The Six O'Clock Show

The Six O'Clock Show was a regional television magazine show broadcast in the Greater London area and produced by London Weekend Television between 1982 and 1988.[1]

The Six O'Clock Show
Created byGreg Dyke
Presented byMichael Aspel
Country of originEngland
Production
ProducerLondon Weekend Television
Running time60 minutes
Release
Original networkLondon Weekend Television
Original release8 January 1982 (1982-01-08) –
15 July 1988 (1988-07-15)
Chronology
Related showsLondon Tonight

The Friday evening programme was launched on Friday 8 January 1982 and presented in front of a live studio audience by Michael Aspel with co-hosts Danny Baker, Andy Price and Janet Street-Porter. Later co-hosts included Paula Yates, Shyama Perera, former Page 3 model Samantha Fox, Chris Tarrant, Emma Freud and Mastermind champion Fred Housego.

Devised by Greg Dyke[2] and intended as a light-hearted introduction to the weekend, the programme included a 15-minute news bulletin (Thames Weekend News) produced by Thames Television alongside current affairs, features and entertainment. There was also a short-lived Saturday edition of the programme, which ran for six weeks during May and June 1985. The Six O'Clock Show went on to become one of the most watched regional TV programmes in Britain. One of the programme's first researchers, Paul Ross, later took over from Dyke as the show's editor.

Concern from the Independent Broadcasting Authority about the lack of a proper local news service at weekends forced LWT to introduce its own service of LWT News bulletins throughout the weekend in 1988 (the bulletins were produced originally by the news agency 'Screen News'). The Six O'Clock Show aired its final edition on Friday 15 July 1988 and was replaced by a smaller scale magazine show entitled Friday Now.[3] This in turn was replaced a year later by Six O'Clock Live,[4] presented by Frank Bough with reporters Danny Baker, Jo Sheldon and Nick Owen.

Six O'Clock Live was axed towards the end of 1992 in preparation for the launch of a new seven days a week news service jointly run by LWT and Carlton, which became known as London News Network. LWT News was also axed at the end of 1992 to make way for London Tonight.

References
  1. BFI entry - The 6 O'Clock Show
  2. "UK: Profile - london weekend television's Greg Dyke". Management Today. Haymarket Media Group. 1 February 1992.
  3. BFI entry - Friday Now
  4. BFI entry - Six O'Clock Live
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