Kaleidoscope (organisation)

Kaleidoscope (The Classic Television Organisation), is a nonprofit organisation that recovers and stores classic television programmes in their archive. In the past the organisation has staged television festivals in the West Midlands area, having release numerous television research guides.[1] Proceeds from such events are donated to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.[2][3]

Kaleidoscope

Industry	Television and radio research
Founded	1987
Headquarters	Birmingham, West Midlands, England
Products	Books Films
Revenue	Nonprofit
Website	https://www.tvbrain.info/

History

Kaleidoscope was formed in 1988 by television enthusiasts to show appreciation and to research vintage television shows. In late 2013, ten years after Bob Monkhouse died, a large number of television and radio programmes were donated to Kaleidoscope from Monkhouse's archive.[4]

From 1993, along with the British Film Institute Kaleidoscope have been running a campaign called Missing, Believed Wiped (sometimes called: Raiders of the Lost Archive).[5][6][7][8] The campaign has led to numerous episodes being recovered from Steptoe and Son, Dad's Army, a Dennis Potter play and more than sixty classic BBC or ITV programmes from 1957 to 1969 in the Library of Congress[5][6]

The organisation was also featured in a 2015 edition of BBC television programme Inside Out which discussed the subject of missing television.[1]

Notable recoveries

• The Avengers – one episode.[9]
• Celebrity Squares – twenty five episodes[10]
• The Golden Shot – fourteen episodes[10]
• Ivor the Engine – two seasons of early editions[10]
• Late Night Horror – one episode[11]
• The Likely Lads – two episodes[10]
• Out of the Unknown – one episode[10]
• Play School – two editions[10]
• Sale of the Century – two episodes[10]
• Till Death Us Do Part – two episodes[10]
• Top of the Pops – five episodes[10]
• Z Cars – four episodes[10]

References

1. "Kaleidoscope - the men who found our 'lost' TV archives". BBC News. 5 September 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
2. "The Royal National Lifeboat Institution". petford.net. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
3. "TV fans step back in time to help keep lifeboat charity afloat". Stourbridge News. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
4. Plaicce, Andy (29 December 2013). "Cache in the attic: Bob Monkhouse hid 50,000 comedy videos in his loft". Daily Express. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
5. "Rediscovered TV Drama". British Film Institute. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
6. Thorpe, Vanessa (12 September 2010). "Lost tapes of classic British television found in the US". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
7. "Kaleidoscope Raiders of the Lost Archives list 2009 – 2010". wipednews.com. 24 October 2010. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
8. "Can you help the Raiders of the Lost Archive?". ITV. Archived from the original on 27 August 2007. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
9. "The Avengers (1961) – Lost Episode 'Tunnel Of Fear' From The Very First Series Rediscovered After 55 Years!". ianhendry.com. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
10. "Kaleidoscope" (PDF). archivingtomorrow.com. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
11. "BFI event celebrates discovery of long lost TV programmes". BBC News. 16 December 2017. Retrieved 27 December 2017.

See also

• Wiping
• Missing Believed Wiped
• BBC Archive Treasure Hunt
• Doctor Who missing episodes
• Dad's Army missing episodes

External links

• Official Kaleidoscope Site