Wigan Album

This is an article I wrote for The Wigan Observer I thought it my be of interest to viewers -

Television
'The Miracle'

In an age when people have become blasé about the miracle of 'The Box' my mind often goes back to the first time I saw a television working. I had seen them in shop windows of course, but don't forget there was almost no daytime television in the early 1950s. Broadcasting started at 5pm with 'Children's Hour' it would then go off air until 7pm and go off air again at approximately 10-3pm. My first glimpse of a TV was throughout the window of a terraced house in Jockey Terrace, The first one I saw one working, so to speak. The curtains left drawn back so that neighbours could marvel at seeing the receiver. The ultimate status symbol in those early years of the ' little screen'. Obviously I had no idea what was on at that first sighting, very possibly What's my Line or a similar programme. I could only see one person’s head and and shoulders in each shot, and until the next time I saw a TV. In my naivety I thought that was the limit, only one person on the screen at a time. I know it sounds ridiculous but it's quite true ! I think it would be 1950/1951, I know by the time of The Coronation (1953)a few families were proud owners of this fantastic invention.

I was once invited to watch Children’s Hour on a neighbour’s recently purchased set, a 12 inch SOBEL. Having become over exited I knocked a plant pot over, a red geranium in a green jardiniere, neither pot or plant received lasting damage, but from that moment forward I became 'persona non grata' in that particular household. Try as I may, offering to go errands or anything else for that matter hoping to get into good books again, alas all to no avail, a second invitation never materialised. I managed to convinced myself that it wasn't my fault anyway, if the plant hadn't been placed in such precarious position, if I hadn't knocked it over someone else would, and they would have been banished! 60 odd years later I'm sticking to that theory.

For accuracy, rather than use national data about prices of televisions and average wages I consulted copies of The Wigan Observer for 1951 ( available on Microfilm at Wigan Local Studies based in The Museum of Wigan Life). I think this gives a better indication of how expensive a set was in comparison to income and shows what a luxury it was to own one. Using national figures I think would skew the figures.

Haywood's, have an advert for 9 inch and 12 inch sets prices ranging from £44/00- £233/00. The latter a consul model with built in wireless! As an example, to show what a luxury these new fan-dangle contraptions were in comparison to earnings, in the same edition there's an advertisement in the Situations Vacant page for a labourer for North West Gas,wages for 44 hours £5/15 shilling Another example of wages, the N.C.B. (National Coal Board) rates for 1950, one week’s holiday pay was £7 16s 0d (£7.80) for adults, £6 5s 0d (£6.25) for 18 to 20 years and £4 14s 0d (£4.70) for under 18. Back then, a state pension was£1/10s (£1.50) with a further £1 paid to married couples.

Even in families fortunate to have the wherewithal to buy one there was an anxiety about the cost if “the tube went” a major expense in those days. Consequently people would ration themselves as to time watched, in the belief the the less it was used the longer the tube and valves would last. I know of at least one firm Walker Bros, where the workforce formed a 'tube club' members would pay half a crown (twelve and a half pence) in the unfortunate circumstance that the tube failed they claimed from the club, this insurance didn't cover other malfunctions, valves etc.

Older readers will recall how difficult it was to get a 'good picture' needing to fiddle with the horizontal and vertical hold, having stabilised the picture and returned to your armchair of it would go again spinning like a fan on steroids, atmospherics also played a part. If a lorry or bus went past the screen would fill with white dots (snowing). In what seemed a relatively short time TVs became much more reliable.

Then, came an all new ballgame when ITV made its first appearance in 1955. Older sets couldn't receive the new programmes but it was possible to have a converter fitted to the back of the receiver that would make it possible. On the first night of broadcast from the new service the BBC, I imagine annoyed at losing its monopoly tried the biggest "spoiler” of all time, they decided that would be the night that a tragedy would befall Grace Archer and her horse Fury. It worked, The Archers had a fantastic following, it was estimated that 20 million listened to that broadcast.
The figures for television ownership is remarkable, in 1951 only 350 thousand households had a set by 1960 three quarters of homes had one. Today most homes have numerous sets and other devices capable of receiving crystal clear pictures

In the fifties, the hours people watched television were tightly controlled. The 24 hour broadcasting of today was unheard of. The Postmaster General stipulated how many hours of television could be shown each week. In 1956, for example, the BBC was allowed to broadcast television on weekdays between 9am and 11pm, with not more than 2 hours before 1pm. There was also a period between 6pm and 7pm when no television was broadcast. This period was used by parents to trick young children into thinking that the evening's television had finished so they would go to bed without complaint. It was known as the 'toddlers' truce', imagine that today! At the weekends, the rules were no more relaxed. A maximum of eight hours broadcasting was allowed on Saturdays and 7 3/4 hours on Sundays. On Sunday another anachronism reigned, television shown between 2pm and 4pm was intended for adults, children were meant to be at Sunday School! Gradually the rules on broadcasting hours were made less strict; The 'toddlers' truce' for example.

Very interesting read that Thomas.It brought back memories of when we first got one, and I went to my friends house,who had one before us and the news was on.I said, " Ho! that's the same man who reads the news on our telly.Her mum couldn't stop laughing.I had to go to her house to watch London Palladium too before we got our's

Brilliant Tom. The fifties rushed back for me reading that. We didn't have a TV until 1960 when Coronation St became the highlight of the week. Before that I would watch the likes of Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men at my friend's house who were indeed 'posh' because they had a telly. Muffin the Mule, later Robin Hood and his Merry Men not forgetting William Tell and Davy Crocket! The first tv we had was one were you put money in the back of it, ( defying my dad!)until the day we rented one from Lloyds on Market St. Another memory is of my dad switching off if there was anything remotely 'sexy'! I used to babysit on Saturday and Sunday so could watch Armchair Theatre and Sundaynight at the London Palladium, it was another world then.

Superb Thomas, You always get things so accurate. It would be difficult to explain to the younger folk of today the television sets we had. My father, God Bless him, worked wonders with those valves at the back. We had a corkscrew cog to change channels . Can see it now . It only seems like a moment ago. I hope some of the younger generation read your detailed posts , as you explain it so well how it was. It would give them some idea. Thanks for posting Steve.

Thank you Veronica and XPat for your kind comments. XPat if you log on to Old Courts Wigan and on to news there are a many of my memories under 'WIGAN HAS NO PEER' if you go on to the sight I hope you find the collection interesting with some humour.

Thank you Thomas, That's very kind of you, I will have a look for sure.