Or should I say "colour" Anyway, a debate over in VideoKarma Real Date of Australian Colour Intro? is asking when Australia started colour TV broadcasts. Oh, there were experimental broadcasts done, but when did official ready for prime time colour broadcasting start? Wikipedia says Introduced June 15, 1967 with live coverage of the Pakenham races. Full-time colour transmissions since March 1, 1975.

I suppose it depends on definitions, if the 1967 broadcasts were experiments, or when the government leaders of the day gave their final approval (1975?).

As far as I'm concerned, colour television started here in 1975. There were colour tests dating back to the Pakenham races, though I'm not sure if it was broadcast like a regular television program. A friend of mine told me he saw a operating colour TV at the Royal Melbourne Show in 1969. As a 7 year old back in 1973 I remember seeing a colour test broadcast (on a monochrome TV) on ATV channel 0. The subject matter was a group of showroom dummies in various poses. I also remember about the same time my grandmother showing me a brochure for some Philips colour TV's available for sale. My grandmother remarked "we'll never be able to afford one of these". Colour television was expensive when it first started here. In fact, I was well into my teens when we got our first colour TV.

New Zealand introduced colour TV in late 1973, beating Australia by about 15 months

Colour television was expensive when it first started here

Yep, most ripped-off item of its day. Remember how pubs had them chained and even welded to the walls in cages? Even then people broke in and stole them.

I remember a cop telling us that thieves prowled suburban streets at night looking for the telltale colour lights reflecting through windows to plan the next day's break-ins.

I always find it funny to think about the older days, where it would've cost a considerable chunk of your yearly pay to enable you to purchase a luxury item like a television receiver. Nowadays, old CRT tellies are being thrown out in the thousands, and a massive HD digital flatscreen costs a couple of weeks worth of pay. The times they are a changin'!

Chris

I worked at the ABC in the years of the changeover. There was a very long process of gearing up and training of production staff. Even reporters and producers had to get used to different makeup styles, dress rules and choice of shot to take advantage of colour.

The introduction was repeatedly delayed because commercial interests were jealous of each other and none wanted the other to get a head start. The advertising and film processing industries were also involved in getting set for the launch (no videotape then).

Penetration of colour receivers was quite low at the launch - less than 10% I believe. My parents didn't upgrade for several years, and I was too mobile in those days to invest in a set.

There was quite a long period when production was in colour but transmission still (mostly) in black and white, but there were increasingly frequent test broadcasts in colour for the sake of technicians, installers, manufacturers, antenna makers etc etc.

The official launch in '75 was almost an anti-climax after all that.

Maven

Sounds like the story in America. In 1950 CBS had this "colour wheel" kludge of a colour TV system, incompatible with the existing B&W standard. Then in 1954 RCA convinced our FCC to drop that and go with a compatible system, now known as NTSC colour. Colour TV sets were godawful expensive, and most programs were B&W anyway. It took about 10 to 15 years before colour TV took off. RCA, being a big and rich company, could afford to keep promoting colour TV over those years. RCA also owned one of the 3 major TV networks back then, NBC.

Ahh, NTSC. Never Twice Same Colour... !!

I worked for Philips at Hendon SA in the 60's
In the TV building for the turret tuner line (10 channels) we only added 2,3, 7,9 (biscuits (coils)
We had a transmitter running on Chanel 3 in the TV FM band for local broadcast and alignment.
CH2 did not start until later in 60s so we used the closed circuit TV run via cable.
I saw my first colour test bars in that workshop.

The next time I saw colour TV was in 1967/68 in melbourne at CH 0 when we ran an invitation screening of Von Danikens Chariots of the Gods in the studios at Nunawading in Colour closed circuit.

Nexxt time I saw colour TV as TV tech at CTS Ballarat we had colour on air at BTV in 1974 minus the colour burst FWIW.

P.S.
I was there at ANALOG Switch off Mt Dundas western Victoria

CLICK

anti climax like watching grass grow...

As for the old NEC ANALOG transmitter on CH5A that killed the band of 2 metre hams from 1979-ASO it sits there as a mute reminder of one mans influence (FRASER) as PM who can override agreements like WARC 79 to turn off non standard Channels.

I think all 5As and 0s are off finally are they not?

Now the hams are sourcing cheap and using CH 5A PAs on the 2M band and Ch1 CH0 and US CH2 PAs from Harris and NEC and LARKIN transmitters on the 6M band all over the world.

The rest are E waste...

It reminds me of the cost of the defunct helicopter deal where they have worked out a 4000KG helo was cheaper in gold than aluminium.

Ditto with non standard million dollar CH5A specially built transmitters.

Japan laughed all the way to the bank..

As far as I know, NBN3 and ABHN5A are still transmitting at Mount Sugarloaf near Newcastle. If this is the case they'll go when analogue transmissions conclude in Northern NSW. ABHN once transmitted on Channel 5 but it was shifted to allow FM broadcasting in Newcastle.

There are a few translators still running on Channel 0. NEN0 at Bald Hill in Tamworth is one of them though again, once analogue ends it'll disappear.

Bald Hill was turned off a couple of months back.