Love the Muppets and Pipkins out takes. Elstree is now the home of Eastenders and Holby City. Nice to know that not every former part of the crumbling formerly magnificent ITV empire is dead, buried, demolished and built over.
Well the LWT South Bank Centre was demolished a couple of years back, and the oldest of the studios, the ABC/Rediffusion studios in Wembley was used for X Factor/BGT up to recently, but future uncertain last time I checked.
Hard to work out the year but I’d say Xmas 81 as this is clearly the last Xmas tape offering from the technicians at ATV. It was clearly a time of upheaval for the company and the staff as the IBA franchise awards had dictated that ATV was reconstituted as a new company - Central - and that they move from Elstree to a new site that was in their region, hence ‘the first class train to Nottingham’ soundbite (taken from an ad for Tunes). At this point no one knew what was to happen to Elstree - ACC (the largest shareholder in ATV and owner of the studios) had plans to make Elstree an independent production centre for the new Channel Four but this came to nothing and eventually it was scheduled for closure. What makes this video prophetic (along with the song - Elstree by The Buggles, released even earlier in 1980) is that this site was eventually sold to the BBC with many of the staff making the move. At the time this was made that idea wasn’t even on the radar screen.
Thank you for your well written account of events. It's very accurate. It was Xmas 83. ATV / Central Elstree closed on 31st July 1983. The move to Nottingham followed. The Elstree promo was included in the Central Birmingham Xmas 83 promo - Central VT Christmas Tape 1983. Thanks again and sorry for the late reply.
This must have been around the time of the ATV/Central handover, 81/82. The Buggles must have re-formed after Horn and Downes left Yes, and before Horn up ZTT.. I read somewhere the ATV Elstree Xmas parties were quite legendary, lots of excess apparently - they used Lew Grade's budget well lol Those studios were a strategic masterpiece by Grade, he could attract big names without them having to trudge up to Birmingham! Lots of memories there, Pipkins, Sapphire and Steel, the Muppets etc.
@@antster1983 OK lolol I guess it was just that simple. Was just yesterday thinking about the title track: 'They send the heart police to put you under cardiac arrest'
I viewed an ATV Christmas tape on youtube about 4 years ago that featured Hughie Green and outtakes from The Golden shot. I have been looking for video for some time now but can't remember who it was provided by. Was it you ?
![“อาร์ต พศุตม์” เกือบเอี่ยวทุกคดีดัง เอ๊ะไว้ก่อน ไม่มีอะไรได้มาง่ายๆ | แฉ 16 ต.ค. 67 [2/3] | GMM25](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/0Gx-0-kUBv8/mqdefault.jpg)
Love the Muppets and Pipkins out takes. Elstree is now the home of Eastenders and Holby City. Nice to know that not every former part of the crumbling formerly magnificent ITV empire is dead, buried, demolished and built over.
Well the LWT South Bank Centre was demolished a couple of years back, and the oldest of the studios, the ABC/Rediffusion studios in Wembley was used for X Factor/BGT up to recently, but future uncertain last time I checked.
Hard to work out the year but I’d say Xmas 81 as this is clearly the last Xmas tape offering from the technicians at ATV. It was clearly a time of upheaval for the company and the staff as the IBA franchise awards had dictated that ATV was reconstituted as a new company - Central - and that they move from Elstree to a new site that was in their region, hence ‘the first class train to Nottingham’ soundbite (taken from an ad for Tunes).
At this point no one knew what was to happen to Elstree - ACC (the largest shareholder in ATV and owner of the studios) had plans to make Elstree an independent production centre for the new Channel Four but this came to nothing and eventually it was scheduled for closure.
What makes this video prophetic (along with the song - Elstree by The Buggles, released even earlier in 1980) is that this site was eventually sold to the BBC with many of the staff making the move. At the time this was made that idea wasn’t even on the radar screen.
Thank you for your well written account of events. It's very accurate. It was Xmas 83. ATV / Central Elstree closed on 31st July 1983. The move to Nottingham followed. The Elstree promo was included in the Central Birmingham Xmas 83 promo - Central VT Christmas Tape 1983. Thanks again and sorry for the late reply.
4:41 I Used To Love The Muppet Show When I Was 18. Classic Kids Television Series. Thanks SidekickVT Mate. X
I Am A Huge Muppets Fan Too.
It made sense to have the Midlands broadcaster broadcast from the Midlands. Although there was no way that ATV would have been bought by Carlton.
Had ATV Midlands won the franchise as-is, Carlton would've had a much harder time buying the entire ACC group.
For anyone wondering the sign the editor holds up when they leap into the hallway appears to read video tape only
This must have been around the time of the ATV/Central handover, 81/82. The Buggles must have re-formed after Horn and Downes left Yes, and before Horn up ZTT..
I read somewhere the ATV Elstree Xmas parties were quite legendary, lots of excess apparently - they used Lew Grade's budget well lol
Those studios were a strategic masterpiece by Grade, he could attract big names without them having to trudge up to Birmingham! Lots of memories there, Pipkins, Sapphire and Steel, the Muppets etc.
No, the song is from their first album, 1979's _The Age of Plastic._
@@antster1983 OK lolol I guess it was just that simple.
Was just yesterday thinking about the title track: 'They send the heart police to put you under cardiac arrest'
I viewed an ATV Christmas tape on youtube about 4 years ago that featured Hughie Green and outtakes from The Golden shot. I have been looking for video for some time now but can't remember who it was provided by. Was it you ?
1981? Considering the transformation going on...
1:58 to go straight to the song...