Associated-Rediffusion
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| Based in | London |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | London and surrounding counties |
| First airdate | 22 September 1955 as Associated-Rediffusion, 6 April 1964 as Rediffusion, London |
| Closed | 29 July 1968 |
| Replaced by |
Thames Television (Mondays to Fridays) London Weekend Television (Friday evenings) |
| Owned by | BET, Broadcast Relay Services |
Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion, London, was the British ITV contractor for London and parts of the surrounding counties, on weekdays between 1954 and 29 July 1968. Transmissions started on 22 September 1955 and the company is credited with being the first Independent Television company to launch.
The company was originally a partnership between British Electric Traction (BET), its subsidiary Broadcast Relay Services Ltd. (trading as Rediffusion), and Associated Newspapers, owner of the Daily Mail. In the aftermath of the heavy financial losses made by the new ITV system in its initial years, Associated Newspapers sold the majority of its share to BET and Rediffusion, although the company did not drop the word "Associated" from its name until 1964. Associated Newspapers, later realising the potential of ITV, was a significant investor in the ITV franchise contractor for southern and south-east England, Southern Television.
Captain Thomas Brownrigg RN (Retired), the general manager of Associated-Rediffusion from 1955, had a very clear idea of what his new commercial television station was to be like - the BBC Television Service, with advertisements. To this end, the station had a heraldic-style on-air clock, referred to as "Mitch" by staff (after chief station announcer Leslie Mitchell, who had not only made the first announcement when A-R went on the air in 1955, but had done the same when the BBC TV service started in 1936).
Associated Rediffusion took over the former Wembley Film Studio at Wembley Park in north-west London.
Associated-Rediffusion officially began broadcasting on 22 September 1955 at 19:15 GMT, with actress Marjie Lawrence uttering the first words. That night the BBC, which had held the monopoly on broadcasting in United Kingdom, aired a melodramatic episode of their popular radio soap opera The Archers on the BBC Home Service in which core character Grace Archer was fatally injured in a fire. This was seen as a ploy to keep viewers and listeners away from the new station. Britain's first female newsreader Barbara Mandell appeared during the first full day of transmissions on 23 September 1955. The London weekend contractor ATV launched two days later.
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