The original ATV Morning Start Up Music

[haveagoodweek]

This is Great.

You guys in central England Certainly had a great song to wake up to.

We here in HTV land had a rather patriotic march with no video until about the mid eighties when a video of west country sites was shown accompanied by a piece of cheesey music.

[leggybird100]

I love this song and the accompanying video, it seems to say "we're proud of our area, and to be locals here" - I also love the juxtaposition of very industrial scenes with countryside, showing the diversity of the region. This almost makes me want to cry - mainly for all we have lost since the cause of money making took over everything.

[djhejfdngszldlvvn]

Julka1 - What are/ were the microwave links (I saw the transmitters)? What sort of devices relied upon these?

[nevwhile]

Microwave links were (are) line of sight directional transmitters that were (are) used to relay radio and TV transmissions from the point of broadcast i.e. a studio across a region and out to strategically positioned onmi-directional transmitters. Microwave towers were usually located on hills to overcome the geography of distributing the signals from A to B to C etc.

[bear632002]

Jeez, I remember this so clearly, waiting for Tiswas I think...

@nevwhile the helicopter was at about the same height as the link dishes. I wonder if someones ATV coverage blinked when the ber jumped :P

[kevthegerbil1958]

24 hour TV kill this lot off

[JoeScaramanga]

How can such a jolly happy tune have such a doom-laden final chord!

[donjabroni]

Very early-70s AM radio sounding, I like it!

[ajlusted]

Great stuff from a golden age of TV. If they still had these to wake up to, I wouldn't feel so bloody depressed about having to get out of bed in the morning :)

[MikeyManchester]

2:12 Alpha Tower and ATV Midlands Studio

[ATVINCOLOUR]

GREAT STUFF!!!

[jackwilshiresfakeid]

I find that an odd thing to come out with about a start up for ATV, least of all because they lost their franchise for being more interested in making programmes for Birmingham Alabama than Birmingham England.

[Enerjee]

@jackwilshiresfakeid - ATV didn't lose their franchise. They were ordered to reflect the Midlands more accurately by changing their name to Central and progress towards focusing on both the West and East Midlands by splitting their news programmes into the two areas by becoming a dual region.

[bmmoS17]

The second and better of the two mid 1970s ATV start-up films. Graet memories here.

[Andy8659]

The memories are flooding back! Skiving off school and watching the IBA Engineering announcements, the ATV start up and then the schools programmes. Happy days! Apparently ATV got into trouble for this start-up because they had to be instrumental!!!

[shirleygibson]

"The Beautifull Book" Was a Hit By Sarah

McChoy and The Marthas charted back In The

Late 1960s, From The Movie, "The Alps Of

St Sergent"(1970).

[abhudson14]

will you be posting any of atv's start up music and pictures from 1972 onwards

[EuroAlien]

It is of course, not THE original startup from ATV - the station had been going for about a decade and a half in glorious black&white 405line by this time, and using the excellent "Sound And Vision" as it's startup.

It's not even the original colour startup from ATV (which used the "Sir Lew Grade March") and may even not be the original morning startup (was it used in Oct72)?

But, that's nitpicking. It is a fantastic piece nonetheless, and it's lovely to see it in full. Many thanks.

[ATVNETWORKLIMITED]

The original ATV 'start up' music is on the ITV50 CD, and also features on the end of the only surviving episode of Lunchbox as ATV closes down in 1958 for the afternoon.

[abhudson14]

when was this used on atv

[cwilliams1976]

The answer to this is that it was never actually used, as the IBA's rules concerning the use of start-up music for all ITV stations was that they had to be instrumental, and so this was ditched in favour of "Midlands Montage".

[harry1552]

It just reminds of the song and dance channel, come for new faces stay for crossroads!

[dgered]

Song is called Odyssey and is performed by Stephanie de Sykes and Rain. Excellent stuff.

[mistofoles]

Whos sings this?

[timonline2000]

I believe the singer is Stephanie de Sykes, who had a few minor hits in the early-mid 70s. She also wrote the UK's Eurovision entries in 1978 and 1980. She also went out with Angus Deayton before his hookers-and-cocaine downfall.

[HD41117]

Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful!

Thank you for uploading.

Nice mannequin, too... 8^)

[rfitzhen]

When was this start-up used?

[neil38]

It doesn't get much better than ATV the ident the programmes simply the best.

[Klucas711]

Much better than the sterile impersonal itv of today! What a better world it was!

[troublemaker1973]

better times

[ATVmidlands5581]

couldnt have put it better myself snaketits. the greatest ITV station ever.

sadly missed.

cheers

atvmidlands

[kutarc]

The regional ITV companies, (the ones left!) should all have start up videos like this, if anything just to promote a regional identity!

[cwilliams1976]

This was have proved impossible, as ITV in the London area had two separate companies, Thames and London Weekend Television, so it would have proved totally impractical for the London landmarks to be shown as Thames already had these incorporated into their logo anyway!!!!!

[AnthonyUK]

The IBA stopped ATV using this music for startups.

[granadagreg]

This is one of two films cut to this track. The other one is my favourite. The music is actually called Odyssey, not Life Is a Beautiful Book. Greg (ITV)

[HEMAfan]

Does the other film show any East Midlands locations? As much as I love ATV, they did 'forget' sometimes their region streched over to Nottingham, Leicester and Derby!

[AnthonyUK]

Life Is A Beautiful Book is the name of the track!

[rfjp]

its wonderful see it a agen .thank you

[Rackabello]

i love the lyrics, beautifully poetic. the only recording I could find was on a 1974 LP which I've had no luck in locating a copy even on ebay. Its too bad Stephanie De Sykes never re-released her albums on CD

[HEMAfan]

True ATV Midlands - original and entertaining :-)

[ATVmidlands5581]

very true. ATV is sadly missed.

cheers

atvmidlands

[Rackabello]

Very American promo, we had a lot of stuff like this in the late 70s

[buzby9]

Catchy tune which was sang by Stephanie de Sykes and Rain. It was called Odyssey.

[mrtsw]

Fantastic film have seen it before but no as good as quality as this.