1965 in British television

This is a list of British television related events from 1965.

Events

• January – The BBC collaborates with Ireland's RTÉ on an historic television broadcast as Irish Taoiseach Seán Lemass and Prime Minister of Northern Ireland Terence O'Neill meet for the first time in Belfast.^[1]
• 2 January – World of Sport premieres on ITV with Eamonn Andrews as its first presenter.
• 30 May – A televised tribute to the late British bandleader and impresario Jack Hylton called The Stars Shine for Jack is held in London at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.
• 1 August – Cigarette adverts are banned from UK television. Pipe tobacco and cigar adverts continue until 1991.
• 6 August – The War Game, a drama-documentary by director Peter Watkins depicting the events of a fictional nuclear attack on the United Kingdom, is controversially pulled from its planned transmission in BBC1's The Wednesday Play anthology strand. The BBC was pressured into this move by the British government, which did not want much of the play's content to become public. It was eventually released to cinemas, and won the 1966 Academy Award for Documentary Feature. The BBC finally screened the play in 1985.
• 4 October –
  • United! premieres on BBC1.
  • The BBC announces plans to introduce a new service for Asian immigrants starting the following week.^[2]
• 13 November – The word "fuck" is spoken for the first time on British television by the theatre critic Kenneth Tynan.

Debuts

BBC1

• 9 January – Not Only... But Also (1965–1970)
• 31 March – Going for a Song (1965–1977)
• 13 April – The Bed-Sit Girl (1965–1966)
• 5 June – Hector's House (1965–1970)
• 7 July – Tomorrow's World (1965–2003)
• 22 July – Till Death Us Do Part (1965–1975)
• August – Sportsnight (1965–1997)
• 2 October – BBC-3 (1965–1966)
• 4 October – United! (1965–1967)
• 18 October – The Magic Roundabout (1965–1977)
• 19 October – The Newcomers (1965–1969)
• 13 December – Jackanory (1965–1996, 2006)

BBC2

• 24 March – The Airbase (1965)
• 17 October – Call My Bluff (1965–1988, 1994, 1996–2005)

ITV

• 2 January – World of Sport (1965–1985)
• 23 January – Public Eye (1965–1975)
• 30 September – Thunderbirds (1965–1966)

Television shows

Changes of network affiliation

1940s

• Watch with Mother (1946–1973)
• Come Dancing (1949–1998)

1950s

• Andy Pandy (1950–1970, 2002–2005)
• The Good Old Days (1953–1983)
• Panorama (1953–present)
• Sunday Night at the London Palladium (1955–1967, 1973–1974)
• Take Your Pick (1955–1968, 1992–1998)
• Double Your Money (1955–1968)
• Dixon of Dock Green (1955–1976)
• Crackerjack (1955–1984)
• Opportunity Knocks (1956–1978, 1987–1990)
• This Week (1956–1978, 1986–1992)
• Armchair Theatre (1956–1974)^[3]
• What the Papers Say (1956–2008)
• The Sky at Night (1957–present)
• Blue Peter (1958–present)
• Grandstand (1958–2007)

1960s

• The Flintstones (1960–1966)
• Coronation Street (1960–present)
• The Avengers (1961–1969)
• Songs of Praise (1961–present)
• Hugh and I (1962–1967)
• The Saint (1962–1969)
• Z-Cars (1962–1978)
• Animal Magic (1962–1983)
• Ready Steady Go! (1963–1966)
• Doctor Who (1963–1989, 2005–present)
• World in Action (1963–1998)
• The Likely Lads (1964–1966)
• Redcap (1964–1966)
• The Wednesday Play (1964–1970)
• Mr. and Mrs. (1964–1999, 2008–2010, 2012–present)
• Top of the Pops (1964–2006)
• Match of the Day (1964–present)
• Crossroads (1964–1988, 2001–2003)
• Play School (1964–1988)

Ending this year

• Rag, Tag and Bobtail (1953–1965)
• Picture Book (1955–1965)
• Noggin the Nog (1959–1965, 1966–1982)
• Sykes and A... (1960–1965)
• Compact (1962–1965)
• Steptoe and Son (1962–1965, 1970–1974)
• The Beat Room (1964–1965)
• Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life (1964–1965)

Births

• 4 January – Julia Ormond, British actress
• 9 January – Joely Richardson, British actress
• 14 January – Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, English chef
• 15 January – James Nesbitt, Northern Irish actor
• 27 January – Alan Cumming, Scottish actor
• 22 February – John Leslie, television presenter
• 26 February – Alison Armitage, English model and actress
• 11 March – Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen, British television presenter
• 22 March – Emma Wray, actress
• 30 March – Piers Morgan, British tabloid journalist
• 4 April – Sean Wilson, British actor
• 21 April – Jacquie Beltrao, sports presenter
• 27 April – Anna Chancellor, British actress
• 29 April – Rosie Rowell, actress
• 3 May – Michael Marshall Smith, novelist, screenwriter and short story writer
• 17 May –
  • Jeremy Vine, British BBC radio and television presenter
  • Alice Beer, television presenter.
• 19 June – Simon O'Brien, television actor and radio presenter
• 4 July – Jo Whiley, British Radio DJ
• 8 July – Matthew Wright, journalist and television presenter
• 6 August – Mark Speight, British television presenter (died 2008)
• 24 September – Sheryl Gascoigne, television personality
• 25 September Steve Scott, ITV newsreader
• 14 October – Steve Coogan, British comedian and actor
• 15 October – Stephen Tompkinson, British actor
• 4 November – Shaun Williamson, British actor
• 10 November – Sean Hughes, comedian
• 12 November – Eddie Mair, British BBC radio and television presenter
• 16 November – Mark Benton, actor
• 21 November – Alexander Siddig, Sudanese-born actor

Deaths

• 22 December – Richard Dimbleby, journalist and broadcaster

References