Tyne Tees becomes Channel 3 North East

Date: 27th August 1996

From 2nd September, Tyne Tees Television will be broadcasting as Channel 3 North East with a new look on and off screen. The move is prompted by the massive regeneration of the North East and the new multi-channel broadcasting environment. John Calvert, Managing Director says: “There are some hugely exciting social and economic developments taking place here in the North East and, as the principal broadcaster we must move forward with the region.

“We have invested in City Road, invested in equipment and in people and our programme team is second to none. We are in good shape to meet the challenges of the future and our new channel name characterises the changes we are making.

“Our Company name will remain as Tyne Tees and we will continue to produce and sell our programmes in the name of Tyne Tees – after all we have been producing quality programmes since the 15th January, 1959.

“What will change is our on screen identity to Channel 3 North East and we believe that our new look and our new programmes will attract more and more viewers”.

Channel 3 North East aims to attract viewers to a new dynamic and modem station, with new regional programmes directly targeting the changing lifestyles and the real passions of the region.

Peter Mitchell, the newly appointed Director of Broadcasting, says: “The new look begins at 6 p.m. on 2′ September with NORTH EAST TONIGHT with Mike Neville, a new hour-long mix of news, sport, features and current affairs and the emphasis is on live programming and audience participation. “Our new programmes focus on what the viewer wants. We know from our research that there’s a huge appetite for regional stories – whether its news, nostalgia or football passion. Our new programmes and our technical investment mean we will be first with the news, first with the up-dates and able to give football fans the programme their passion for the game deserves”.

Coming up from September on Channel 3 North East:

• NORTH EAST TONIGHT with Mike Neville will be the most comprehensive regional news service ever provided in the North East. The hour-long mix of news, sport, features, current affairs and celebrity interviews will be screened weekdays at 6 p.m. It will be presented by Mike Neville and a top team of presenters and reporters.
• THE FOOTBALL SHOW will be an entirely different kind of sports programme, introduced by Head of Sport, Roger Tames and popular presenter Dawn Thewlis. As the region’s big three clubs are reunited in the top flight for the first time in 20 years, fans will be getting the programme their passion deserves on Channel 3 North East.
• NORTH EAST ON SUNDAY with Kathy Secker is a new Sunday tea-time entertainment show for all the family with top showbiz names, nostalgia, chat and a weekly quiz.
• GALLIPOLI 1915 charts the progress of the controversial Gallipoli campaign of 1915 from the initial naval engagements through the battles and eventual evacuation. Shot on location on the Gallipoli peninsula, the outstanding beauty of the Aegean is brought to life using ‘then and now’ imagery and the experiences of the troops relived through their letters, diaries and photographs.
• QUAYSIDE is a brand new North East soap set to take on EastEnders in the ratings battle. Set on Newcastle’s bustling quayside it centres around the professional and personal lives of the Rickard brothers who run a successful quayside bar and the newly arrived Kennedy sisters who move in next door to run party and special events company Quay Events. Filming begins in October and local girl Emma-Louise Webb, 19, from Widdrington near Morpeth has been signed to one of the lead roles.
• THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN and CLUBS are two new fly-on-the-wall documentaries currently in production at the heart of two great North East institutions – Swan Hunter and workingmen’s clubs. Shot over 12 months they will be produced by a new all woman documentary unit which includes one of the UK’s most experienced producers, Irene Cockroft.
• CELEBRATION ’96 presented by Soldier Soldier star Denise Welch celebrates the North East’s artistic talent – and screens star-studded entertainment from the annual Northern Electric Arts Awards. For the first time, viewers throughout the region can choose their very own Personality of the Year, with Dame Catherine Cookson, Pat Barker and Robson Green being some of the likely contenders.
• THREE NEW COOKSON DRAMAS are currently in production for the ITV network. The Wingless Bird and The Moth have completed filming and The Rag Nymph goes into production in October.
• CROSS WITS returns for its 11 thseries with Tom O’Connor presenting 40 programmes of one of ITV’s most popular daytime quiz shows.
• YOUR FAITH AND MINE is a new six week series for the ITV network, presented by Ghizela Modood, which features young people from various parts of the country and different religions expressing their views on each other’s faith, beliefs and practices.
• THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO CHRISTMAS and THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO HAVING A PARTY are set to hit CITV screens in December. They follow the success of the highly rating Essential Guide To Entertainment and The Essential Guide To Summer.