It’ll Never Last… 70 Years Of British Television

Babyboomers and their parents can take a trip down memory lane tonight as Alan Whicker (pictured) continues his review of the history of British television with a look at the Fifties – the decade in which TV had its real beginnings.

The first major televised event took place in 1953, when millions gathered around flickering black-and-white boxes to watch the Queen’s coronation in Westminster Abbey. From there, it was only a short step to Andy Pandy, Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men and the weekly doings of the Grove Family – Britain’s first-ever soap.

It was also the decade in which Cliff Michelmore created nightly current-affairs viewing with the legendary Tonight, and in which Richard Dimbleby found fame as the presenter of Panorama.

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