Vision On
Encyclopedia
Vision On was a British children's television
programme, shown on BBC1 from 1964 to 1976 and designed specifically for deaf children. It was conceived and developed by BBC
producers Ursula Eason and Patrick Dowling to replace a monthly series For the Deaf, a programme paced slowly enough for children to read captions and subtitles. It was noted in surveys that a favourite for deaf children was Top of the Pops
, due to its lively and fast-moving format and the fact that even the profoundly deaf could still enjoy the music's lower frequency notes.
There was initial disagreement as to whether lip-reading or sign language would be more appropriate: eventually it was decided that, since the new programme was intended as entertainment rather than education, communication would be entirely visual, the amount of text would be severely limited and, except for one repeated statement, speech would be abandoned altogether.
The title Vision On referred to the illuminated sign in studios indicating that cameras were live. Normally another sign "Sound On" would follow, but the titles for Vision On deliberately omitted this.
The aim of the programme was to entertain but also to encourage imagination, with a fast-paced flow of contrasting ideas, both sane and silly. This mixture was an apparent success as the series ran for twelve years and, while retaining a commitment to the deaf, attracted a wider following and gained several awards including the international Prix Jeunesse and the BAFTA Award for Specialised Programmes.
The presenters were Pat Keysell
, an actress who also taught deaf children, and the artist Tony Hart
who made pictures in a variety of sizes and media, and encouraging children to submit their own paintings to "The Gallery", which they did in their thousands.
Others who appeared in Vision On include Ben Benison and Sylvester McCoy
, both of whom specialized in mime in the series, Wilf Lunn
, who appeared as an eccentric inventor of equally eccentric machines and David Cleveland who appeared in film sequences as the Prof. Many other contributors are listed at the Vision On website.
The programme's logo is made up from the words of the title and its reflection. It was called 'Grog' because no-one was quite sure if it was more like a grasshopper or a frog.
The series' producer Patrick Dowling eventually found that the flow of new ideas became more and more difficult to sustain and after twelve years decided to close the programme while it was still at its height. He continued, with Tony Hart
, to make arts programmes, starting with Take Hart
(which kept "The Gallery" segment), continuing with Hartbeat
during the 1980s and 1990s and then the BBC's current children's art programme, SMart
.
under the title Déclic and in Sweden as Ögon Blik.
and New Zealand
.
In the USA many PBS stations, and a few commercial stations, aired Vision On during the 1970s. Some of these stations, such as KOMO-TV
in Seattle
, taped their own episodes, which were seen along with the BBC-produced shows.
In eastern Canada episodes were often shown on TVOntario
, which could also be seen in the north-eastern US.
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
programme, shown on BBC1 from 1964 to 1976 and designed specifically for deaf children. It was conceived and developed by BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
producers Ursula Eason and Patrick Dowling to replace a monthly series For the Deaf, a programme paced slowly enough for children to read captions and subtitles. It was noted in surveys that a favourite for deaf children was Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
, due to its lively and fast-moving format and the fact that even the profoundly deaf could still enjoy the music's lower frequency notes.
There was initial disagreement as to whether lip-reading or sign language would be more appropriate: eventually it was decided that, since the new programme was intended as entertainment rather than education, communication would be entirely visual, the amount of text would be severely limited and, except for one repeated statement, speech would be abandoned altogether.
The title Vision On referred to the illuminated sign in studios indicating that cameras were live. Normally another sign "Sound On" would follow, but the titles for Vision On deliberately omitted this.
The aim of the programme was to entertain but also to encourage imagination, with a fast-paced flow of contrasting ideas, both sane and silly. This mixture was an apparent success as the series ran for twelve years and, while retaining a commitment to the deaf, attracted a wider following and gained several awards including the international Prix Jeunesse and the BAFTA Award for Specialised Programmes.
The presenters were Pat Keysell
Pat Keysell
Pat Keysell was a presenter of the BBC television series Vision On which ran from 1964 to 1976. She was also a mime artist and administrator.-Early life:...
, an actress who also taught deaf children, and the artist Tony Hart
Tony Hart
Norman Antony "Tony" Hart was an English artist and children's television presenter. He was famous for television shows such as Vision On, Playbox, Take Hart and Hartbeat.-Early life:...
who made pictures in a variety of sizes and media, and encouraging children to submit their own paintings to "The Gallery", which they did in their thousands.
Others who appeared in Vision On include Ben Benison and Sylvester McCoySylvester McCoy
Sylvester McCoy is a Scottish actor. As a comic act and busker he appeared regularly on stage and on BBC Children's television in the 1970s and 80s, but is best known for playing the seventh incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who from 1987 to...
, both of whom specialized in mime in the series, Wilf Lunn
Wilf Lunn
Wilf Lunn is probably best known for his regular appearances on the 1960s and 1970s British television show Vision On demonstrating his latest inventions with Tony Hart and Sylvester McCoy....
, who appeared as an eccentric inventor of equally eccentric machines and David Cleveland who appeared in film sequences as the Prof. Many other contributors are listed at the Vision On website.
The programme's logo is made up from the words of the title and its reflection. It was called 'Grog' because no-one was quite sure if it was more like a grasshopper or a frog.
The series' producer Patrick Dowling eventually found that the flow of new ideas became more and more difficult to sustain and after twelve years decided to close the programme while it was still at its height. He continued, with Tony Hart
Tony Hart
Norman Antony "Tony" Hart was an English artist and children's television presenter. He was famous for television shows such as Vision On, Playbox, Take Hart and Hartbeat.-Early life:...
, to make arts programmes, starting with Take Hart
Take Hart
Take Hart is a British children's television show about art, fronted by the late Tony Hart. It took over from Vision On, and ran from 1977 until 1983. The show featured Hart and the animated Plasticine character Morph, and other characters created by David Sproxton like 'Smoulder the Moulder',...
(which kept "The Gallery" segment), continuing with Hartbeat
Hartbeat
Hartbeat was a Children's BBC television arts programme presented by the late Tony Hart. It was broadcast between 1984 and 1993. The series was a follow on from Take Hart and taught children how to design art features and use everyday items to make objects.-History:Like its predecessor Take Hart,...
during the 1980s and 1990s and then the BBC's current children's art programme, SMart
SMart
SMart was a British CBBC television programme based on the subject of art, which began in 1994. The programme was recorded at BBC Television Centre in London, previously it had been recorded in Studio A at BBC Pebble Mill in Birmingham. The format is similar to the Tony Hart programmes Take Hart...
.
Co-productions
Vision On was co-produced in France with Radiodiffusion, in Canada with Radio-CanadaTélévision de Radio-Canada
Télévision de Radio-Canada is a Canadian French language television network. It is owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, known in French as Société Radio-Canada. Headquarters are at Maison Radio-Canada in Montreal, which is also home to the network's flagship station, CBFT-DT...
under the title Déclic and in Sweden as Ögon Blik.
Distribution
The programme was shown in many other countries, including France, AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
In the USA many PBS stations, and a few commercial stations, aired Vision On during the 1970s. Some of these stations, such as KOMO-TV
KOMO-TV
KOMO-TV, virtual channel 4, is a television station in Seattle, Washington. It is an affiliate of ABC and broadcasts on digital channel 38. KOMO-TV is the flagship station of Fisher Communications, and its studios and offices are co-located with sister radio stations KOMO , KVI , and KPLZ-FM ...
in Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, taped their own episodes, which were seen along with the BBC-produced shows.
In eastern Canada episodes were often shown on TVOntario
TVOntario
TVOntario, often referred to only as TVO , is a publicly funded, educational English-language television station and media organization in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario Educational Communications Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario...
, which could also be seen in the north-eastern US.
Segments
Besides the scenes with Hart, Keysell and the others doing artwork (which in later years appeared on the screen as the artwork being made without any hands), Vision On had many memorable segments:- "The Gallery" - A section consisting of artwork sent into the show by viewers, with the name and age of the artist being shown alongside the artwork. Often the artwork shown on a specific show coincided with the theme of the show. At the end of this segment, Keysell would thank everyone for sending in their pictures, and apologize for being unable to return them.
- "The Burbles" - A couple of unseen people living inside a grandfather clock who converse in speech bubbles, mainly telling puns. Occasionally they are heard speaking the lines as if they are underwater, but other times there are just the speech bubbles.
- "The Prof" - A man in a white lab coat who is usually outdoors doing various humorous things.
- "Humphrey the Tortoise" - Much like the Burbles, Humphrey talks of something specific (usually a pun or joke) either to himself or someone else. His speech is shown on screen, with no audio.
- "The Digger" - A "cut-out" cartoon man designed and animated by Bill Mather. Each week on a construction site he digs into the dirt with a shovel until something interesting is dug up.
- "The Animated Clock" - An animated cuckoo clockCuckoo clockA cuckoo clock is a clock, typically pendulum-regulated, that strikes the hours with a sound like a common cuckoo's call and typically has a mechanical cuckoo that emerges with each note...
that is either showing signs of trouble or whose parts come to life like a human being. - "The Fuzzy Worm" - One running gag in later episodes involved one of the cast members frantically chasing a fuzzy worm trying to catch it to no avail and occasionally messing up the artwork of Hart and Keysell.
Music
Despite its intended hearing-impaired audience, the show made extensive use of music for the benefit of hearing viewers watching the show. Notable themes included:- The opening theme was "Accroche-Toi, Caroline" by CaravelliCaravelliCaravelli, real name Claude Vasori is a French orchestra leader, composer and arranger of orchestral music.-Biography:...
(recorded by the Paris Studio Group). - The closing theme was "Java" in the versions recorded by Al HirtAl HirtAl Hirt was an American trumpeter and bandleader. He is best remembered for his million selling recordings of "Java", and the accompanying album, Honey in the Horn . His nicknames included 'Jumbo' and 'The Round Mound of Sound'...
and Bert KaempfertBert KaempfertBert Kaempfert was a German orchestra leader and songwriter. He made easy listening and jazz-oriented records, and wrote the music for a number of well-known songs, such as "Strangers in the Night" and "Spanish Eyes".-Biography:He was born in Hamburg, Germany - where he received his lifelong...
. - "The Gallery" - "CavatinaCavatina (song)"Cavatina" is a classical guitar piece by Stanley Myers and the theme from The Deer Hunter.The piece had been recorded by classical guitarist John Williams, long before the film that made it famous. It had originally been written for piano but at Williams' invitation, Myers re-wrote it for guitar...
" originally, but "Left Bank TwoLeft Bank Two"Left Bank Two" is a piece of library music composed by Wayne Hill in 1963 and performed by the Noveltones, a group of session musicians from Holland...
" by Wayne Hill (recorded by The Noveltones) is best remembered for this sequence. When Take HartTake HartTake Hart is a British children's television show about art, fronted by the late Tony Hart. It took over from Vision On, and ran from 1977 until 1983. The show featured Hart and the animated Plasticine character Morph, and other characters created by David Sproxton like 'Smoulder the Moulder',...
started, "Left Bank Two" became the opening theme tune and Cavatina became the "Gallery" music for the show instead. - "The Burbles" theme "Goofy" by Cliff Johns.
- "Humphrey the tortoise" theme "Merry Ocarina" by Pierre Arvay.
- "Animated Clock" scene used "Gurney Slade" by Max Harris (the theme from the TV series The Strange World of Gurney SladeThe Strange World of Gurney SladeThe Strange World of Gurney Slade is a British six-part television series made by ATV which was transmitted by the ITV network between 22 October and 26 November 1960. A surreal series devised by Anthony Newley, who also starred, it was written by Dick Hills and Sid Green...
).
Series Guide
- Series 1: 29 editions from 6 March 1964 - 29 October 1965
- Series 2: 6 editions from 5 January 1966 - 9 February 1966
- Series 3: 6 editions from 21 September 1966 - 26 October 1966
- Series 4: 7 editions from 1 February 1967 - 16 March 1967
- Series 5: 6 editions from 5 July 1967 - 9 August 1967
- Series 6: 12 editions from 27 December 1967 - 20 March 1968
- Series 7: 11 editions from 3 June 1969 - 12 August 1969
- Series 8: 9 editions from 22 April 1970 - 17 June 1970
- Series 9: 9 editions from 22 September 1970 - 17 November 1970
- Series 10A: 9 editions from 23 February 1971 - 27 April 1971
- Series 10B: Best of Vision On: 6 editions from 27 July 1971 - 31 August 1971
- Series 11: 16 editions from 14 December 1971 - 4 April 1972
- Series 12: 16 editions from 5 December 1972 - 27 March 1973
- Series 13: 16 editions from 1 January 1974 - 16 April 1974
- Series 14: 16 editions from 31 December 1974 - 22 April 1975
- Series 15: 14 editions from 10 February 1976 - 11 May 1976
External links
- Vision On tribute site
- http://www.trunkrecords.com/turntable/visionon.shtml
- British Film Institute Screen Online
- http://www.rickstv.com/tvo/vision.html
- http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/ietv/