Central Television Enterprises

From the Audiovisual Identity Database, the motion graphics museum


Background

Central Television Enterprises (CTE) was created by Central in December 1987 for sales, sponsorship and newsgathering operations, as well as being the company's key international distributor of programming. It would later represent output sales for HTV, Meridian and Carlton, which took over its parent company, Central, in 1994.

(1990's)


Nicknames: "The Box", "CTE", "Rippling Box"

Logo: On a white background, we see a purple-blue gradient lined box. In the box is the silver text "Cte". The box ripples once, turning the text white.

Variant: An extended variant exists. A purple-blue box fills up as lines slide in to cover the box. The "Cte" text swings in and lands on the box, making it ripple and turning the text white, forming the logo above.

FX/SFX: The rippling.

Music/Sounds: A synth note with some twinkles.

Music/Sounds Variants:

  • On the extended version, Sharp noises are heard when the lines slide in. A cymbal crash when the CTE lands on the box and the same synth note from the normal logo. This was also used for the CTE Video logo.
  • On some 1994 episodes of Family Fortunes, the CTE logo plays over the end of the closing theme.

Availability: Rare. It appeared on some reruns of Central shows and some ITC films.

  • Challenge airings of Family Fortunes from 1983-1984 and 1993-1995 keep this logo intact, sometimes appearing or plastering the Central Television endcap. However sometimes, it will only appear for a split second before being cut off, while others plaster this with the 1999 Carlton International or the 2013 ITV Studios Global Entertainment logos.
  • It is unknown if Challenge airings of Bullseye keep this logo intact as most episodes that currently air on the channel don’t contain any distribution logos and if they did, the 1999 Carlton International logo is most likely to appear.
  • It was also seen on old CITV airings of Wolves, Witches and Giants, but CITV has not aired this show for years, and some airings would also plaster the logo for the 1999 Carlton International logo, or the 2004 Granada logo on some late-2000 airings.
  • This was sighted on a 1990s printing of An Ideal Husband (1947).
  • Appeared on a True Movies airing of the TV movie The Perfect Tribute.
  • The extended variant is extremely rare, and is only known to appear on North American VHS releases from BVS Video, such as Inspector Morse: The Way Through the Woods.

Editor's Note: None.

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