemusications (unofficial history site)
- Animated Associated-Rediffusion logo, 1956, from 625.uk.com (requires Macromedia Flash 6 or later).
- Animated Rediffusion logo, 1964, from 625.uk.com.
- Rediffusion Singapore (official site)
- Radio Rediffusion Malaysia (official site)
- Associated-Rediffusion on TV Ark
"Associated-Rediffusion"