Dial-a-Disc

[Twocky61]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

Another number was the engineer's number 175

If you phoned this number you could test your line

[80sChav]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

Wow - what a great thread .... I was unbeleveably only thinking about this minutes since, prior to visiting DYR, just now

We had these machines (or 1 rather) in our local Library before it got demolished and became all modern in another locatiopn in Town. I recall it had a Music Catalouge Company on or 1 and I think a Home study Company for GCSEs tooa nd others - though I am unsure

I often used to marvel at this machine and be scared of useing it and think "is it native only to my area/region" lol


80sChav

[George 1978]

Re: dial a disc

There was also a recipe hotline called Dial A Dish.

In the 1980s & 90s there seemed to be all sorts of information services on the phone, but I guess after the worry about dodgy 0898 numbers, stories of people running up massive bills by not hanging their phones up properly & the internet they lost their niche.

Yes, I am strongly against anyone using those sort of telephone numbers.

[Twocky61]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

Later than this you could make free phone calls from a phone kiosk as long as you listened to the advert first. I think it only ran for a few months

[PC66]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

Hello - Haven't been here long myself.

Sometime into the 1980's with BT and privatization Dial-A-Disc became Discline and was sponsored by Woolworth. There was then also a separate Woolworth Albumline on a different number - Maybe that's what you have in mind?

[DSCOMAN]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

Hi Everyone, been a 'looker' for a while, but finally joined up (can have my shilling ?)
EXCELLENT Thread - this brought back memories - standing in a pay phone box listening to a tinny sound from the ether / some sort of magic - only did it in summer holidays, or if you had found some money, or earned it by taking empty lemonade bottles back for the 'deposit' money.

I thought that there was a choice of songs ? - that must have been later ?

[PC66]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

Here's a list of recorded information services - This page is from a 1979 dialling code booklet for the Isle of Wight, from which the local 80xx services were located in Portsmouth, reached with the routing digits 95.

[PC66]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

You dialled 16 (I think it became 160 later on)

The number depended upon where you were. In director areas (London, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester) these "special" numbers had to be three digits long due to the way the equipment worked, and Dial-A-Disc was on 160. Elsewhere could use 160 in some cases, but in many areas the switching arrangements were such that the two-digit code 16 was all that was necessary. And yes, the same 16/160 number was used for test-match cricket scores during the day at the appropriate times.

As for the other recorded services, they were generally on 80xx numbers at the exchanges which hosted them. 8091 was the weather forecast for a particular area, 8021 motoring information in selected cities, and 8071 doubled up as recipes during the day and children's stories in the evenings (at one time it switched from recipes to gardening information at the weekends). From some smaller exchanges you would need to dial a routing digit in front of these, so they might become 9 8091 etc.

Again, in the director areas (London etc.) it was a little different and seven-digit numbers in the 246 exchange were used, so London weather, for example, was 246 8091. While Dial-A-Disc, recipes, etc. were the same nationally, weather forecasts were regional, so if you were in London and heading down to the southwest you could get the Devon & Cornwall forecast on Plymouth (0752) 8091. Some of the regional forecasts for the Home Counties were on London numbers, using other 246 809x codes (01-246 809x from outside the area, of course).

London & Edinburgh each had recorded tourist information on 01-246 8041 (London) and 031-246-8041 (Edinburgh), but the Edinburgh number was switched over to skiing information during the winter.

There were other recorded services at different times, but I can't recall the numbers off the top of my head!

The other well-known service was "Tim" - The speaking clock. By the 1970's, it was generally on 8081, but in London and the other director areas it had its own special code - 123.

[moonvisage]

Re: Dial-a-Disc

I loved listening to dial a disc.I remember kids talking about it,and didn't really believe them.I went home,convinced it wouldn't work for me,and dialed.Boy,i was thrilled when i realized i could hear what everyone else at school had been raging on about.

[Richard1978]

Re: dial a disc

There was also a recipe hotline called Dial A Dish.

In the 1980s & 90s there seemed to be all sorts of information services on the phone, but I guess after the worry about dodgy 0898 numbers, stories of people running up massive bills by not hanging their phones up properly & the internet they lost their niche.

[The Low Country]

Re: dial a disc

I used to listen to dial a disc too. It was also something that was regularly used where I worked. One person would ring the number, listen to the song, then transfer it to another person in a different dept on another extension, they would listen to it and then they'd forward it on and so on. I'm sure we'd be connected for hours! It was a large company! Goodness knows what their phone bill was like. During the cricket season i think it used to change to the cricket score - boring - not much transferring done then, we'll not between the female staff but maybe that's when the male staff did the same sort of thing, who knows

[Megawitch]

Dial-a Disc

I didn't dial this much but I'm sure I once listened to The Osmonds Crazy Horses on it !

[Richard1978]

Re: Dial a Disc

I can remember there was a whole host of information lines by the end of the 1980s.

My brother had a card for Club Call, which had a different number for the latest info on all the top division clubs.

They got a bad reputation because the information played on a looped tape & wouldn't disconnect until you hung up, so if you left the phone off the hook for too long you would run up a massive bill.

[smurfie1]

Re: Dial a Disc

I remember the back page of the directory as well, I used to love the Care Bears bedtime story line although I think I only got to ring it once.

[Popsicle]

Re: Dial a Disc

I can remember "Dial A Disc"-we always used to find a call box and have a listen before we went to the disco on a Saturday night! I can recall hearing The Sweet's "Blockbuster" and thinking how much it sounded like David Bowie's "The Gene Genie".

My mum used to listen to an inspirational speaker called Dick Saunders in the 70s. We children nicknamed his telephone service "Dial-A-Dick"!