State of the RTÉ Archive?

Judge · 24-03-2006 8:54pm #1

It's fairly well known I think that the UK broadcasters were pretty poor at keeping archives up until the late 70s/early 80s. For example, less than half a dozen installments of Top of the Pops from the 60s survive.

What were/are RTÉ like? Do they have a full archive or is most of the broadcasting history of Ireland been consigned to the dustbin as well? Is there any way of finding out?

L1011 · 25-03-2006 1:11am

Judge wrote:

It's fairly well known I think that the UK broadcasters were pretty poor at keeping archives up until the late 70s/early 80s. For example, less than half a dozen installments of Top of the Pops from the 60s survive.

What were/are RTÉ like? Do they have a full archive or is most of the broadcasting history of Ireland been consigned to the dustbin as well? Is there any way of finding out?

They seem to have been a lot better, which is odd as you'd think they were even more skint and in need of re-use of tapes. They seem to have at the very least most of the "important" Late Late shows, news shows, etc.

Reeling Through The Years showed this well enough, although there is also AP or BBC and similar footage in there.

nlgbbbblth · 16-08-2006 7:25pm

RTE archive is better than you would think.

As early as 1976 RTE's childrens department were ordered not to junk children's programmes (non studio based or outside broadcast) and instead build up a reserve of episodes which could be syndicated over the course of one year.

That's what they did with Bosco. Kept making episodes until 1987 when they had enough for one year (250 +) and then stopped. All the external films shot for the series (Magic door instalments) still survive in their entirety.

Studio-based programmes did not fare so well however. Quite a bit of Anything Goes has been wiped and presumably the same fate has met Pajo's Junkbox.

The only footage of Dempsey's Den / The Den from its inception (1986) until around 1993 is amateur off-air VHS recorded by a fan of the show. Thankfully, he was so religious in his taping that the complete series exists.

Sadly RTE do not seem to have a great interest in their archive in terms of sharing it with the public.

- Very few, if any, archive DVD releases. Unlike say Network in the UK who have released considerable amounts of archive BBC and ITV programmes - some of which I thought would never see the light of day.

- No RTE Gold or similar type channel being available.

An Irish equivalent public information films DVD along the lines of Charley Says would be excellent.

Water safety
Health Education Bureau
St Vincent de Paul
etc

DMC · 16-08-2006 8:01pm

Michael O'Hehir at an automatic level crossing... I'd love to see that one again!!

zilog_jones · 28-08-2006 4:58pm

nlgbbbblth wrote:

As early as 1976 RTE's childrens department were ordered not to junk children's programmes (non studio based or outside broadcast) and instead build up a reserve of episodes which could be syndicated over the course of one year.

That's what they did with Bosco. Kept making episodes until 1987 when they had enough for one year (250 +) and then stopped. All the external films shot for the series (Magic door instalments) still survive in their entirety.

Did they keep all the episodes though? I only ever remember seeing ones from about 1982-1987 (I learnt roman numerals when I was 7

) in the '90s up until they stopped showing it around '96 (feckin Morbegs). How do you know the films are still intact? I don't remember any other old RTÉ kid's program that was repeated similarly.

And I remember hearing some interview on the radio saying how there's very few episodes of Wanderly Wagon (<10?) left in their entirety.

Reeling in The Years shows they do seem to have a formidable archive of news, sports and current affairs programmes (not forgetting all the "diddly eye" music shows), but beyond that, is there much?

I'm very surprised how much actual video tape they have shown on that from the '60s - if you look at any black & white era BBC/ITV stuff (Doctor Who, Steptoe & Son, etc.) you're almost guaranteed it's a telerecording.

nlgbbbblth · 28-08-2006 9:37pm

Bosco

Some guy who worked in RTE for research purposes informed me about the filmed inserts. He seems to know his stuff.

There are episodes from 1980 and 1981 on the DVD.

Wanderly Wagon

Seven episodes are on the DVD. A continuous storyline. Clips from different episodes appeared on @t last tv's TV Heaven slot in 1997 [9 minutes approx] and on the Arts Lives documentary on the Lambert Puppet Theatre.

A number of episodes were aired at 5.30am during the Christmas / New Year 1996 period and as far as I recall, were not the same as are on the DVD.
A couple of episodes also ran around January 1992.

The fact that they have called it Volume 1 suggests future releases.

zilog_jones · 29-08-2006 9:03am

Wow, thanks for the info. Wonder why they don't show that stuff more often? It's better than half the shyte they show on the Den these days - FACT

rlogue · 10-05-2007 10:12am

Some of you may have been following the RTÉ programme 30 blian ag... over the last few weeks.

The title sequence features the 60s/70s RTÉ b/w testcard blown up into full 16:9 glory - but something on the card featured intrigued me. The card shown happens to have the same "dust spots" in the same place as the card featured on my website.

Now that picture I have comes from a scan of an original glass slide that is in the hands of a collector in the UK.

Could I be right in thinking that RTÉ don't actually have the original slide in their possession and the collector has the only copy in existence?

BirdXX · 24-09-2007 12:21pm

Most studio shows were shot on expensive videotape which was wiped and re-used. Hence there are few remaining episodes of the Riordans, and even Bracken and Glenroe (well, Holy God, that's terrible).

The BBC were considering putting their archive on-line. Wonder will RTE follow?

nlgbbbblth · 14-07-2008 11:41pm

BirdXX wrote: »

Most studio shows were shot on expensive videotape which was wiped and re-used. Hence there are few remaining episodes of the Riordans, and even Bracken and Glenroe (well, Holy God, that's terrible).

The BBC were considering putting their archive on-line. Wonder will RTE follow?

Bracken was shown on TG4 a couple of times in the late 1990s/early 2000s. All episodes were aired. I imagine it is still intact.

Clips from the first series of Glenroe have featured on a number of RTE documentaries in the last few years. The programme was also broadcast on ITV which might be a source of missing episodes should RTE be unable to locate same.

Both programmes could be candidates for a DVD release.
Perhaps Network could step in?

Latchy · 14-07-2008 11:48pm

The BBC goofed big time by wiping all those TOTP shows and countless other documentry,comedy tv stuff.I read were they had to advertise abroad for old programmes that may have being recorded by viewers and got some back from as far away as austrlia canada and south africa.

State of the RTÉ Archive?

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