ITV Telethon
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The ITV Telethons were three charity
telethon A telethon (a portmanteau of "television" and "marathon") is a televised fundraising event that lasts many hours or even days, the purpose of which is to raise money for a charitable, political or other purportedly worthy cause. Most telethons f ...
s organised and televised in the United Kingdom by the ITV network. They took place in 1988, 1990 and 1992. Each lasted for 27 hours and all were hosted by
Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television newsreader and host of programmes such as '' Crackerjack'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', ''This is Your Life'', '' Strange but True?'' and ''Antiques Ro ...
. The final telethon in July 1992 raised £15,012,989.


Thames Telethon (1980 & 1985)

The ITV Telethon originated from the 10-hour
Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
Telethon, which ran in the Thames/
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
ITV region only, on 2 October 1980, one month before the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's Children in Need appeal the same year. Thames broadcast another Telethon on 29–30 October 1985.


ITV Telethon (1988–1992)

The US-style continuous broadcast raised £1.25 million, and was considered such a success that a 27-hour marathon was broadcast across the entire network over 29 and 30 May 1988 (a Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday), involving participation and input from all of the regional broadcasters around the country. It had the aim of raising money for disability charities across the United Kingdom. A further two ITV Telethons followed in 1990 (across Sunday 27 May and Monday 28 May) and 1992 (across Saturday 18 July and Sunday 19 July), raising £24,127,917 and £15,012,989 respectively. Michael Aspel was the frontman for all three. Telethon helped thousands of charities in the UK. Many local ITV companies like
Tyne Tees Television ITV Tyne Tees, previously known as Tyne Tees, Channel 3 North East and Tyne Tees Television, is the ITV television franchise for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire. Tyne Tees launched on 15 January 1959 from studios at a converte ...
and
Television South West Television South West (TSW) was the ITV franchise holder for the South West England region from 1 January 1982 until 31 December 1992, broadcasting from studios at Derry's Cross in Plymouth, Devon. History Origins and Launch On 28 Decembe ...
contributed from company profits. In the TVS region alone, TVS donated £1 million from its own charity, the ''TVS Trust'' in late May 1990. Like the telethons in the US, the ITV Telethons also offered regional cut-ins by ITV companies all over the country, featuring personalities and local celebrities from that region such as
Richard Whiteley John Richard Whiteley (28 December 1943 – 26 June 2005) was an English presenter, and journalist, best known for his twenty-three years as host of the game show ''Countdown''. ''Countdown'' was the launch programme for Channel 4 at 4:4 ...
for
Yorkshire Television ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...
or
Ruth Madoc Ruth Madoc (born Margaret Ruth Llewellyn Baker; 16 April 1943 – 9 December 2022) was a British actress who had a career on stage and screen spanning over 60 years. She was best known for her role as Gladys Pugh in the BBC television comedy '' ...
for
HTV Wales ITV Wales and West, previously known as Harlech Television (HTV), was an ITV franchise area in the United Kingdom until 31 December 2013, licensed to a broadcaster by the regulator Ofcom. There is no channel, past or present, named "ITV Wales ...
. One regional cut-in for the 1992 Telethon took place in the grounds outside Granada TV, Quay Street studio, and a non-stop 27-hour live stage presentation 'The Blackpool Roadshow' was gifted and coordinated by brother and sister Shirley Pearson and Johnnie Doolan. Amongst the many stage appearances was reportedly the first ever live set from the later famous band Oasis with guest appearances from chart topping artists, and choreographed sets from Blackpool show - Mystique. Bisto gravy powder drums and packets sponsored the event.


Protests and closure

The 1990 and 1992 ITV Telethons were subject to protests organised by ''Block Telethon'', an informal protest group of disabled people that believed that the telethons reinforced negative stereotypes of disabled people. The 1990 protest was modestly attended, whereas the 1992 protest with over 1000 disabled people outside the LWT studios on the South Bank was credited with ending the Telethon series, and indirectly leading to developments such as
Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic epis ...
. This protest group ''Block Telethon'' formally became the Disabled People's Direct Action Network in 1993, which campaigned with other organisations against discrimination and for civil rights, leading up to the
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (c. 50) (informally, and hereafter, the DDA) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which has now been repealed and replaced by the Equality Act 2010, except in Northern Ireland where the Act ...
.


References


External links

*. {{ITV ITV (TV network) original programming British telethons 1980 in British television 1985 in British television 1988 in British television 1990 in British television 1992 in British television