The Beautiful Book

[dickturnipmarlboro]

WOW what a blast from the past that was--great memories from school summer hols..I seem to remember a different video though-I may be wrong-but have vague memories of a hellicopter or plane flying over a power station and different scenes??

[dejalo1]

Song from Album: "Rain featuring Stephanie de Sykes", 1974 Bradleys Records-BRAD 1005

[TheMasterNo6]

I like this version, nice scenery and the kids didn't look like the brats we have now who act like adults.... The Dog looked lovely too..

[storminacuppa1]

Hi julka 1 My name is Ron Roker I wrote this song with gerry Shury and I thank you for uploading the Odyssey video I haven't seen it since I wrote it with Gerry Shury back in the 70's.Stephanie did a great job when she sang it for us with Rain.Best wishes

Ron

[TheMasterNo6]

@storminacuppa1 Well done Ron. Its a shame ITV is so singular and crap now....no regional identities. That end chord you did sounds very ominous-I always feel like there should be a shot of an A-BOMB going off with a mushroom cloud at that ending to go with that last chord! But its a great tune.

[gibsosgerbil]

This Song was charted By The Marthas and Sarah McChoy way back In The Late 1960's.

[dejalo1]

wonderful song!!! search rain featuring stephanie de sykes (bradleys records, 1974) on Compact Disc..............????????????­???

best wishes from germany. dejalo1

[victorialucas38]

Spot on, sirtfyed! Switching on TV in another part of the ITV region almost made you feel like you were holidaying abroad! I remember Blackpool in 1975, when the TV in the caravan received Granada and I saw 'Sesame Street' for the first time (we didn't get that on YTV for another seven years). And I remember seeing Gus Honeybun on Westward in Devon '79! ITV's strength was always that it had fifteen companies to the BBC's one. If only the idiots who demolished that system could have realised it.

[victorialucas38]

Watching this, it's enough to make you weep how greed and lowest-common-denominator-ism has ruined ITV. For me, the rot began with breakfast TV, then shoving the schools programmes aside for Richard & Judy, then the end of the IBA (po-faced at times, but essential gatekeepers), then allowing Granada to buy-up every other company, and then the arrival of 'ITV1'. I used to love going on holiday in the UK as a kid and seeing how different other ITV regions were (mine was Yorkshire). All gone!

[sirtfyed]

@victorialucas38 - I totally agree! I'm in the unfortunate Granada region, but could pick up HTV as well. When I was young and it was the Summer Holidays, I could switch to HTV for a better selection of kids programmes that was on Granada, all now gone in the thing called ITV1.

[shirleygibson]

Taken From The Soundtrack Movie, "The Alps Of St Sergent" (1970).

MGM Film Productions, Starring The Marthas.

[neilbranston]

It was banned by IBA because hit had words which was against IBA rules.

[RobertTheDodger654]

What delightful kids, eh?! Shame those of today are much less so.

[Kevo00]

Hmm, this does feel more like something you would see on US or Aussie TV than in the UK...

[harry1552]

Lord grade was inspired by CBS right from the start. Quote " I make televison for the people, not the critics". So here's to the biggest, best, and highest grossing export TV region!

[TheMasterNo6]

If IITV had a brain these days they'd bring back regional franchises, announcers on screen and a lovely start up like this as well every morning......gits. Cunts even for not doing so.....

[redhairkid]

This song rocks!

[JoeScaramanga]

Absolutely marvellous... our HTV ones were never this uplifting and exciting. Usually lots of stills of Clifton suspension bridge and some fields with some instrumental dirge.

As good as this is, I can't be only one who finds that final chord a little disturbing and ominous...

[TheMasterNo6]

I agree, the final chord is ominous, its like a happy song with these images at the start of some movie about a Nuclear War and in the final moment you see the mushroom cloud....! However it is a nice song and perhaps the ending signifies its another shite day for the plebs going to work lol....

[royallists]

Absolutely, regional ITV had announcers you could see, always polite and smartly dressed, and featured locally made programmes relevant to the area. The existing dumbed down ITV is soulless and devoid of personality, its output bland and unimaginative. I would support a return to regional television.

[bmmoS17]

Most of this film was shot in and around the Chateau Impney Hotel which is next to the A38 near Droitwich in Worcestershire. Also seen is (I believe) Hagley Road in Birmingham.

[bmmoS17]

Great memories here - thanks for posting. This was the first of the ATV start-up films from around 1975.

[shirleygibson]

Even The Soundtrack From The Movie, "The Alps

Of St Sergent" has got their song, Beautifull

Book Was By Sarah McChoy. But We Think There

Are 2 Dogs In The ATV Video Start Up.

[silverblueeye]

I wonder what happened to the boy and girl?

[TheMasterNo6]

And the dog! Lol, he or she looked happy and sweet.

[shirleygibson]

The Marthas And Sarah McChoy Realised Their

Song In Early September 1967 For Their

Classic Song.

[David01Manson]

Was this startup really the first? My memory is that there were two ATV startups - the one with Spaghetti Junction etc, shown from around 1973/4, which was then replaced with this one, around 1976/7.

Great to see this though - after 30 years, I only remembered one detail about this film - that it featured an "RAC" road sign at some point. Sure enough, at 2:04, what can be seen but ... an RAC road sign. Ah, memory!

[tobydolph]

The title of this song is actually 'Odyssey'. You'll find it on the 1974 LP 'Rain featuring Stephanie De-Sykes' on Bradley's records (BRADL1005). If you're lucky enough to find one in good condition after 34 years.

[rfjp]

wonderful video. it made me so happy to see it agen

[harry1552]

There must be enough ITV Regional/ATV fans to make ATV1 Digital actually Happen. I would buy shares.

[HEMAfan]

Count me in!

I'd love to see a return of ATV or a truly independent Central to the Midlands. ATV/Central were a key to the ITV network and it was a disgrace the way Carlton killed off local ITV in the Midlands :-(

Give the East & West Midlands our cake back!