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I was looking at racecards from 1977 as research for an article, and noticed how many of the meetings stated that the races would be televised. Combining that with a check on the TV schedules was a reminder of just how much sport used to dominate in those days, when there were only three channels available.
This was the ITV coverage starting from the Friday before the Bank Holiday in August 1977:
Fri 26/8 Newmarket 4 races
Sat 27/8 ITV 7
Mon 29/8 ITV 7 from Epson and Newcastle
Tue 30/8 Epsom 4 races
Wed 31/8 York 4 races
Thu 1/9 York 4 races
Fri 2/9 Sandown 4 races
Sat 3/9 ITV 7Thu 8/9 Doncaster 3 races
Fri 9/9 Doncaster 4 races
Sat 10/9 ITV 7 including the St LegerThe only day missing from the sequence is the Doncaster card on Wed 7/9, which featured the Champagne Stakes. It wasn’t shown because another obsession of 1970’s took priority for live coverage – two hours of speeches from the Trades Union Congress, which was showm simeltaneously on BBC 2.
The full TV schedule for Fri Aug 26th included 6hrs of cricket from the Oval, the 5th test against Australia, with the first two sessions on BBC1, and the post tea session on BBC2 after they had shown racing from Goodwood. The BBC also found time for 30 mins of show jumping, 50 mins of athletics, 30 mins of cricket highlights and a 50 min documentary about Jimmy Hill’s attempts to introduce football in Saudi Arabia!
So two Friday afternoons in that period when eight races were shown live and it was eleven or twelve races on the Saturdays.
The full TV schedule for Fri Aug 26th included 6hrs of cricket from the Oval, the 5th test against Australia, with the first two sessions on BBC1, and the post tea session on BBC2
And what a treat! Following a first-day washout, Brearley & Boycs put on 86 for the first wicket, both scoring 39 in 176 and 171 balls respectively before England fell to 214 in a stultifying 101.2 overs. The normally ebullient Derek Randall amassed a whopping 3 in 47 balls. Australia ambled to 385 over the next couple of days before the match petered out due to lack of interest with England 57-2. England won the series 3-0. That’s entertainment.
Interestingly, the amount of runs in the entire match was pretty much the same as England’s 1st innings total last week at Newlands which took until an hour or so after lunch on day two.
Mike
I think this also demonstrates how far racing & cricket have fallen from the national fabric of life. The steamroller desire for endless coverage of another particular sport, combined with a total absence of interest in either from the BBC and – until now – ITV, does not augur well for the future.
Mike
Wed 31/8 York 4 races
Thu 1/9 York 4 racesThat was the Garrowby/Strensall meeting of blessed memory: peace after the war of the Ebor meeting
I don’t actually recall it ever being televised, though as you point out there was a heck of a lot of racing shown then, so probably just not recalled amidst the plethora
Edit: ah ha, just realised: the toad work could well have got his claws in, and no VCRs back then. Honest, I did once try and scrape an honest living
It shows the popularity of the sport itself in that era. With only 3 channels, that’s a very narrow outlet for ‘entertainment’. The retired generation back then would be heavily peppered with racing fans; the viewing figures would make fascinating reading.
My memories of the betting shops in those days – I worked as a shop manager between 1971 and 1988 – reflect the TV figures as far as interest goes. There were a few ‘quiet’ shops, of course (even those would easily beat the ‘busy’ shops of today), but extrapolating from the number of shops I worked in (I was a relief manager and worked between Dundee and Penrith) across the industry, there would be thousands of shops where the queues at the counter at pub closing time were sometimes close to unmanageable.
I remember Glasgow shops where 5 tills would be operating on a Saturday and the cashiers deliberately would not look behind the person they were serving for fear of the task in hand in trying to get everyone ‘on’ before the off. I’ve seen counters where twenty punters could stand shoulder to shoulder and behind them it would be solid 6 or 7 lines deep: a packed army, all holding betting slips and cash.
I’m reminding myself here of a tale an independent bookie told me of the day he was drafted in to help his father in his shop on the first day High St betting was legalised. “We had a big table through the back and we were emptying the cash drawers and carrying handfuls of notes through to put them on the table. But we soon filled the table and we were just brushing the money off it to put more down and the cash was all over the floor, everywhere, we were wading through it trying to reach the table. We might as well have thrown the notes straight onto the floor”
Anyway, happy days!
Alan’s post also set me wondering too what ‘rights’ negotiations went on? With no bookies involved (TV did not start in betting shops until 1987), I suspect everything was short and sweet and that most tracks would just be happy to have TV there broadcasting.
3 channels when Saturdays were ruled by sport with Grandstand on the BBC and World of Sport on LWT (as it was at the weekends on ITV).
Football, Racing, Boxing, Skiing, Cricket, Ice Skating, Darts, Rallycross, Wrestling, Speedway, Tennis, Drag Racing, Snooker, Aussie Rules Football, Motor Racing, Gymnastics and Greyhound Racing – whatever sport it was you could guarantee it would be covered at some point during the weekend………….glory days indeed.
Remember fondly the winter days when horse racing was called off the ITV7 comprised greyhound racing from Harringay and Wembley with commentary from Reg Gutteridge who usually did the boxing.
It’s probably the selective memory of a wasted childhood and youth but Grandstand always seemed to begin with Football Preview presented by the bull-necked Sam Leitch swiftly followed by Rallycross with Murray Walker coming over all orgasmic about ‘Hairy Hill’ or Motocross aka Scrambling which always seemed to be won by a bloke called Banks
Meanwhile over on World of Sport there was Wrestling with expert analysis from Kent Walton before the ITV7 began. A cherished memory is of a rugged-up-but-still-cold-looking Brough Scott (I think) on-course at Catterick welcoming the expectant and hopeful with words to the effect ‘welcome to what is probably the worst ITV7 ever’. I can’t remember the away meeting
Different times, it was sports-a-go-go-chop-and-change on Saturday afternoons so no time or need for superfluous chatter; just the introductory voice-over then the action
And Racing excepted (its USP) there was little sport during the working-week other than intermittent Wednesday evening fixtures in Football; and of course those glorious Test Matches over the summer that began on Thursdays and finished on Tuesdays, with no play Sunday: 11.30 -1.30 BBC1, Lunch and the News, 2.10-4.10, Tea and Children’s Hour so switch to BBC2 – 4.30-6.30
It wasn’t better then: it just seemed great because it was all we had, but have to admit I do yearn for the no-frills just-get-on-with-it simplicity
And what a treat! Following a first-day washout, Brearley & Boycs put on 86 for the first wicket, both scoring 39 in 176 and 171 balls respectively before England fell to 214 in a stultifying 101.2 overs. The normally ebullient Derek Randall amassed a whopping 3 in 47 balls. Australia ambled to 385 over the next couple of days before the match petered out due to lack of interest with England 57-2. England won the series 3-0. That’s entertainment.
Much of the Test Cricket in the 70s was for ‘the connoisseur’ i.e somewhat slow, be honest boring
I ran home from school many-a-time to catch a couple of hours cricket and I think the nadir was some Test in circa 1970 when, breathless on a Thursday afternoon, I received the news from Peter West that England were batting and John Edrich was 39 not out at Tea, after four hours at the crease. Proper Opener him
I could check elsewhere but why not here: was that ’77 Ashes series the one spoilt by the ‘free George Davis’ campaign’s vandalism of Headingley?
I could check elsewhere but why not here: was that ’77 Ashes series the one spoilt by the ‘free George Davis’ campaign’s vandalism of Headingley?
That was a couple of years earlier in an Ashes match at Headingly.
Off-topic this I know, but the George Davis campaign – he was jailed in 1975 for armed robbery – was one of the most entertaining episodes in British social history with the “Free George Davis” motif gaining an unstoppable momentum and being daubed everywhere by kids (and others) who didn’t have the faintest idea who he was.
Anyway, after the Headingly incident and with much ‘celeb’ support, the erstwhile blagger was released from the injustice of imprisonment only to rather ungratefully be nicked for a similar armed robbery a year later. It was if Nelson Mandela upon release promptly went and turned-over a post office in Pretoria.
Predictably, a second ‘George Davis is Innocent’ campaign unsurprisingly failed to materialise. Davis was collared for robbery a third time some years later.
Undeterred by events, another East End charmer – George Ince – received the same treatment most particularly from the Tom Robinson Band via their excellent ballad “I Shall Be Released”, the flipside to “2-4-6-8 Motorway”. Sadly, Ince remained in jail until parole. Marxist-Leninist gay rights activist Tom Robinson later married, had kids and moved to Devon.
Great days!
Mike
No that was the ’75 series with the match finely poised with one day to go. Headingley ’77 was the scene of Boycott’s 100th 100. You will remember the classic on-drive off Chappell which brought this up and the pitch invasion that followed, which resulted in Geoffrey having his cap nicked. A young Botham then skittled the Aussies as they lost by an innings and plenty.
No that was the ’75 series with the match finely poised with one day to go. Headingley ’77 was the scene of Boycott’s 100th 100. You will remember the classic on-drive off Chappell which brought this up and the pitch invasion that followed, which resulted in Geoffrey having his cap nicked. A young Botham then skittled the Aussies as they lost by an innings and plenty.
Dear oh dear oh dear…how on earth did I manage to forget that was Headingley ’77
thanks both
It’s probably the selective memory of a wasted childhood and youth but Grandstand always seemed to begin with Football Preview presented by the bull-necked Sam Leitch swiftly followed by Rallycross with Murray Walker coming over all orgasmic about ‘Hairy Hill’ or Motocross aka Scrambling which always seemed to be won by a bloke called Banks
Meanwhile over on World of Sport there was Wrestling with expert analysis from Kent Walton before the ITV7 began. A cherished memory is of a rugged-up-but-still-cold-looking Brough Scott (I think) on-course at Catterick welcoming the expectant and hopeful with words to the effect ‘welcome to what is probably the worst ITV7 ever’. I can’t remember the away meeting
Different times, it was sports-a-go-go-chop-and-change on Saturday afternoons so no time or need for superfluous chatter; just the introductory voice-over then the action
Moto cross was always won by Dave Bickers when I watched it Drone and I think wrestling always followed the ITV7 at 4.00pm. Seem to remember it was usually preceded by some bizarre “sport” such as lumberjacking or highwire walking.
Boxing from Madison Square Garden was always a staple on Grandstand and David Coleman was incomparable doing the teleprinter for the football results.
Can you remember when McCririck used to sit behind Coleman on screen and was called upon to give a commentary on a 4 runner race when the commentary was lost and got the race completely wrong? Think Venture to Cognac might have been one of the runners.
Think McCririck never forgave Coleman and blamed him for his humiliation.
Here’s a bit of Murray Walker commentating on Dave Bickers:
http://www.facebook.com/Coddenham/videos/2126579878339/
The total disregard for the safety of spectators looks amazing to modern eyes. As it also does in this clip of another Saturday Grandstand staple of 1960’s, motor racing from Crystal Palace, a track laid out in a public park:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWp-0TuY4Sk
Stick with that clip for a crash that will have you fearing the worst, but apparently no harm done.
Apropos of ’75 and ’77: I recall boring Nathan Hughes, TRF’s cricket correspondent, with words such as ‘disgraceful’ and phrases such as ‘this is the end of the world as we know it’ when Australia turned up in England last year to contest the Ashes having been allowed to enter Blighty as recently as 2013
Again, flawed and selective memory of a gilded youth, but always thought the Ashes were contested every five years
That fab seriies in ’72 and then ’77. Why ’75?
Sad isn’t it: just typing those numerals releases endorphins, as has this thread (whimsical, gent-of-a-certain-age smug-but-sorta-contnet needs-for-nothing luckiest-man-in-the-world is-there-life-on mars smiley)
Not sure how far ahead they planned but this could have been something to do with South Africa’s exile from International Cricket. This certainly works out as they were suppose to tour in 1970 but this was replaced with Rest of the World team who thrashed England. I’m too young to remember this series but it was certainly some squad they brought over, including the best South Africans who were probably the best International side at that time. Therefore five years on would be 1975. I’m certain the England batsmen were happy with the planning, having just faced Lillee ‘n’ Thompson on the winter tour Down Under and then having to face them again a few months later. Boycott definitely took his sabbatical from International Cricket at the right time 😉
Here’s a bit of Murray Walker commentating on Dave Bickers:
http://www.facebook.com/Coddenham/videos/2126579878339/
The total disregard for the safety of spectators looks amazing to modern eyes. As it also does in this clip of another Saturday Grandstand staple of 1960’s, motor racing from Crystal Palace, a track laid out in a public park:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWp-0TuY4Sk
Stick with that clip for a crash that will have you fearing the worst, but apparently no harm done.
I am staggered to see that the latter clip shows none other than the late, great Jim Clark saloon-car-ing a Lotus Cortina in 1964, a season in which he competed fully in Grands Prix and indeed sandwiched his two F1 Championships.
Far more F1 races nowadays of course, but it’s hard to imagine Lewis Hamilton bodging a Touring Car round Snetterton or the like!
Mike
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