Life in Britain in the early 1980s

[Arran]

What do we have these days? - I believe that water filters have almost replaced milk in classrooms as water seems to be the most beneficial thing for youngsters rather than milk.

That's because primary schools now serve semi-skimmed in cartons and charge parents an extortionate price for it.

Milk only cost £3 a term at my primary school back in the 1990s for reception class to Y2 kids, so almost every kid had it. The school always had a massive collection of pound coins on the first day of term.

The price of primary school milk has gone up way above the rate of inflation since 2000. Any ideas how much it cost in the early 1980s?

I have wondered if many parents nowadays would get uptight if schools changed from semi-skimmed back to full fat milk.

[George 1978]

Southern Counties TV was the company run by Gerry Anderson who created Thunderbirds. I think there were concerns that the team behind it had no real connection with the south east ITV region and it was unclear why they had even picked that particular region.

TV South and South East was the company run by Freddie Laker. It was more interested in making big money rather than making TV programmes and providing a decent service.

It made me think that there would have been an ITC (Independent Television Company - the company, not the regulator) and an ATV Link to Southern Counties TV - in other words, they might have taken over a lot of ATV stuff. One of the breakfast TV bids - Daybreak TV had connections with ATV.

Interesting comparisons between Laker and Richard Branson as well - both had their fingers in airlines and broadcasting.

Of course, James Gatward who founded TVS used to work for Southern himself.

[George 1978]

Border was also unopposed and were seriously considering closing down by not re-applying in 1980 due to the low profitability of the region.

Border was always like a spare part in the ITV system - I would bet that had Border had closed down in 1980, Granada would have had Cumbria and the Isle of Man; Scottish would have had the Scottish Borders and Tyne Tees would have had north and west Northumberland.

[George 1978]

The price of primary school milk has gone up way above the rate of inflation since 2000. Any ideas how much it cost in the early 1980s?

I have wondered if many parents nowadays would get uptight if schools changed from semi-skimmed back to full fat milk.

I know that milk and biscuits were 5p per pupil in around 1984, add that up to a class of 30 and that would be £1.50 per class, or £7.50 per Infant school each day as we had give different classes at the time. Multiply that by five for the week, and 15 or so by term, and again by three for the school year...

I make that nearly £1,700 for the school year, although my Maths might be a bit wrong - it certainly was at the time, hence being at school!

[Arran]

Border was always like a spare part in the ITV system - I would bet that had Border had closed down in 1980, Granada would have had Cumbria and the Isle of Man; Scottish would have had the Scottish Borders and Tyne Tees would have had north and west Northumberland.

The Borders ITV region was a kludge resulting from the Caldbeck transmitter serving both Cumbria and D&G. It could not sensibly be incorporated into either the north west or central Scotland ITV regions. STV originally wanted the Selkirk transmitter but the Borders region would be too small without it.

I would have seriously considered abolishing it for the 1991 franchise round.

One advantage of Border is that advertising was dirt cheap. There were commercials for all sorts of small businesses and independent shops that could not afford them for larger ITV regions. There were even commercials made by people who were selling their semi-detached house!

[Arran]

I know that milk and biscuits were 5p per pupil in around 1984

You got biscuits back in the 1980s?!

They never had any biscuits at my primary school.

[Arran]

Another change considered earlier was merging HTV West into the South West franchise. Peter Cadbury of Westward lobbied the IBA to do this as Bristol would have been a good source of advertising revenue for them.

Both Westward and TSW wanted the west of England subregion as they thought the south west region was too small and covers less than half of what is considered the south west of England.

One of the companies that bid for Wales and the west of England ITV region in the 1991 franchise round was backed by TSW.

Grampian was another smaller region which has more or less being absorbed into neighbouring Scottish TV.

Grampian and STV were very different companies as they reflected the demographics of their regions.

[Arran]

The IBA was opposed to both Westward and TSW having the west of England subregion because of the potential that a large number of viewers in south Wales would point their TV aerials at the Mendip transmitter and watch Westward / TSW instead of HTV.

[George 1978]

The IBA was opposed to both Westward and TSW having the west of England subregion because of the potential that a large number of viewers in south Wales would point their TV aerials at the Mendip transmitter and watch Westward / TSW instead of HTV.

Yes, Westward accused both TWW and HTV of being a Welsh broadcaster with no right to broadcast south of the Bristol Channel.

[Arran]

Families were on average materially less well off (such as having one black and white TV, no phone, video recorders and microwaves were expensive luxuries, kids not having a bike etc. – but there was less poverty and inequality. Foodbanks were unheard of and far fewer people had in-work benefits, although there were unemployment blackspots mostly in areas where the economy was based around coal mining and heavy industry.

https://forums.doyouremember.co.uk/f...hone-or-a-bike