"Channel 18!

Hangdogroad

Who remembers this German station on Corks Multichannel and the controversy over some of its content in the early 90's?

Pauliedragon

Mad how times have changed. I hope "concerned" has passed since that letter or he/she would have a heart attack with the filth that goes around now. Good on ya concerned we need the good people like you to defend our failing society and it's all down to porn I tells ya.

ofcork

The late con the robber against it.

opti76

twas channel 17 with the screeching that the should have banned ..... that was destined to get ya caught.

the beer revolu

Was only talking about this last week with someone. It was so "Cork", that it was always referred to as Channel 18!

There was no such channel as far as anyone who didn't have Cork Multichannel cable TV was concerned. At the time, Cork Multichannel used a set top converter to select channels. RTE 1 was on channel No. 1, RTE 2 was on channel No. 2, BBC 1 on 3, BBC 2 on 4 etc, with the German channel Sat 1 broadcast on channel No. 18 at certain times. For some reason, this was exclusively called "channel 18"! We didn't call HTV "channel 5" or S4C "channel 6", but for some reason Sat 1 was exclusively called channel 18!

I could image Cork people travelling the world talking about "channel 18" and being confused that people had no knowledge of its existence 😂. "You're German and you've never heard of Channel 18, like? The porno channel? That's mad!"

Norrie Rugger Head

AFAIR the funny thing is it was just a regular channel with soft core on a sat night.

The used to show Star Trek: The Next Generation ffs

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121609887#Comment_121609887

It was, essentially, Germany's TV3 - the first privately owned TV network in Germany.

Acosta

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121608333#Comment_121608333

The LC (last channel) button on the remote, was essential

Hangdogroad

It was also available with Sky. From the County so didn't have Multichannel but remember the press coverage of the controversy. We got Sky in late 91, I think Sat 1 was also positioned on Channel 18 on Sky, at least in the early days.

Was it Friday or Saturday nights they showed the softcore stuff, or both?

the beer revolu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121610014#Comment_121610014

Both, I think.

Hangdogroad

This was the opening titles that meant the fun was beginning. They were all part of a series of 1970s films called in English "Schoolgirl Report". They were made to resemble sort of educational docu dramas, probably to get around censorship laws, and at the beginning they'd have these vox pops with randomners on the street then some University professor type sitting at a desk introducing the morality tale of some Fraulin falling in with a bad crowd and sleeping with oul lads or whatever.

https://youtu.be/hj4W7OZSkLo?si=twdScfDn3Sgml0cJ

the beer revolu

I remember a bizzare and macabre take on fairy tales, with added sex.

The scene that remains in my mind was a cinderella slipper scenario where one of the sisters cuts the back of her heel off to fit into the slipper!

Hotblack Desiato

Never anything like that in Dublin 😕 I'd imagine 'concerned' would be about 100 now if still above ground. Never could figure out how these self-righteous twats had the gall to think they should be the arbiter of what every other adult in society was allowed to see or read.

By then though anyone who wanted to rent a bluey on VHS knew where to go

The red triangle films on Channel 4 were several years prior!

Hangdogroad

There was this small, bug eyed fella who turned up in nearly all of them in the comic relief storylines. He was always having to hide in the cupboard when the husband got home, like a German Robin Askwith.

Norrie Rugger Head

schnell!!!

Only noticed Rapid Films there

Hotblack Desiato

So just how 'filthy' was Channel 18?

A bit of boob and the odd glimpse of the map of Tazzie?

Glaceon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121610014#Comment_121610014

Astra transponder 6 if I recall, but it could have appeared anywhere depending on how that particular box was tuned.

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121610148#Comment_121610148

A decade or so later, the bits of Dublin that had Chorus got Bravo which showed even softer core (Hairy Bobbin Man Ass, as Bill Hicks called it) content. Eurosport changed over at midnight.

Rare case of three channels in a day as it was Nickelodeon in the mornings, Europort 12-12 and Bravo at night

Hotblack Desiato

We got Bravo on Sky 2003 or so, but the raunchiest thing on it by then was Booze Britain!

Hangdogroad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121612477#Comment_121612477

From what I remember it was a pretty regular channel with the exception of Saturday nights (or maybe Fridays) when it should this series of 70s German softcore films.

Sometimes would go channel hopping through the other German channels late at night, cant remember the specific ones but sometimes you'd come upon racy stuff like current affairs programmes doing a report on something like S & M clubs in Berlin or nudists.

Not quite porn but one of the most bizarre things I came across randonly was this ultra creepy movie about the Marquis De Sade where all the characters are depicted by nightmarish puppets, I actually came upon it during the scene shown here where he's talking to his willy.

https://youtu.be/TurGEdz-y_Q?si=__OgddjzFg5PVNdU

BurnsCarpenter

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121612477#Comment_121612477

That was pretty much it. All very innocent by today's standards.

Glaceon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121616961#Comment_121616961

I remember seeing a really weird film on Bravo in the analogue days around 1996, let's just say she had a mouth downstairs! I've no idea what it was.

Hangdogroad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121617206#Comment_121617206

Sounds like David Cronenbergs Videodrome maybe?

the beer revolu

There was also Satellite Video Jukebox. The idea was that viewers dialled in to choose what videos were shown. The producers soon realised that songs with raunchy videos were picked the most!

Songs I remember on this were Duran Duran's Girls on Film and this really terrible Europop number called Hello by Twinkle. Terrible music but loads of nudity in the video 😂

Anyone remember any other raunchy music videos from then?

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121617396#Comment_121617396

Sabrina - Boys was also played to death.

The only version of the proper video I could find quickly has an age restriction on it, as I'm fairly certain there's some nipples in it and Google is scared of those.

Norrie Rugger Head

...

Hangdogroad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121617396#Comment_121617396

I remember Mick Jaggers "Sex Drive" getting played a lot. Video had a nude female model with body paint, thankfully Mick kept his clothes on.

Another one I remember was Be Thankful by Massive Attack which had a stripper doing a burlesque dance routine and ended up with full frontal nudity.