Thames News
| Thames News | |
|---|---|
Final logo,
3 September 1990 – 31 December 1992 |
|
| Also known as | Thames at Six Thames Weekend News |
| Genre | News, London (regional) |
| Presented by | Various, including: Rita Carter Steve Clarke Andrew Gardner Robin Houston Tricia Ingrams Graham Miller Penny Smith |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Production | |
| Running time | Main bulletin: 30 minutes Other bulletins: Times vary |
| Production company(s) | Thames Television |
| Distributor | FremantleMedia |
| Release | |
| Original network | ITV |
| Picture format | 4:3 |
| Original release | 12 September 1977 – 31 December 1992 |
Thames News was the flagship regional news programme of Thames Television, serving the Thames ITV region and broadcast on weekdays from 12 September 1977 to 31 December 1992.
The news service was produced and broadcast from Thames TV's headquarters at Euston Road in north-west London and, during its last few years in operation, from district newsrooms in Dartford in Kent, Guildford in Surrey and Watford in Hertfordshire.
Prior to Thames News, the station opted not to provide a conventional local news service in spite of requests from the Independent Television Authority to improve on Rediffusion's scant levels of regional output. Instead, Thames produced Today, a local magazine show presented chiefly on alternating nights by Eamonn Andrews and Bill Grundy. The programme was axed in the summer of 1977, several months after Grundy's infamous on-air interview with The Sex Pistols.
Today was replaced on Monday, 12 September 1977 by Thames at Six, a more conventional news magazine programme, presented by former ITN newscaster Andrew Gardner. The following year saw Thames establish a full strength newsroom, enabling daily coverage of London-specific news for the first time in ITV's history. A lunchtime Thames News bulletin was launched on Tuesday, 5 September 1978 – a late night bulletin, broadcast after News at Ten, was also due to launch on the same day, but was held back until Monday, 28 April 1980 because of union problems. During 1979, the main evening programme was renamed as Thames News.
On New Year's Day, Friday, 1 January 1982, Thames and its weekend counterpart London Weekend Television (LWT) began new franchise periods, and at the same time, the weekly handover from Thames to LWT was brought forward from 19:00 to 17:15 on Friday nights. Prior to the change, Thames aired a full Friday evening edition of Thames News at 18:00, followed by Thames Sport at 18:30, but after the franchise renewals, LWT was reluctant to start a weekend news service, despite pressure from the Independent Broadcasting Authority, which had also suggested introducing a single seven-day service co-produced by both companies.
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