1970 in British television

Events

January

• 1 January–5 February – The BBC airs The Six Wives of Henry VIII, a series of six teleplays, each of which focusses on the life of one of King Henry VIII of England's six wives.
• 3 January – Jon Pertwee makes his first appearance as the Third Doctor in the Doctor Who serial Spearhead from Space. It also marks the first time that the series is broadcast in colour.
• 4 January – The BBC first broadcasts Morning Story, starring Lee Montague.

  February

• 15 February – BBC1 airs the Ken Russell film Dance of the Seven Veils as part of its Omnibus strand. The film, about German composer Richard Strauss, attracts complaints because of its sex scenes, and controversy by depicting Strauss as a Nazi sympathiser. Strauss's family subsequently withdraw their permission for the use of his music, meaning the film cannot be shown again until the copyright on his work has expired. It is not until 2020 that the film is given a second airing, at that year's Keswick Film Festival.

  March

• No events.

  April

• 6 April – HTV starts broadcasting in colour from the Wenvoe transmitting station and from this day, the station becomes known on air as HTV rather than Harlech Television.

  May

• No events.

  June

• No events.

  July

• 8 July – Jack Walker dies off-screen of a heart attack in Coronation Street as a result of the death of actor Arthur Leslie. Jack becomes the first major character to be written out due to the death of an actor.
• 17 July — Tyne Tees Television starts broadcasting in colour from the Pontop Pike transmitting station.

  August

• 3 August – The UK's final 405-lines television transmitter is switched on at Newhaven, East Sussex. All future transmitters are at the higher definition 625-lines.
• 6 August – A BBC2 broadcast of Christopher Marlowe's 16th century drama Edward II features the first same-sex kiss on British television, between Ian McKellen and James Laurenson.
• 19 August – ITV airs what is billed as the 1000th episode of Coronation Street. A souvenir edition of TVTimes is also published for the episode, even though it is, in fact, the 999th.
• August – Yorkshire and Tyne Tees Television announce plans to merge when the two are brought under the control of Trident Television Limited, a company formed to deal with the problem of effective ownership of the Bilsdale UHF transmitter and the allocation of airtime.

  September

• 14 September –
• *Ulster Television launches a colour service, but only from the Divis transmitting station. To mark the change, the logo is redesigned.
• *The first colour edition of Blue Peter is aired on BBC1, but the last black and white edition will be transmitted on 24 June 1974. The programme alternates between colour and black and white depending on studio allocation.
• *The Nine O'Clock News is first broadcast on BBC1. The programme airs until 13 October 2000 when the station's main evening bulletin is switched to 10:00pm.
• 18 September – London Weekend Television launches its famous river ident.

  October

• 1 October — Anglia Television starts broadcasting in colour from the Tacolneston transmitting station.

  November

• 7 November – Felix Dennis becomes the first person to use the word "cunt" on British television during a live broadcast of The Frost Programme.
• 13 November – The Colour Strike begins when ITV staff refuse to work with colour television equipment following a dispute over pay with their management.
• 23 November – The first edition of Engineering Announcements is broadcast on ITV.

  December

• 9 December – 10th anniversary of the first episode of Coronation Street.
• 25 December – Pluto's Christmas Tree is broadcast on BBC1, the first complete Mickey Mouse cartoon to be shown on British television in colour.

  Debuts

BBC1

• 3 January – It's Cliff Richard!
• 5 January –
• *A Question of Sport
• 9 February – Doomwatch
• 20 February – The Banana Splits
• 24 April – The Culture Vultures
• 14 September – Nine O'Clock News
• 17 September –
• *Bachelor Father
• * Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?
• 19 September – The Pink Panther Show
• 15 October – Play for Today
• 17 October – Words and Pictures
• 27 October – Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines

  BBC2

• 8 November – The Goodies

  ITV

• 2 January – Manhunt
• 16 March – Crime of Passion
• 14 April – A Family at War
• 13 June – Albert and Victoria
• 19 July - Hawaii Five-O
• 15 September – Skippy the Bush Kangaroo
• 16 September – UFO
• 28 September – Timeslip
• 27 October – The Lovers
• 5 November – Queenie's Castle

  Television shows

Returning this year after a break of one year or longer

• Andy Pandy
• Steptoe and Son

  Continuing television shows

1920s

• BBC Wimbledon

  1930s

• BBC Cricket

  1940s

• Watch with Mother
• Come Dancing

  1950s

• The Good Old Days
• Panorama
• Dixon of Dock Green
• Crackerjack
• Opportunity Knocks
• This Week
• Armchair Theatre
• What the Papers Say
• The Sky at Night
• Blue Peter
• Grandstand

  1960s

• Coronation Street
• Songs of Praise
• Z-Cars
• Animal Magic
• Doctor Who
• World in Action
• Top of the Pops
• Match of the Day
• Crossroads
• Play School
• Mr. and Mrs.
• World of Sport
• All Gas and Gaiters
• Jackanory
• Sportsnight
• It's a Knockout
• The Money Programme
• Never Mind the Quality, Feel the Width
• Callan
• The Golden Shot
• ITV Playhouse
• Me Mammy
• Please Sir!
• Father, Dear Father
• Dad's Army
• Magpie
• The Big Match
• On the Buses
• Clangers
• Monty Python's Flying Circus
• Nationwide
• Screen Test

  Ending this year

• Andy Pandy
• The Wednesday Play
• Not Only... But Also
• Not in Front of the Children
• Randall and Hopkirk
• Scooby Doo, Where Are You!
• Department S

  Births

• 10 February — Robert Shearman, broadcast scriptwriter
• 14 February — Simon Pegg, comedian, writer and actor
• 7 March –
• *Emma Davies, actress
• *Rachel Weisz, British actress
• 29 March – Ruth England, presenter and actress
• 5 April – Krishnan Guru-Murthy, journalist and presenter
• 9 April — Tricia Penrose, actress and singer
• 10 May — Sally Phillips, Hong Kong-born English comedy actress
• 15 May — Nicola Walker, actress
• 20 May — Louis Theroux, presenter and author
• 22 May – Naomi Campbell, model
• 18 June — Katie Derham, newsreader and television presenter
• 25 June — Lucy Benjamin, actress
• 7 July – Zoë Tyler, singer and actress
• 10 July — John Simm, actor
• 13 July — Sharon Horgan, English-born Irish comedy writer-performer
• 29 July — Andi Peters, presenter and producer
• 31 July — Ben Chaplin, actor
• 4 August — Kate Silverton, journalist, newsreader and television presenter
• 7 August – Melanie Sykes, presenter
• 5 September – Johnny Vegas, actor and comedian
• 6 September — Emily Maitlis, journalist and newsreader
• 13 September – Louise Lombard, actress
• 28 September – Jo Wyatt, actress, voice actress and singer
• 29 September — Emily Lloyd, actress
• 31 October — Craig Kelly, actor
• 12 November — Harvey Spencer Stephens, child actor
• 22 November — Stel Pavlou, novelist and screenwriter
• 23 November — Zoe Ball, television and radio presenter
• 28 November — Lucy Owen, Welsh television newsreader
• 10 December — Susanna Reid, journalist and television presenter
• 17 December — Craig Doyle, broadcast presenter
• 21 December — Jamie Theakston, broadcast presenter and producer
• 29 December — Aled Jones, singer and presenter
• Unknown — Jenny Scott, journalist and economist

  Deaths

• 30 June – Arthur Leslie, 70, actor