Alan Briscoe
@alanbriscoe.bsky.social
Archive TV aficianado
Thriller (ATV) blog https://thriller-reviews-and-reflections.blogspot.com/
Shadows of Fear blog https://shadowsoffearreviewed.blogspot.com/
Public Eye website http://www.publiceye1965-1975.uk/
Thriller (ATV) blog https://thriller-reviews-and-reflections.blogspot.com/
Shadows of Fear blog https://shadowsoffearreviewed.blogspot.com/
Public Eye website http://www.publiceye1965-1975.uk/
One of the notable features of the Jason King TV series (1971-1972) were the mock-up novels written by Jason about his fictional detective "Mark Caine" and which regularly featured in episodes.
January 12, 2026 at 5:01 PM
One of the notable features of the Jason King TV series (1971-1972) were the mock-up novels written by Jason about his fictional detective "Mark Caine" and which regularly featured in episodes.
Headed notepaper showing the Hereford address of the Bourne family featured in ATV drama "The Cedar Tree" (1976-1978). ATV shows occasionally referred to less well known parts of the region although in this case I'm not sure there was any filming in the Hereford area or anywhere beyond the studio.
January 6, 2026 at 4:55 PM
Headed notepaper showing the Hereford address of the Bourne family featured in ATV drama "The Cedar Tree" (1976-1978). ATV shows occasionally referred to less well known parts of the region although in this case I'm not sure there was any filming in the Hereford area or anywhere beyond the studio.
Actress Wendy Gifford in Crown Court in 1972. Wendy appeared in many shows but ATV's Thriller was not one of them. Despite this I can't shake off the idea she appeared in the episode "Good Salary - Prospects - Free Coffin", probably because it features characters called Wendy & one called Gifford!
December 28, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Actress Wendy Gifford in Crown Court in 1972. Wendy appeared in many shows but ATV's Thriller was not one of them. Despite this I can't shake off the idea she appeared in the episode "Good Salary - Prospects - Free Coffin", probably because it features characters called Wendy & one called Gifford!
It's always interesting to see pictures - especially in colour - from wiped episodes. These are from "The Old Folks at Home" (August 1973) from Series 1 of ATV police drama Hunters Walk. Actor Ken Jones was best known for his comic roles but like many comic actors acquitted himself well in drama.
December 19, 2025 at 4:54 PM
It's always interesting to see pictures - especially in colour - from wiped episodes. These are from "The Old Folks at Home" (August 1973) from Series 1 of ATV police drama Hunters Walk. Actor Ken Jones was best known for his comic roles but like many comic actors acquitted himself well in drama.
Article extract from June 1974 about Mark McManus. Now best remembered as Scottish detective Taggart it's easy to overlook the variety of roles & accents he employed with great aplomb early in his career. In this extract he offers some fascinating thoughts on work, class and politics....
December 17, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Article extract from June 1974 about Mark McManus. Now best remembered as Scottish detective Taggart it's easy to overlook the variety of roles & accents he employed with great aplomb early in his career. In this extract he offers some fascinating thoughts on work, class and politics....
Border TV was the joint first channel to start showing Gerry Anderson's UFO in September 1970. After a strong start though screenings became more sporadic with a few new episodes mixed with repeats. It didn't complete a first run until May 1975, almost 5 years after starting.
December 14, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Border TV was the joint first channel to start showing Gerry Anderson's UFO in September 1970. After a strong start though screenings became more sporadic with a few new episodes mixed with repeats. It didn't complete a first run until May 1975, almost 5 years after starting.
Malcolm Terris and James Bate appearing in the last episode of the 1972 Granada TV serial "The Intruder". By coincidence both appeared as detectives in episodes of ATV's Thriller. Both were also originally from the North East (Sunderland & Whitley Bay respectively).
December 11, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Malcolm Terris and James Bate appearing in the last episode of the 1972 Granada TV serial "The Intruder". By coincidence both appeared as detectives in episodes of ATV's Thriller. Both were also originally from the North East (Sunderland & Whitley Bay respectively).
Anthony Ainley & Geoffrey Beevers in a 1976 episode of prison drama Within These Walls alongside regulars Mona Bruce & Sonia Graham. Both actors later played incarnations of The Master in Doctor Who. Anthony was playing an MP here & described himself as "the Shadow Minister for Organised Chaos"!
December 8, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Anthony Ainley & Geoffrey Beevers in a 1976 episode of prison drama Within These Walls alongside regulars Mona Bruce & Sonia Graham. Both actors later played incarnations of The Master in Doctor Who. Anthony was playing an MP here & described himself as "the Shadow Minister for Organised Chaos"!
Special effects were not generally a strength of Thames' 1970 science fiction series The Tomorrow People but it did make some good use of optical effects such as in this colourful, psychedelic image from the 1974 serial "The Blue and the Green".
December 5, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Special effects were not generally a strength of Thames' 1970 science fiction series The Tomorrow People but it did make some good use of optical effects such as in this colourful, psychedelic image from the 1974 serial "The Blue and the Green".
Crime-writer, crime-fighter and playboy Jason King - or is it?
December 3, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Crime-writer, crime-fighter and playboy Jason King - or is it?
John Le Mesurier, Carol Lynley and Francesca Annis in "Death of an Old-Fashioned Girl", an episode of Orson Welles' Great Mysteries (Anglia). All three also had starring roles in ATV's Thriller but unlike Thriller OWGM wasn't networked & this episode appeared at various points in 1975 & 1976.
December 1, 2025 at 4:32 PM
John Le Mesurier, Carol Lynley and Francesca Annis in "Death of an Old-Fashioned Girl", an episode of Orson Welles' Great Mysteries (Anglia). All three also had starring roles in ATV's Thriller but unlike Thriller OWGM wasn't networked & this episode appeared at various points in 1975 & 1976.
Ulster TV did not start showing UFO until Friday 29th September 1972. An overall broadcast order is impossible as most of the earlier screenings had no episode title but it it possible to identify when the "late night", "sensitive-content" episodes were first broadcast.
November 19, 2025 at 4:57 PM
Ulster TV did not start showing UFO until Friday 29th September 1972. An overall broadcast order is impossible as most of the earlier screenings had no episode title but it it possible to identify when the "late night", "sensitive-content" episodes were first broadcast.
"The Vampire from Space" - the original name for the 1971 Doctor Who serial "The Claws of Axos". It isn't unusual in TV for stories or episodes to have originally had different titles but it's quite rare to have on-screen evidence of the original.
November 16, 2025 at 4:43 PM
"The Vampire from Space" - the original name for the 1971 Doctor Who serial "The Claws of Axos". It isn't unusual in TV for stories or episodes to have originally had different titles but it's quite rare to have on-screen evidence of the original.
Colourful ident for Trident Television. Trident was a company that handled sales for both Yorkshire Television and Tyne Tees. The three prongs of the trident represented these two companies and Trident's extensive other business interests.
November 14, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Colourful ident for Trident Television. Trident was a company that handled sales for both Yorkshire Television and Tyne Tees. The three prongs of the trident represented these two companies and Trident's extensive other business interests.
Nicholas Pennell, "Gail" aka Helen Worth and Bernard Kay in the Doctor Who serial "Colony in Space" broadcast in May 1971.
November 9, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Nicholas Pennell, "Gail" aka Helen Worth and Bernard Kay in the Doctor Who serial "Colony in Space" broadcast in May 1971.
Thames TV ident from its earliest days in 1968, very different to its later, best-known incarnation but still accompanied by the famous fanfare. New ITV channels often had at least one ident before reaching the versions for which they are best remembered.
November 8, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Thames TV ident from its earliest days in 1968, very different to its later, best-known incarnation but still accompanied by the famous fanfare. New ITV channels often had at least one ident before reaching the versions for which they are best remembered.
First broadcasts of Gerry Anderson's UFO on Grampian spanning three and a half years from mid 1971 to late 1974. This was a difficult region to compile with the show disappearing for long periods and with repeats mixed with first broadcasts. Grampian did not start colour broadcasts until 30.9.71.
November 6, 2025 at 4:42 PM
First broadcasts of Gerry Anderson's UFO on Grampian spanning three and a half years from mid 1971 to late 1974. This was a difficult region to compile with the show disappearing for long periods and with repeats mixed with first broadcasts. Grampian did not start colour broadcasts until 30.9.71.
The 1974 Thriller episode "Death To Sister Mary" focused on the targeting of an actress playing a nun in a TV series set in a convent. A seemingly improbable setting for a drama but it had been used in the 1967-1968 Rediffusion series "Sanctuary" starring Joanna Dunham - only one episode exists.
November 2, 2025 at 4:31 PM
The 1974 Thriller episode "Death To Sister Mary" focused on the targeting of an actress playing a nun in a TV series set in a convent. A seemingly improbable setting for a drama but it had been used in the 1967-1968 Rediffusion series "Sanctuary" starring Joanna Dunham - only one episode exists.
Listing for the episode "Nowhere for the Kids" from Series 2 of LWT's prison drama "Within These Walls", 24th January 1975. Curiously this episode is missing and it's uncertain how it happened with all other episodes of the show's five series in existence, possibly a case of accidental wiping.
October 28, 2025 at 5:09 PM
Listing for the episode "Nowhere for the Kids" from Series 2 of LWT's prison drama "Within These Walls", 24th January 1975. Curiously this episode is missing and it's uncertain how it happened with all other episodes of the show's five series in existence, possibly a case of accidental wiping.
Listing from September 1969 for the first episode of "Parkin's Patch", a series about ruling policing and an early YTV production. This notes that lead actor John Flanagan was himself the son of a police officer. He went on to play detectives or police in later shows such as The Sweeney & Thriller.
October 19, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Listing from September 1969 for the first episode of "Parkin's Patch", a series about ruling policing and an early YTV production. This notes that lead actor John Flanagan was himself the son of a police officer. He went on to play detectives or police in later shows such as The Sweeney & Thriller.
Actresses Barbara Mitchell and Polly James as guest storytellers on Rainbow in late 1972. The show was then its early days but lasted another 20 years. Also lasting those 20 years was its famous theme tune which was never re-recorded or "updated" as other long-running themes have been.
October 16, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Actresses Barbara Mitchell and Polly James as guest storytellers on Rainbow in late 1972. The show was then its early days but lasted another 20 years. Also lasting those 20 years was its famous theme tune which was never re-recorded or "updated" as other long-running themes have been.
Listings for Ulster TV for 20th December 1973. An odd feature is the reference to "The World of Jason King" - the original name for the Jason King series but dropped before screening. The show had been on TV for two years by this time so it's puzzling the old name was used.
October 13, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Listings for Ulster TV for 20th December 1973. An odd feature is the reference to "The World of Jason King" - the original name for the Jason King series but dropped before screening. The show had been on TV for two years by this time so it's puzzling the old name was used.
Sheila Fay and Sarah Greene in a publicity picture for Southern TV daytime soap "Together" (in which they played mother and daughter) as it started its run in January 1980. Sheila was a well-established actress; Sarah was very early in her career but later that year moved on to present Blue Peter.
September 26, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Sheila Fay and Sarah Greene in a publicity picture for Southern TV daytime soap "Together" (in which they played mother and daughter) as it started its run in January 1980. Sheila was a well-established actress; Sarah was very early in her career but later that year moved on to present Blue Peter.
Evening listings for HTV West on 2nd March 1973 including a very late screening for new sitcom "The Upper Crusts" starring Charles Gray about an upper class family forced by debts to move into a council house. Some other new shows ended up in graveyard slots in various ITV regions.
September 21, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Evening listings for HTV West on 2nd March 1973 including a very late screening for new sitcom "The Upper Crusts" starring Charles Gray about an upper class family forced by debts to move into a council house. Some other new shows ended up in graveyard slots in various ITV regions.
UFO was first broadcast in 3 areas (ATV, Border, Tyne Tees) OTD (16th September) in 1970. To mark this it's interesting to see the rank order of episodes on the IMDb. Obviously for this or any series our own preferences may be very different but it's always useful to see what others think.
September 16, 2025 at 3:40 PM
UFO was first broadcast in 3 areas (ATV, Border, Tyne Tees) OTD (16th September) in 1970. To mark this it's interesting to see the rank order of episodes on the IMDb. Obviously for this or any series our own preferences may be very different but it's always useful to see what others think.