02/11/1987 - Let's Pretend: Fred Midas

I've scribbled, more than once, about the cataclysmic jolt that Let's Pretend gave my infant imagination, and this is precisely why I refuse to let those memories slink quietly into the distant past. Tragically, surviving specimens of the series - which galloped past the 200-episode post - are depressingly scarce.

Naturally, this angers me. But it also fuels a fire deep within my belly to shine the spotlight on those episodes which emerge from the analogue past and onto YouTube's digital memory extension. One such artifact - Fred Midas - has been lurking online for several years, and somehow I've failed to dissect it. That travesty ends today.

Regional Oddity: Think Tank (1981)

Think Tank starts much like an early 80’s sci-fi show, with a backdrop of twinkling stars accompanied by a pulsating bassline as the Think Tank title spins through space and into view. These titles dissolve into the studio and, whilst Tony Wilson in a suit is far from sci-fi, the set is. With its uncomfortable looking furniture, made entirely out of right angles, and its minimalist colour scheme of silver and black, it could easily be a discarded set from Doctor Who or Blake’s 7.

Sadly, this is where the sci-fi atmosphere ends, although there is plenty of Viewdata to push the technological boundaries, but more about that later. So, Think Tank, what is it and how does it plan to entertain us? Well, it’s an ITV teatime quiz show featuring sixth formers competing to be crowned champions. But it’s not Blockbusters. In fact, it pre-dates the iconic Bob Holness programme by a cool two years. Think Tank, which aired only in the Granada region, is much, much, MUCH obscurer. So, without further ado, let’s dive into Think Tank.

Kaleidoscope Streaming Event - 13th July

For the benefit of those who don't know about Kaleidoscope, they're a specialist archive set up to track down and save missing British television from, well, being missing forever. Launched in the late 1980s, they've uncovered all manner of fantastic content which was considered junked by the broadcasters. They regularly run events where long forgotten, obscure, or previously missing is showcased, but many people struggle to get to these. Luckily, in the last few years, they've began streaming the occasional event - one of these is coming up this Sunday.

Greg Bakun, who will be one of the hosts on the evening, discusses the upcoming event thusly:

Our dearly missed friend Rory Clark once had a brilliant idea for a Kaleidoscope presentation: a showcase of the strange, the weird, the wonderful, the rare, and the truly unique gems from our archive. He called it Pot Pourri! In Rory’s spirit, and to honor his lasting impact on Kaleidoscope, we invite you to join us for a special livestream event on Sunday evening, 13th July at 7pm. Let’s celebrate Rory the best way we know how—through the magic of unforgettable television.

I'll certainly be dropping into the event, and I implore you to as well as something interesting always pops up. Best of all, it's free! Just head over to https://streamyard.com/watch/BFh6ZrKk2SXg to register.

The Evolution of Fitness Programmes on British Television After Covid-19

Help Get the IBA Education Archive Online!

I was recently made aware that Kaleidoscope - the Birmingham-based British TV archivists - are trying to raise funds to help get the IBA Education Archive onto their YouTube channel and they’re looking for donations to help support this. They’re looking for a total of £2,000 to support the licencing rights and labour involved, so it’s far from an obscene amount of money - and, best of all, everyone benefits.

Betamax Finds on Substack

The noble art of trawling through ancient video tapes - part archaeology, part masochism - often turns up fragments rather than complete relics. Betamax tapes throws up all manner of interesting nuggets from the past, but many of them tend to be incomplete. The problem is that the original tape owner's main treasure was usually something like a Bond film, but they may have left the tape running afterwards - hence why I'm eternally being handed the opening minutes of the evening's news before the recording stops.

For those of us in the analogue underworld, this is teeth-grinding stuff. We crave complete programmes, neatly boxed time capsules complete with adverts and in-vision continuity from a friendly face in a makeshift studio. Nonetheless, these glimpses of ephemeral television are still of interest. That's why I regularly upload little snippets to YouTube and, just recently, I've been featuring showcasing them over on the Curious British Telly Substack. So, just a quick reminder to head over there and, for example, check out an extended clip of Bruce Forsyth presenting Hollywood or Bust in 1984.

Bursts of Gaelic Madness: Mag is Mog and Bzzz

I've seen some curious feats of British television in my time, but I'm not sure anything will beat the fever dream which is Darth Vader infused with the spirit of Sutekh from Pyramids of Mars fed through the shoestring budget of BBC Scotland in the early 1980s. But I've double and treble checked, this was no fever dream. It was broadcast and, to make matters even more confounding, it was performed entirely in Scottish Gaelic.

Teetime and Claudia

I never thought I’d get to watch enough of Teetime and Claudia to write an article on it. Aside from one episode which was on YouTube - and half an episode I managed to dig up - it looked as though further footage would remain out of reach. The BFI didn’t hold any copies and, given the lack of people who recognised it, it was unlikely anyone was going to come forwards with a set of episodes. But fortune favours the patient and, finally, someone uploaded several episodes to YouTube a couple of years ago.

VHS and Betamax Tapes Appeal

When I first started digging through video tapes in 2016, the chances of securing collections of 1980s recordings via Ebay, Gumtree, Facebook Marketplace or kind donations were pretty decent. However, in the last few years, these avenues seem to have been less productive. Ebay, generally seems to be packed full of tapes from the 1990s or later when it comes to VHS, and the Betamax tapes seem to be the same ones picked up and then sold on by fellow tape archaeologists.

However, I'm convinced that there are still piles of old video tapes sat in cupboards and lofts which haven't been played since 1987. The 1980s may be a dim and distant memory, but this doesn't mean we need to forget the ephemeral beauty of the television from that era. So, if you're happy to donate a pile of video tapes or know someone who is, then please get in touch with me and we can breathe new, digital life into these recordings