TVTimes

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Not to be confused with TV Time.

TV Times
Tvtimes.jpg
TV Times logo from 1999 to 2016
EditorRobert Hiley
CategoriesTV listings magazine
FrequencyWeekly
Circulation197,153 (ABC Jan-Jun 2016)[1]
Print and digital editions
First issue22 September 1955
CompanyIndependent Television Publications (1955–1989)
TI Media (formerly IPC Media and Time Inc. UK) (1989–2020)
Future plc (2020–present)
CountryUnited Kingdom
Based inLondon, England
LanguageBritish English
Websitewww.whatsontv.co.uk/tv-times/
ISSN0962-1660

TV Times is a British television listings magazine published by Future plc.

Until 28 February 1991, it was the only source of seven-day listings for ITV and later, Channel 4 (includes S4C in Wales). The magazine was first published in 1955, but did not circulate nationally until 1968 as some (usually smaller) regional stations opted to produce their own listings publications.

It also used the branding for several broadcast spin-offs on ITV, often include the Miss TV Times and The TV Times Awards during the 1970s and 1980s.

Until the market was deregulated in 1991, its nearest rival was Radio Times – owned then by the BBC and at the time the only source of weekly BBC television and radio schedules. However the two magazines were very different in character, and viewers wanting the full listings for the coming week were required to purchase both publications.

History[]

Publication[]

TV Times was launched on 22 September 1955, with the start of transmissions of the first ITV station, Associated-Rediffusion. Initially, the magazine was published only in the London area, carrying listings for Associated-Rediffusion (Rediffusion, London from 1964) on weekdays and ATV at weekends, but regional editions began to appear covering those ITV regional companies which did not opt to establish their own listings magazines. TV Times became a national magazine (except for the Channel Islands) from 21 September 1968.

The magazine was branded as TV Times Magazine from 3 October 1981 until 6 October 1984, the premise being it contained more than simply television listings. From November 1982 onwards, it carried listings for Channel 4 and its Welsh equivalent, S4C. On 7 October 1989, the programme schedule pages were finally printed in full colour for the first time. When the television listings were deregulated on 1 March 1991, TV Times began carrying listings for the BBC's television channels which, up to that point, had only been printed in the BBC's official listings magazine, Radio Times.[2] On 11 February 2006, the magazine was refreshed for a more modern look including the double-page highlights of programmes on all channels. radio and kids' television listings were scrapped, increasing the publication's emphasis on big-star interviews and soaps.

TV Times was originally published by Independent Television Publications, owned by the participating ITV companies. The magazine was acquired by IPC Media in 1989, which became Time Inc. UK in 2014.[3]

Regional editions[]

Prior to September 1968, several of the regional ITV companies produced their own listings magazines:

Magazine name ITV region
TV Times
TV Guide Scottish Television (until 13 May 1962)
Television Weekly
  • Wales TV (English)
  • Teledu Cymru (Welsh)
 Wales West and North Television (14 September 1962 – 26 January 1964)
TV World (27 September 1964 – 20 September 1968)
  • ATV Midlands (weekdays, and later all week from 29 July 1968)
  • ABC Midlands (weekends until 1968)
The Viewer
TV Post Ulster Television
Look Westward Westward Television
Channel Viewer Channel Television

During the late 1950s until the early 1980s, TV Times suffered frequent printing disputes that often meant emergency or special combined editions.

On 1 March 1991, TV Times published BBC1 and BBC2 programme listings for the first time, which also mirrored the 11 regional editions generally referred to by the ITV company's name, rather than geographical area:

BBC region ITV region
BBC Northern Ireland UTV (Ulster Television)
BBC Scotland
BBC North East Tyne Tees
BBC North Yorkshire
BBC North West Granada
HTV
Central
BBC East Anglia
BBC South East
BBC South
BBC South West

Every local ITV station originally had its own version, but since 2006 as they have been only four editions:

Regional area Channels
England All BBC and ITV regions in England and the Channel Islands
Scotland
Wales
Northern Ireland

TV World[]

From 1956 to 1964, the Midlands originally had their own edition of TV Times listing ATV and ABC programmes. A separate listings magazine called TV World was published from 27 September 1964, with the innovative idea of splitting itself 50:50 with a second cover in the middle allowing for the magazine to be folded over to create both a weekend and a weekday section from one publication. TV Times went national (except for the Channel Islands) from 21 September 1968.

Channel Viewer/CTV Times[]

Channel Television published its own listings magazine Channel Viewer on 1 September 1962, followed by a relaunch as Channel Television Times in 1971 and then later shortened to CTV Times until 25 October 1991 as it was feared that the company might cease trading without the revenue from its own magazine.[4]

Sbec[]

S4C launched its own pull-out weekly listings supplement magazine Sbec on 1 November 1982, distributed free with the Wales edition of TV Times. It contained full details of schedules in both Welsh and English. Channel 4's programmes were also included.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "ABC Certificates and Reports: TV Times". Audit Bureau of Circulations. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  2. ^ "The TV-Listings Market: The Duopoly Strikes Back". The Economist. 2 February 1991. p. 53.
  3. ^ Devitt, Maureen. "Scottish Television profit 21% brighter". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
  4. ^ "Not the TVTimes - Schedules - Transdiffusion Broadcasting System".

External links[]

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