TV Pop Diaries
Pop Music on British Television 1955 -
ABC Goes Pop 1956 -
A Brilliant Company
While the Granada arrow defiantly (and accurately) pointed north the ABC triangle,
at first view, seemed to be pointing south. However, ABC was a dual region, broadcasting
first to the midlands beginning 18th February 1956 then extending to the north from
Lancashire across the Pennines to Yorkshire from 5th May 1956 onwards. The three
points of the ABC triangle actually pointed to its intended audience. But viewers
in the midlands could be forgiven for bouts of déjà vu as a company using those same
initials had already begun broadcasting from September the previous year. Lew Grade's
Associated Broadcasting Company had won the contract to broadcast in the Midlands
during the weekdays and in London at the weekend, but Associated British Picture
Corporation had bagged the weekend spot for the north and the midlands and made it
clear that they would be using the station identification ABC (Associated British
Corporation) as the name was nationally known as a cinema chain, so Grade's ABC re-
Despite the nostalgia afforded to it's weekday shift cohorts Granada ("GranadaLand") and even ATV ("ATVLand") it was not offered to ABC, which has remained without a matey nickname all these years.
1956
Like all the other broadcasters at the time rock and roll really wouldn't be broadcast
on prime time television, despite evidence from the UK's record sales. It caused
trouble, it was Teddy Boy music. ABC, like the other new ITV stations, had to play
it safe if they were to make a lasting impression, so it was to Joe Loss and his
Orchestra that they turned to on ABCs first day of broadcasting and their first variety
show, Hometown Saturday Night. In May 1956 the show visited Liverpool and featured
one of its greatest sons, Frankie Vaughan, who was just beginning the second stage
of his recording career, this time with Philips. The same month ABC debuted Numbers
Please, a music quiz show featuring Ray Ellington and his Quartet as regulars, and
Records/Diskery, a weekly new releases show, albeit with minimal guest appearances.
Time For Melody came along in June as did Joe Loss’ Dancing Years and Bring A Record.
The Dickie Valentine Show was a one-
Straight away it was obvious that the station was in the entertainment business, but using the same talent over and over again would test the public's patience. Maybe looking at the younger audience might help.
1957
Prime time could be a crowded room, and the afternoons had yet to be taken up with
minority sports and football results, so it was there that Musical Cheers debuted
in February, as did Saturday evening's Bonanza, a musical drama that ABC had spent
a whopping £4000 on. It only reached a small audience but they tried again in March
with a rock and roll take on the twenties musical The Boyfriend. Contributing to
the mock outrage of the day's youth culture the play Teddy Gang played in April,
while at the end of the month they went back to playing it safe with The Joe Loss
Show. Saturday afternoons were proving useful and in June they broadcast Festival
Of Stars, another fundraising collection of musical turns. Holiday Town Saturday
Night was back the same month but only succeeded in providing Joe Loss with more
work. They also persuaded Frankie Vaughan to host a one-
1958
As BBC4's Top Of The Pops 'The Story Of' shows constantly informed us "it was the
year everything changed." Top Numbers and other ABC shows continued, either proving
their worth, ratings wise, or budget wise. An American import The Steve Allen Show
debuted in January as did ABC's own The Late Night Show, both would feature pop talent,
but still not veering to far away the from frocks and evening dress brigade. In February
ABC's second anniversary celebration, Many Happy Returns, featured a singing group
from Liverpool, The Vernons Girls, who would go on to national fame later in the
year, thanks to ABC. March would bring a curious addition to ABC's schedule, Sunday
Break. A religious show targeting the teddy boy and coffee bar audience would not
have passed the audition stages in the real world, but not only did it pass but it
stayed on the schedules until 1965. It featured not only British talent but acts
from America like Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee. April brought us Before Midnight,
a late night Saturday show featuring Rosemary Squires, but it wasn't until June that
ABC delivered what we really wanted. Oh Boy was tested out in the ABC region for
a couple of weeks and the decision was be made to commission a full series. Oh Boy
shook up British television. The volume control on the TV became the definition of
The Generation Gap. The show had old-
1959
Many of ABC's favourites like Bid For Fame, The Sunday Break, Holiday Town Parade
and After Hours would continue, as had, somewhat surprisingly, Oh Boy. The viewing
figures suggested that not only was it beating The Six-
1960
Despite expectations the new decade began pretty much as the previous one had left
off, with only two new shows in the first few months. Make A Date began in March
and Clubland Saturday Night in April. In the same month Jack Good was given a third
and final throw of the dice at ABC when Wham began transmission, but it seemed evident
that this was just an act of conclusion. However, in January a new sit-
1961
ABC's regulars like Sunday Break and Sing Along With Joe remained, and it didn't look as though anything new would be added to the roster in 1961, after all they had made a vow not to make any new dedicated pop shows. In addition to the more obvious music guests on shows, sometimes you'd get to hear something wonderful, courtesy of one of many truly great composers working in British television at the time. In March ABC debuted The Avengers, a new Saturday night drama which, for the first few series, had a wonderful big band jazz theme, written by Johnny Dankworth. About the same time ABC pitched up at The Empire Pool at Wembley in London for the first of a new variety series, Big Night Out. The first edition of which was the NME Pollwinners' show featuring Cliff Richard & The Shadows, Emile Ford & The Checkmates, Adam Faith among others. The Pollwinners' show would become an annual event for ABC until 1966. In April ABC launched a show which has, due to the vagaries of fashion, rarely mentioned in the same breath as Ready Steady Go or Top Of The Pops. Despite the promise of no new pop shows it was suggested that ABC give Saturday nights another go, so the concept of Thank Your Lucky Stars was created and, after major tweaking in the second series, stayed for five years.
At this point we get off of ABC's roundabout. They will creative unique TV until its demise in summer 1968.
Author Kevin Mulrennan will publish a more extensive look at ABC's music output in
a future book, while Network have released an thirteen-