Southern Television Productions

Background

This is the production arm of Southern Television.

1st Logo (1960-1964)

Visuals: Essentially a still version of the 1960 logo with "PRESENTS" replaced with "PRODUCTION".

Variant: Sometimes, "NETWORK" is added to "PRODUCTION".

Technique: A printed graphic filmed by a cameraman.

Audio: The ending theme of the programme.

Availability:

Many programmes from this period have been lost or not preserved on home media.
It was seen on The Full Man War Poetry and Space Three.

2nd Logo (1964-January 1, 1982)

Visuals: This is a still version of the 1964 logo but with "COLOUR PRODUCTION" and a copyright notice added underneath.

Variants:

Later versions of the logo has the copyright notice smaller.
On some programmes, the copyright notice is removed.
On one programme, "PRESENTATION" replaces "PRODUCTION".
On Together, the text underneath "SOUTHERN" reads "A LIVE COLOUR PRODUCTION".
A B&W variant exists with the text reading "PRESENTATION" instead of "COLOUR PRESENTATION" and no copyright info below. This variant preceded pre-1960s B&W Warner Bros, MGM, Universal, Paramount, United Artists, pre-1958 Selznick movies and non-Southern TV programmes.
A variant has "COLOUR OUTSIDE BROADCAST" appear underneath the company name.
- The same variant can also be superimposed.
On Sean SE, after a few seconds, the logo becomes more scratched throughout the logo.
On Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years, the text has been reworded to say

A
SOUTHERN PICTURES
Production
for
SOUTHERN TELEVISION

On Runaround Christmas on Ice, the logo has snowed and mistletoes are seen on the bottom corners of the screen.
On Southern's final programme, And It's Goodbye From Us, at 00:45 (or 12:45am) on January 1, 1982, 45 minutes after their franchise contract expired, after the end of the show, the logo fades in. After a while, the blue background fades to one resembling a starry night sky, with the company name and the copyright notice disappearing at the same time to leave just the star. After a few seconds, the star starts spinning clockwise, faster and faster, before slowly zooming-out into the night sky background. The star is now very small, and the spinning continues. Finally, the guitar tune from the 1964 ID, with an echoey feel to it at the last note plays, causing the spinning star to fade out to leave just the sky. The variant then shows us the sky for about nine seconds, and the screen slowly fades to black.

Technique: A still card produced on print.

Audio: The ending theme of the programme or none.

Audio Variant: On Sean SE, the normal 1964 theme plays and then bells can be heard ringing when the logo becomes scratched. A male voice then says "Ha, that's better".

Availability: Seen on programmes by Southern Television from the time-period until the end of 1981.

These include The Famous Five (1978), Spearhead, Rogue's Rock, Worzel Gummidge, Runaround, Take a Letter, Mr Jones, and Now for Nookie, among many others.
The "presentation" version was seen at the end of a television print of That's Entertainment.
The "colour presentation" variant was also surprisingly seen at the end of a television print of Yankee Doodle Dandy in mid-1980.
The filmed variant is also retained on current prints of Worzel Gummidge.
It has also turned up on a Talking Pictures TV Encore print of Runaround: Christmas on Ice.
It was also seen at the end of an August 3, 2023 airing of the 1974 TV movie The Capone Investment on Talking Pictures TV.
It is also preserved at the end of Talking Pictures TV airings of Take a Letter, Mr. Jones, which is then followed by the B&W variant of the 2009 Renown Pictures Corporation logo.
It is also intact at the end of the 1987 UK VHS release of Beethoven's Fidelio from Screen Legends.

Southern Television Productions

TVS Productions

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