[JMT1985]

Can we also put to rest that LWT/ Thames didnt promote on each other nights? Thames used to have promos for Firday night LWT and LWT had Monday night Thames.

The Bill switched to a Saturday in April however by jan 1994 it was back to a firday.

I believe the worst years of the bitterness between Thames and London Weekend Television was 1968 to 1982, this was the period where largely they both ignored each other.

Then came the 1982 franchise changes, and London Weekend Television had an earlier start time of 5.15pm on a Friday and not 7pm - this led to the two companies actually starting to acknowledge each other - especially when LWT contracted Thames News to provide their Friday early evening regional news.

I remember a time when Michael Aspel, who hosted the LWT light and fluffy Six O'Clock Show would hand over to Thames Weekend News, but on most occasions never used the word "Thames" to describe it, he would usually say "tonight's regional news".

But I believe from 1982 onward was the time when their frosty relationship started to thaw.

Morecambe and Wise had other problems than just LWT not wanting a Thames show on their prime time Christmas schedules - the quality of their shows had dropped a lot from when they started in 1978 on Thames and come 1980 Christmas show, it was mostly rehashed material from their BBC era, even in that Christmas special they did a Christmas dinner routine which was mostly a carbon copy of their 1970 routine they did for their 1970 Christmas show.