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GAYBO’S FIRST BROADCAST? Mary Robinson on the Den? Footage from Italia 90? Which would you like to be able to watch again?
They may all be available soon as the National Broadcaster is to release more of its archived footage online for its 50th anniversary celebrations.
RTÉ will publish photos, video clips and TV50 Classics as part of TV50, a year-long celebration starting New Year’s Eve.
The comprehensive archives which provide a snapshot of Irish life will be made available from spring 2012.
Other events have been organised across the group to celebrate the golden birthday. Of course, there are the stamps as well.
Fifty years ago on New Year’s Eve President Eamon de Valera launched Telefís Éireann with these words:
Never before was there in the hands of men an instrument so powerful to influence the thoughts and actions of the multitude.”
That first evening included poetry readings by Siobhán McKenna and Mícheál MacLiammóir, a look back at the preparations for the television service, and an hour of music and song featuring Jimmy O’Dea and Maureen Potter.
Speaking at the launch of TV50, Director General Noel Curran said, “Television has served as both a window and mirror to an evolving nation; witnessing and chronicling huge change across five decades of Irish life. I hope that in that time we have served the viewing public well: that we have reflected their lives in a way that is nuanced and recognisable; that we have stimulated our conversation as a nation; that we have informed the populace in a way that has furthered our democratic rights and responsibilities; that we have promoted a sense of national identity. And that we have entertained and engaged along the way.”
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RTE did record a lot of stuff on tape, which was at the time prohibitively expensive, and was as a matter of course, recorded over, in order to cut costs.
Sad, but nothing unusual, as even the BBC did likewise, consigning much of their earlier stuff to the dustbin of history. Even now, many BBC releases, such as Dad’s Army, are partly comprised of home recordings made by viewers.
What stood to RTE was that they were more reliant on film, and as such that tended to survive.
As a matter of fact, RTE have an excellent repository, as borne out by much of Brendan Balfe’s work, down through the years. It’s a fairly safe bet that he will have a hand in this project. I have to give them credit for this, as a history buff myself, I’ll find it interesting.
Balfe relies on audio, and probably a personal archive too, video is very different. My problem is not with reusing tape but recording over significant footage blithely.
Haven’t they wiped most of the stuff before 1980? No Late Late archive to speak of and hardly any home produced programming from 60s has survived.
We’ll soon find out.
Think of the physical space required to keep long running shows like the Late Late or the Den archived – it’s no surprise they couldn’t keep it all!
Wonder if they’ll have that Prime Time Investigates show up?
Seriously though, I can’t imagine an organisation as overpaid and inept as RTE having the amount of organisation and talent it takes to organise a serious archive.
Haven’t they wiped a huge amount of stuff? No Late Late archive to speak of and little or no home produced programming from 60s has survived.
Yep.
Would they show the famous prime time interview c. 1997 of the fine gael leadership candidates. specifically enda kenny babbling waffle when he was asked about his economic policies. The look on his face was like a kid doing the leaving cert just realising he had studied the wrong paper. And that will explain why I could NEVER vote for FG
Don’t we see enough of Gay Byrne? Young people leaving by the thousand and he has so many income streams it is immoral. Just because his greed got him into trouble financially RTE and The government bail him out. Just like the developers he gets helped out by the taxpayer all because he gambled. He is a greedy guts with a smirk on his face because he can get away with this appalling behaviour. I bet he goes to mass on Sunday’s as well as he is typical of our politicians,developers,and bankers – all smug immoral cheats. I think Gay would let his kids emigrate instead of giving one of them just one of his jobs. RTE equal opportunities employer my xxxx
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