RTE2 TV overnight closedown sequence in 1985

[eoinkin20]

Who would say such a thing about Don Cockburn that he is dead! jesus, he is well alive and in fact, he will be a guest at my girlfriends house tomoro nyt and new years eve. how i know don, he is my girlfriends uncles father!! dont go sayin stupid untrue statements like that!

[thecelticmist]

god this brings me back. wow

[yemieko]

I lived in Sweden in 1998/99 and they still had the prctice of shutting down and not beginning the next day until 12pm following day. I remember thinking this was strange so that leads me to believe that RTE had stopped that practice a long time before then. Maybe 6 or 7 years.

[burlearth]

DON COCKBURN, THE CLINT EASTWOOD OF IRISH TELLY.

[themegamullster]

no auto q

[Kenmorfdublin]

Bring back Night Light.

[pigman2222]

I love the idea of TV "shutting down" for the night. Any idea when RTE stopped this practice?

Also what was the tv show at the very start (Scotland 1983 etc)?

[Dogbandit]

Ah, the memories of a simpler day. Glad we're past it though.

[lunchboxattacks1]

I'd just like to add that it would have been a funny prank for someone working at RTE at that time in the production department : After the screen went to black, wait for about ten seconds and then give a big blood curdling "YAAAAAAARRRRRRGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM THE DEVIL!!!!!!!!!" into a production suite mic.

[lunchboxattacks1]

This is the end of television! Go to bed! TV took a harder line back then. What did the chronically jobless, insomniacs and night shift people do back then? Read?

[yemieko]

@lunchboxattacks1 Did you also notce TV schedule didnt begin until 6.20pm next evening? People would have had to go outsidethteir door to actually do somehing.

[lunchboxattacks1]

@yemieko Maybe so, yes. Maybe not if they had a ZX spectrum, Atari 2600 or other similar machine of that age.......

[myscene2010]

Don Cockburn. Legend. Rest In Peace.

[741986paulallen]

Don Cockburn.. what a legend!!!

[kcthatsawinner]

Rev. Dr. Dennis Cooke was the author of a book called PERSECUTING ZEAL, which was a book about Ian Paisley. But I like Dr. Cooke because he has red hair, I'm a Roman Catholic, and Dr. Cooke's words before RTE2 signed off were for EVERYONE.

[fairhillnorrie]

thanks for this... fantastic... just give me a site where i can watch all the old rte shows news etc and ill be happy... feck todays tv

[fruitcake4t]

Jesus Mary & Joseph!!!!

whats a proddy priest doing on RTE back in 1985?

[yam500]

@fruitcake4t grow up son

[cambridge7]

Ah jaysus bring back Garda Patrol. Bum shaky bum shaky bum bum.pmhl.

[antster1983]

What STV program was that at the beginning?

[jfme08]

my goodness, 1985 was a faecal year for me. I met charlie haughey in a toilet at the galway races but he told me to fuck off when i offered him a a piece of my sandwich

[Craccaben]

@jfme08 Poor you!

[Foloman1]

After the news everything goes all morbid! The music doesn't help either!

[paulallen741986]

Don Coburn... Best newsreader RTE ever had.. Bryan Dobson 2nd, Colm Murray 3rd, Anne Doyle 4th

[austinstacksabu]

11.30pm? Must have been the summer time.

[ChaosDynamics]

I see the church still had RTÉ by the balls back then.

[rfitzhen]

@ChaosDynamics It will always have RTE by the balls. Always

[ChaosDynamics]

@rfitzhen

Pfft!

[frodoireland]

Don was a legend.

[delaffan]

Don was de man alright

[Blakem74]

Don Coburn..... what a man!

[rahenyman]

So many old faces, a different time.

[Mick342]

what time was this at?

[PatGleeson123]

11.36pm, according to the clock. Bejayus, they were up late that night.:-)

I remember RTE closedowns at 10.50pm on a Sunday - just in time for the Sunday drinker to come in and miss the telly (yes even the pubs closed early on a Sunday)

[rolwal68]

is don still alive?

[paddymigeenty]

i hope so.

[kcthatsawinner]

After Sharon presented the 8/29/85 programming, what did she say? I don't know any Gaelic.

[PatGleeson123]

Translation: " That's it for tonight, my friends. I hope you enjoyed our programmes. Be with us tomorrow, be safe, good night. "

Sharon's quite cute methinks :-)

[Lumberjack9999]

Go to bed everyone!

[Den22theCoat]

omg night light..... never seen more than 10 seconds of it......OFF!

[blyid1]

That lighthouse at 6:36 is Blackhead lighthouse in Co.Clare.

[blyid1]

OMG This is 24yrs old and I remember it so well!

[SHAYDJ08]

where did sharon go to

[funkrod]

whatever happened to that nelson mandea fella?

[Idol2Idol]

what was the programme made by stv?

[dublinbrazilianblue]

@Idol2Idol I think the STV programme was Taggart, the pilot episode "Killer", but I could be wrong, Robert Love definitely produced that programme in 1983

[daveydrake]

in tv programmes,the shutdown screen was a great way of showing how some guy had crashed and burned on the couch after a night out. now it's 'curb your enthuasism and blue heelers. These programmes would have been primetime shows in the 80's

[birrman2008]

wow, RTE 2 did broadcast very much in '85

[lindaobc]

Poor Don Cockburn. I think he died some years back. He had a terrific voice for news casting.

[frodoireland]

Actually it was Don Coburn. He was a veteran Irish newspresenter. one of the very best. Legend.

[jet3529]

@lindaobc really?, i wonder what happen to Don Cockburn few years ago?

[martyconneely]

it was RTE 2 that time not RTE TWO

[wishmaster200]

is it me or dose anyone else notice the wig on rev dr.dennis cookes head it looks gash

[njomahony]

that is THE worst set of programmes ever! although i do like the sound of a bit of mid-80's garda action at 11.10pm

[burlearth]

don't get your hopes up, it was,'t like that at all, Garda Patrol was just 1 Garda behind a desk telling you about robberies that had occured round the aul'd sod.

[beldarluke]

this was made 2 days before i was born

[paddymigeenty]

good old Don Cockburn.legend.

[gearoiddom]

Ha - nothing different about the weather then!

[AnthonyUK]

The closedown/nightlight music must have been off a production music/commercial music recording hence the scratchy noise;also the VCR this was taped off must have been a mono one hence the hiss and hum.

[robbiebonham]

Wow, that brings back some memories...

[newschannel]

I am curious as to what the Night Light program entails. Is it a Catholic Religious program?

[AnthonyUK]

Night Light is a sort of late night religeous epilogue

[Gaeilgeoir07]

WOW! That reporters accent is so weird...

[sawakatoome]

Yeah, the "Where's Grandad?" ad. would be great to see again. Hilarious stuff .. "Brian? .. Do you hear Brian?" ("Yeah, he's in this barrel screaming for his life, that's why I'm covering the top with mesh .. so he can't get out!?")

[paddymigeenty]

those were brilliant adds.what about "if you were the only car in the world you could drive as you want.....but you're not and you can't.... complete with cool 70's graphics...ah Ireland in the 70's. i feel so old,34. yes ok i am old :)

[AnthonyUK]

Nice closedown music,BUT bit of a sombre ending to it!

[omalleyb75]

I especially like the crackle and pops... the sound track must have been added from vinyl!

[LullabyPie]

Ha! Yes, the sombre notes at the end of the closedown tune acted as a reminder to viewers that it's only half eleven and all they have to see them through the rest of the night is a bottle of gin and the thought that there will still be no work tomorrow.

[strangeorwhat]

omg da 80s must have been sooooo boaring!!!!!!!!!!

[AnthonyUK]

@strangeorwhat Well closedowns late at night with nice music/images with testcard and transmitter shutdowns afterwards beat rubbishy airheaded 24h tv anyday with mindless repeats,trashy films and repeats of regular programming with signing for deaf/hard-of-hearing people!

[rtenewsontwo]

ITS ONLY HALF 11 FOR FECK SAKE!!!

[radharc05]

Hi there, any chance you have that ad where the grandad is sitting beside the river on a dech chair... and the small little boy asks 'Wheres Grandad' , as far as i can remember it was a fram safety ad, or water safety ad...Hope you have it, or you can help.

Thanks a million

[3castle]

No, I know the one but I do not have it (water safety)

[col2006ie]

Liked the bilingual in-vision link at closedown.

Room Outside with Gerry Daly - that's a real blast from the past! My dad used to watch that.

[jexplink]

Has anyone the fifty fifty cashback ad? The bears were a dose, but that young one bopping 'round the house was a minx... :-)

[corkeire32]

Absolute class - the news is amazing - Redundancies at Golden Vale.........could be yesterdays news!! Thanks for posting this - great clip

[cloverfield911]

Don Coughburn! Wow!! Blast from the past.

[dddfffggg4]

Any ads from 1984?

[3castle]

no, 1985 is the oldest I have.