120-540: Scotland Today was a Scottish regional news programme covering Central Scotland, produced by STV Central (formerly Scottish Television). Despite its name suggesting a national remit, the programme was actually limited to stories around STV's Central Belt franchise. North Tonight covered STV's North Scotland region (from North Fife upwards), until both programmes were renamed STV News at Six in March 2009. Based in Glasgow,
240-625: A 'devolved' Parliament were made before 1914, but were shelved due to the outbreak of the First World War . A sharp rise in nationalism in Scotland during the late 1960s fuelled demands for some form of home rule or complete independence , and in 1969 prompted the incumbent Labour government of Harold Wilson to set up the Kilbrandon Commission to consider the British constitution . One of
360-445: A breaking news story for Scotland Today , film had to reach the labs no later than 4.30 pm. By the early to mid-1980s, STV had followed the rest of the ITV network in dispensing with film and embracing electronic news gathering , with Sony's Betacam being the chosen system. Gus Macdonald became the station's Director of Programmes during the summer of 1986. One of his first decisions
480-533: A consortium led by the future BBC Director General Alasdair Milne and strong indications that the company would lose its franchise. In the event, Lord Thomson was forced by the ITA to reduce his stake in the station from 80% to 25%, effectively ending the company's standing as a subsidiary of the Thomson Group. The start of colour broadcasting at the end of the decade was marked by the opening of new secondary studios at
600-526: A day), plus 2% of their annual advertising revenue, STV's production arm was placed into a separate company, Scottish Television Enterprises . The company invested shares in various ITV companies and media firms, including a 25% stake in GMTV as part of a consortium for the ITV breakfast franchise (STV's stake was sold off to ITV plc in 2004 for £31 million), ITN and UTV , which helped push profits up to £10m. The company itself acquired new investors when in 1994
720-537: A day, followed by Scottish news. In July, it was announced that the Scottish actor James Robertson Justice , a Rank Organization film star, would introduce STV's opening programme, This is Scotland . Scottish Television began broadcasting at 5:30 pm on Saturday 31 August 1957 with This is Scotland , an hour-long variety broadcast live from the Theatre Royal studios – STV was the seventh ITV franchise to launch, and
840-425: A decline in advertising revenue, and the costs of converting equipment for the launch of colour television. In 1970, the company made a loss of £39,000; a warning was given that regionalism would be abandoned, and a forced merger with Grampian Television would happen, unless the chancellor reduced the levy applied on advertising revenue. By late 1971, STV's fortunes recovered after a change in taxation rules reducing
960-598: A fortnight earlier. In 1983, Shereen Nanjiani joined the programme as a trainee reporter. Four years later, she presented Scotland Today for the first time owing to a shortage of staff. Nanjiani would remain as the programme's longest-serving anchor for the next 19 years. Among her co-presenters during that time were ex- Reporting Scotland anchor Viv Lumsden , former Border Television journalist Angus Simpson , Stephen Jardine, current Al Jazeera English correspondent Alan Fisher and current STV News at Six anchor John MacKay . In January 1993, Scottish Television launched
1080-1143: A gradient blue triangle, and three light blue curves now appear on the 3 sides. The "S"' colours was changed to gradient light blue. A list of programmes made by Scottish Television. All programmes, except regional ones, now come under the banner of STV Studios . Scottish Parliament Opposition (66) Other (1) Charles III William , Duke of Rothesay Swinney government The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP Kate Forbes MSP Sixth session Alison Johnstone MSP Angela Constance MSP Dorothy Bain KC The Rt Hon Lord Carloway KC PC United Kingdom Parliament elections European Parliament elections Local elections Referendums Starmer ministry The Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP The Rt Hon Ian Murray MP The Scottish Parliament ( Scottish Gaelic : Pàrlamaid na h-Alba [ˈpʰaːrˠl̪ˠəmɪtʲ nə ˈhal̪ˠapə] ; Scots : Scots Pairlament )
1200-535: A hard news format while long-running series including What's Your Problem? and Ways & Means were axed. Replacement programmes included the topical lunchtime show Live at One Thirty and social action series Scottish Action . Throughout the 1980s, the company began gaining greater access to the national network, primarily through the soap opera Take the High Road and the long-running detective series Taggart , as well as programming for Channel 4 . Towards
1320-572: A large number of members wish to participate in the debate. Debate is more informal than in some parliamentary systems. Members may call each other directly by name, rather than by constituency or cabinet position, and hand clapping is allowed. Speeches to the chamber are normally delivered in English, but members may use Scots , Gaelic , or any other language with the agreement of the Presiding Officer. The Scottish Parliament has conducted debates in
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#17328633605011440-540: A letter from the Independent Television Authority advised him that on the following Wednesday a press conference would be held in the North British Hotel, Edinburgh (which was to announce that he had been awarded the contract to set up a Scottish television company). The press release handed out at the conference stated that the transmitting station and aerials, which Thomson would have to rent from
1560-467: A million sets and aerials in Scotland, it was going to be a huge undertaking. When independent television began in England, everybody wanted their sets converted at the same time and radio dealers could not cope with the last-minute rush. The problem was exacerbated by a shortage of radio and television mechanics. In order to avoid similar chaos in Scotland, STV (in association with the television trade) arranged
1680-464: A modified logo to mark the station's 30th anniversary in 1987, while the main ident was largely replaced in January 1988 in favour of a new set of seasonal and themed idents, but the 1985 clock was kept in use. The thistle logo was modified on 1 January 1989 to create a 2D identity which would remain in use until 27 February 2000, under various guises. Glasgow-based animation company Liquid Image, working with
1800-715: A month of the deal, the Mirror Group increased its stake to 19.93%. In 1996, the HTV shares were sold off to the Wales and West contractor's future owners United News and Media . For a short time, STV became a buyout target for Yorkshire Television . STV acquired Caledonian Publishing - then-publishers of The Herald and the Glasgow Evening Times - in July 1996. The following June, Scottish Media Group plc acquired Grampian Television ,
1920-474: A new, smaller building at Pacific Quay alongside the headquarters of BBC Scotland . As a result of the move, the entire Cowcaddens site, with the exception of an extension containing The Herald and Glasgow Evening Times newspapers, was demolished and redeveloped in 2007. STV's Edinburgh operations are now based at small studios in Fountainbridge . Scottish Television's first on-air symbol featured
2040-622: A result, the outcome of each division is known in seconds. The outcome of most votes can be predicted since political parties normally instruct members which way to vote. Parties entrust some MSPs, known as whips , with the task of ensuring that party members vote according to the party line. MSPs do not tend to vote against such instructions, since those who do are unlikely to reach higher political ranks in their parties. Errant members can be deselected as official party candidates during future elections, and, in serious cases, may be expelled from their parties outright. Thus, as with many Parliaments,
2160-505: A series of 21 exhibitions in the principal towns and burghs in the reception area months ahead of launch. The Exhibitions ran from Tuesday until Friday and were open from 14:30–21:30. The admission charge was 1/- for adults, 6d for children and old age pensioners. Every visitor to the Exhibition received a free copy of a 24-page Television Guide, which gave them a colourful picture of the programmes they would see on Scottish ITV. Every set in
2280-613: A spin-off Friday edition presented by Louise White entitled White Not MacKay . On 18 March 2009, it was announced that the Scotland Today branding would be phased out as part of a major station revamp. On Monday 23 March 2009, the nightly news programme was relaunched and renamed as STV News at Six . The name is also used in the STV North region as a replacement for North Tonight . Scottish Television Scottish Television (now, legally, known as STV Central Limited )
2400-428: A static caption, or form up from a patterned design that was supposed to represent tartan . Accompanying the look was a clock against a blue background with the white STV logo forming a pattern across the screen. On 31 August 1985, the station revived the 'Scottish Television' branding and introduced a computer generated thistle ident designed by Peter Goodfellow. Occasional special idents were also produced including
2520-829: A technical gallery in Glasgow. The opt-outs continued under the current STV News at Six branding until separate 6pm programmes and late night bulletins for the two sub regions were launched in May 2011. On 7 April 2007, it was revealed that GMTV had not renewed STV's contract to supply early morning regional news bulletins. The contract was awarded to the Belfast-based Macmillan Media , which has offices in London and Glasgow, and already provides regional GMTV News in Northern Ireland . GMTV Scotland began on 3 December 2007. STV had supplied GMTV with Scotland Today bulletins since
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#17328633605012640-612: A thirty-minute lunchtime edition of Scotland Today , presented by Angus Simpson and Kirsty Young . It was axed in the Autumn of 2004 although some elements of the lunchtime news were revived with the launch of The Five Thirty Show in January 2008. Scottish Television's news service was expanded further in November 1996 with the launch of Sky Scottish , a satellite channel set up as a joint venture with British Sky Broadcasting . Special mid-evening editions of Scotland Today were produced for
2760-557: A time when, under the terms of the Television Act, they were limited to a programme schedule of 50 hours a week. "It will certainly make the Scottish station very Scottish indeed in its programme content," he said. They planned a talent show, Fanfare ; a quiz programme; a play presented once a month or each alternate month, chosen from either the Citizen's, Glasgow, the Gateway, Edinburgh, or
2880-411: Is a debate on a motion proposed by an MSP who is not a Scottish minister . Such motions are on issues which may be of interest to a particular area such as a member's own constituency, an upcoming or past event or any other item which would otherwise not be accorded official parliamentary time. As well as the proposer, other members normally contribute to the debate. The relevant minister, whose department
3000-487: Is no revising chamber. The principal role of committees in the Scottish Parliament is to take evidence from witnesses, conduct inquiries and scrutinise legislation. Committee meetings take place on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday morning when Parliament is sitting. Committees can also meet at other locations throughout Scotland. Committees comprise a small number of MSPs, who look at specific subjects such as health,
3120-412: Is normally set up to scrutinise private bills submitted to the Scottish Parliament by an outside party or promoter who is not a member of the Scottish Parliament or Scottish Government. Private bills normally relate to large-scale development projects such as infrastructure projects that require the use of land or property. Private Bill Committees have been set up to consider legislation on issues such as
3240-516: Is the ITV network franchisee for Central Scotland . The channel — the largest of the three ITV franchises in Scotland — has been in operation since 31 August 1957 and is the second-oldest franchise holder in the UK that is still active (the oldest being Granada Television ). STV Central broadcasts from studios at Pacific Quay in Glasgow and is owned and operated by STV Group (formerly SMG plc ), which also owns
3360-513: Is the unicameral legislature of Scotland . Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city , Edinburgh , it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyrood . The Parliament is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), elected for five-year terms under the regionalised form of Additional-member system (MMP): 73 MSPs represent individual geographical constituencies elected by
3480-555: The 2008 Glasgow East by-election . In 2000, the programme won the Royal Television Society award for Best Regional Daily News Magazine . Scotland Today faced major changes in 2006 as a result of mass redundancies within the news and technical support divisions at Scottish TV. Main anchor Shereen Nanjiani signed off from the programme for the last time on 5 May 2006 – Sarah Heaney and sports presenter Jane Lewis also took voluntary redundancy. Several reporters also left
3600-681: The Gateway Theatre in Edinburgh in October 1969. The following month, on 3 November, the Theatre Royal headquarters were badly damaged by a major fire started by an electrical fault, in which a firefighter, Archie McLay, died after falling through a trapdoor. Like many franchises within the ITV network, Scottish struggled through the late 1960s and early 1970s with the recession, increased transmitter rental fees, taxation on income (rather than profits),
3720-525: The House of Commons . Speakers are drawn from across Scotland and are chosen to represent the balance of religious beliefs according to the Scottish census . Invitations to address Parliament in this manner are determined by the Presiding Officer on the advice of the parliamentary bureau. Faith groups can make direct representations to the Presiding Officer to nominate speakers. Before September 2012, Time for reflection
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3840-514: The Lion Rampant of Scotland . Initially a static caption, an animated ident was introduced by 1965 in which the lion would spin inside a box, though this later modified as a simple zoom in following, according to some reports, a complaint from The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the man in charge of protecting Scotland's heraldry . The station's first theme was a specially composed piece by Geraldo entitled Scotlandia , which began each day's broadcasting –
3960-522: The Mirror Group brought 20% stake in company, In September 1995, STV acquired a 20% stake in HTV worth £36 million, as part of a deal with Flextech , which held a 20% stake while the Mirror Group stake was diluted to 16%. The deal also involved Mirror Group CEO David Montgomery and two Flextech executives joining the Scottish Television board, while Flextech committed to licensing more than 125 hours of drama and documentaries from STV. Within
4080-465: The Official Report , which is the substantially verbatim transcript of parliamentary debates. Since September 2012, the first item of business on Tuesday afternoons is usually Time for Reflection at which a speaker addresses members for up to four minutes, sharing a perspective on issues of faith . This contrasts with the formal style of "Prayers", which is the first item of business in meetings of
4200-699: The Parliament of Scotland . Initial Scottish proposals in the negotiation over the Union suggested a devolved Parliament be retained in Scotland, but this was not accepted by the English negotiators. For the next 290 years, Scotland was governed by the Parliament of Great Britain and the subsequent Parliament of the United Kingdom , both seated at Westminster, and the lack of a Parliament of Scotland remained an important element in Scottish national identity . Suggestions for
4320-613: The Scottish National Party (SNP) resulted in rising support for Scottish independence, as well as the SNP. The party argued that the revenues from the oil were not benefitting Scotland as much as they should. The combined effect of these events led to Prime Minister Wilson committing his government to some form of devolved legislature in 1974. Under the terms of the Scotland Act 1978 , an elected assembly would be set up in Edinburgh if
4440-672: The Solicitor General for Scotland , who are not elected members of the Parliament but are members of the Scottish Government. As such, the Law Officers may attend and speak in the plenary meetings of the Parliament but, as they are not elected MSPs, cannot vote. Members are able to sit anywhere in the debating chamber, but typically sit in their party groupings. The First Minister, Scottish cabinet ministers and law officers sit in
4560-440: The celebrity idents package , albeit with their own logos attached and also featuring Scottish and Grampian presenters. The celebrity look remained until 2006, when the Scottish and Grampian names were traded in for one unified look: STV. The first ident package featured an elongated blue 'S', with scenes of Scottish people in various locations passing around the 'S' from person to person in differing scenes, until one person places
4680-424: The plurality (first-past-the-post) system, while a further 56 are returned as list members from eight additional member regions. Each region elects seven party-list MSPs. Each region elects 15 to 17 MSPs in total. The most recent general election to the Parliament was held on 6 May 2021, with the Scottish National Party winning a plurality. The original Parliament of Scotland was the national legislature of
4800-490: The standing orders that govern the proceedings of meetings. A vote clerk sits in front of the Presiding Officer and operates the electronic voting equipment and chamber clocks. As a member of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body , the Presiding Officer is responsible for ensuring that the Parliament functions effectively and has the staff, property and resources it requires to operate. Convening
4920-683: The 1980s and 1990s, demand for a Scottish Parliament grew, in part because the government of the United Kingdom was controlled by the Conservative Party , while Scotland itself elected relatively few Conservative MPs. In the aftermath of the 1979 referendum defeat, the Campaign for a Scottish Assembly was initiated as a pressure group , leading to the 1989 Scottish Constitutional Convention with various organisations such as Scottish churches , political parties and representatives of industry taking part. Publishing its blueprint for devolution in 1995,
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5040-565: The British Commonwealth, and the Thomson Foundation was created to educate and train television producers, journalists and engineers, this operated from Kirkhill House – a bespoke studio complex near Newton Mearns. Programmes from TFTC ( Thomson Foundation Television College) were never seen by STV's viewers, but much of STV's redundant equipment found a new home at the studios, including STV's first outside broadcast unit. Although
5160-538: The Convention provided much of the basis for the structure of the Parliament. Devolution continued to form part of the platform of the Labour Party which won power under Tony Blair in May 1997. In September 1997, the Scottish devolution referendum was put to the Scottish electorate and secured a majority in favour of the reestablishment of the Scottish Parliament, with tax-varying powers, in Edinburgh. An election
5280-588: The East and West of the STV Central region, initially as a five-minute opt out within the 6:00pm edition of Scotland Today on weeknights. From the station's launch in 1957 until 1974, Scottish Television used the Theatre Royal, Glasgow on Hope Street as their main studio base and headquarters. Secondary studios at the Gateway Theatre on Leith Walk in Edinburgh were built in 1969 to accommodate more productions. The new facilities at Edinburgh grew in importance following
5400-553: The Exhibition showed either BBC output or the new commercial programme. The latter was relayed through closed circuit from telecine equipment housed in a specially-constructed Morris Commercial vehicle, specially constructed for the exhibitions and carrying equipment valued at over £10,000. In an adjoining hall, a cinema show was staged. This showed samples of the programmes STV would be presenting, including American attractions such as I Love Lucy , Brave Eagle , and Douglas Fairbanks Presents , as well as home-grown shows Sunday Night at
5520-534: The Gaelic language. Each sitting day, normally at 5 pm, MSPs decide on all the motions and amendments that have been moved that day. This "Decision Time" is heralded by the sounding of the division bell, which is heard throughout the Parliamentary campus and alerts MSPs who are not in the chamber to return and vote. At Decision Time, the Presiding Officer puts questions on the motions and amendments by reading out
5640-451: The ITA, would be ready for service in August 1957. Roy Thomson signed the contract with the ITA on 19 June 1957. The launch of a second television channel required alterations to people's television sets and/or aerials. Older sets had to be converted with an additional tuning device, and even for newer sets which had this tuner already built-in, an additional aerial was required. With nearly half
5760-564: The ITV companies in July 1974. The union alleged that £231 of this deal was still owed to its members, and should not have been affected by the pay freeze. The strike took place from 6.00 am on 23 May (except for London Weekend Television , Tyne Tees Television , and Westward Television , where ACTT members ignored the strike). At 6.00am on 26 May, when striking workers came back to work, they were locked out by management. Normal service resumed on 30 May for all ITV stations, except for Scottish Television, whose staff refused to return to work after
5880-431: The ITV contractor for Northern Scotland, for £105 million. Shortly afterwards, the company became SMG . In April 1998, Scottish formed a new partnership with Canadian entertainment company Nelvana and American TV network CBS to produce six new animated series, with Scottish having a significant creative input in the production of all their shows. Scottish Television Enterprises general manager Darrel James, who oversaw
6000-591: The Legend and Birdz . In November, Scottish doubled the funding for children's programming. Speculation followed in the summer of 1998 that STV's 20% stake in GMTV would be sold off to help raise cash for new acquisitions in England, since the company continued to have no debt and could easily afford new purchases. At the end of the year, Gus Macdonald left the company to become a Scottish Trade Minister. In 1999, Mirror Group sold its stake to Granada On 2 March 2006, it
6120-551: The Northern Scotland franchise, Grampian Television (now STV North ), based in Aberdeen . It produces news for the west and east halves of its transmission region ( STV News at Six ) along with current affairs and feature programming for Northern and Central Scotland. Along with STV North and ITV Border , STV Central is a commercial rival to the publicly funded national broadcaster, BBC Scotland . Scottish Television
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#17328633605016240-479: The Palladium and The 64,000 Question , and advertising films. Also featured was a film of local interest, taken by STV's outside broadcasting (OB) unit a few days prior to the show, showing crowd scenes and various local activities. This offered the enticing prospect of exhibition visitors seeing themselves on television and thus finding out they were already "television stars"! The Pye OB unit, which cost £37,000 and
6360-586: The Parliamentary Bureau, which allocates time and sets the work agenda in the chamber, is another of the roles of the Presiding Officer. Under the Standing Orders of the Parliament the Bureau consists of the Presiding Officer and one representative from each political party with five or more seats in the Parliament. Amongst the duties of the Bureau are to agree the timetable of business in the chamber, establish
6480-450: The S in the centre of the screen. An updated look was introduced on 23 March 2009, consisting of a picture postcard scene which would flip over to the right to reveal another theme. This flipping increases in pace and as the camera pulls back before the STV logo forms against a gradient blue background. On 2 June 2014, STV's logo was unified, along with Grampian's. The white "tv" is now situated on
6600-430: The Scottish Parliament, at the beginning of each parliamentary session, Parliament elects one MSP to serve as Presiding Officer , the equivalent of the speaker in other legislatures, and two MSPs to serve as deputies. The Presiding Officer (currently Alison Johnstone ) and deputies (currently Annabelle Ewing and Liam McArthur ) are elected by a secret ballot of the 129 MSPs, which is the only secret ballot conducted in
6720-401: The Scottish Parliament. Principally, the role of the Presiding Officer is to chair chamber proceedings and the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body . When chairing meetings of the Parliament, the Presiding Officer and his/her deputies must be politically impartial. During debates, the Presiding Officer (or the deputy) is assisted by the parliamentary clerks, who give advice on how to interpret
6840-430: The Scottish Television in-house design department, created the station's presentation packages in the 90s, first appearing on 1 January 1993 and 6 October 1996 respectively. Scottish did use the first national ITV ident from 1 September 1989 but used it in conjunction with its own branding but this was dropped by early 1990. Scottish maintained in-vision continuity throughout its first thirty years on air. In later years,
6960-501: The West and the East of the region, albeit broadcast across Central Scotland. It was also one of the first regional news programmes to feature signed headlines for the deaf and hard of hearing. Following John Toye's departure, a major overhaul of Scotland Today saw the programme relaunched as a feature-led magazine programme on Monday 8 October 1984. New co-presenters Sheena McDonald and Haig Gordon presented on sofas as opposed to desks, with
7080-432: The areas in which it can make laws – by explicitly specifying powers that are " reserved " to the Parliament of the United Kingdom . The Scottish Parliament has the power to legislate in all areas that are not explicitly reserved to Westminster. The UK Parliament retains the ability to amend the terms of reference of the Scottish Parliament, and can extend or reduce the areas in which it can make laws. The first meeting of
7200-479: The balance of parties across Parliament. Typically each committee corresponds with one (or more) of the departments (or ministries) of the Scottish Government. The current Subject Committees in the fourth Session are: Economy, Energy and Tourism; Education and Culture ; Health and Sport ; Justice ; Local Government and Regeneration ; Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment; Welfare Reform; and Infrastructure and Capital Investment . A further type of committee
7320-515: The breakfast channel took over from TV-am in 1993. The contract to provide regional ITV Breakfast in Central and the North of Scotland returned to STV in 2013. On 4 June 2007, the programme launched The Real MacKay , a supplementary series of video blogs, presented and produced by John MacKay for stv.tv . Its success led to the introduction of video blogs for the STV North region ( Northern Exposure ) and
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#17328633605017440-708: The channel and presented by John MacKay and Andrea Brymer until the channel's closure in May 1998, owing to low ratings. During its 37 years on air, Scotland Today covered major Scottish news stories such as the Dunblane massacre , the Lockerbie bombing , the Argyll priest scandal of the 1990s, the referendum and subsequent set-up of the Scottish Parliament , the Glasgow International Airport attack in 2007 and
7560-525: The commercials. Lord Thomson was also criticised, for using much of the profits generated by Scottish Television to further gain his interests in the newspaper industry, rather than reinvesting into the station. In 1965, the chairman of the Independent Television Authority Charles Hill paid a visit to STV's Glasgow studios during which he observed an edition of the popular daytime entertainment show The One O'Clock Gang . He
7680-408: The company originally went on air, images not provided electronically 'live' within the studio centre were provided via telecine machines, allowing the station to run local advertisements to fill the ad breaks within and on either side of local and networked programming. Local advertisements – where a single image was shown on screen whilst the continuity announcer read the promotional message 'live' –
7800-422: The company's payments from £466,000 to £234,000, and a general increase in advertising saw profits rise to £475,000 within the first six months of 1971. A large proportion of the profits were spent on expanding the company's programming output. This was in part to address criticism of the station's output, and included improved sports coverage, new dramas by Scottish writers, and enhanced local entertainment. With
7920-423: The completion of the new studio complex, the Theatre Royal was sold to Scottish Opera to become the first national opera house in Scotland, and the home of Scottish Opera and Scottish Ballet. Cowcaddens became Scottish's main studio base where the majority of their productions were based. However, with the growing use of independent production companies as a source of programming, the need for increased studio space
8040-641: The courtyard adjoining the Assembly Hall, which is part of the School of Divinity of the University of Edinburgh . This building was vacated twice to allow for the meeting of the Church's General Assembly . In May 2000, the Parliament was temporarily relocated to the former Strathclyde Regional Council debating chamber at Strathclyde House in Glasgow, and to the University of Aberdeen in May 2002. Since September 2004,
8160-542: The deal, said: "[It] came together in a surprisingly short time. We have worked very successfully with Nelvana on the Rupert series in the past. So when they came and asked us if we wanted to get involved, we said 'yes' almost immediately. It is not often that you get the opportunity to work on such a high volume of co-produced material at one time." The new shows produced were Franklin , Anatole , The Dumb Bunnies , Flying Rhino Junior High , Mythic Warriors: Guardians of
8280-411: The debate and motion relate to "winds up" the debate by speaking after all other participants. Much of the work of the Scottish Parliament is done in committee . The role of committees is stronger in the Scottish Parliament than in other parliamentary systems, partly as a means of strengthening the role of backbenchers in their scrutiny of the government and partly to compensate for the fact that there
8400-531: The debating chamber usually take place on Wednesday afternoons from 2 pm to 6 pm and on Thursdays from 9:15 am to 6 pm. Chamber debates and committee meetings are open to the public. Entry is free, but booking in advance is recommended due to limited space. Parliament TV is a webcast and archive of Parliamentary business back to 2012. and on the BBC 's parliamentary channel BBC Parliament . Proceedings are also recorded in text form, in print and online, in
8520-675: The development of the Edinburgh Tram Network , the Glasgow Airport Rail Link , the Airdrie–Bathgate rail link and extensions to the National Gallery of Scotland . The Scotland Act 1998 , which was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom and given royal assent by Queen Elizabeth II on 19 November 1998, governs the functions and role of the Scottish Parliament and delimits its legislative competence. Since
8640-527: The early days of the ITV network were a financial gamble, the STV service soon became profitable, resulting in Thomson's claim that "running a commercial television station is like having a licence to print money". In 1966, the company was listed on the London Stock Exchange for the first time. Scottish Television retained its franchise at the first time of asking in 1967, despite strong competition from
8760-513: The economy or justice. They play a central role in the work of the Scottish parliament because, unlike the UK Parliament, the Scottish parliament is a single-chamber parliament. The committees can thus, consider and amend proposals for new laws, they can also propose new laws themselves. The committees can investigate any area that is within their remit and publish recommendations, and can also report on petitions that have been submitted by members of
8880-528: The end of the decade, game shows Wheel of Fortune and Fun House began decade-long runs on the ITV network. During the late 1980s, the company, known as MAC III Productions, bought out the rights to game shows for the UK and foreign markets, including The Krypton Factor . In 1990, Sir William Brown retired as managing director after 24 years of service, marking the longest serving chief executive in ITV history. He subsequently became chairman of Scottish Television plc from 1991 until 1996 Gus Macdonald
9000-530: The exercise of devolved competences. Its effect is to undermine the freedom of action, regulatory competence and authority of the Parliament, limiting its ability to make different economic or social choices to those made by Westminster . Before the Treaty of Union 1707 united the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England into a new state called " Great Britain ", Scotland had an independent parliament known as
9120-475: The fatal Theatre Royal fire in November 1969, which gutted Studio A and several production suites. Scottish's main base moved in 1974 to custom built facilities on Renfield Street in Cowcaddens on land opposite the Theatre Royal site. Construction began on the new base in 1972 - it was officially opened on 12 December 1974 by Princess Alexandra , and expanded to accommodate further production in 1978. Following
9240-634: The first ITV station to operate a regional Oracle teletext service, containing over 60 pages of local news, sport and information. As was industry-practice at the time, STV programming would either be totally studio-based, include film inserts where required (the local news programme Scotland Today and Take the High Road being early examples of this), or other programming such as documentaries and dramas, shot entirely on film. The company employed up to six film crews who could be assigned to providing daily local news coverage, football matches, or feature programming such as Redgauntlet or Weirs Way . Since
9360-680: The first outside the three largest regions (London, the Midlands and Northern England), as well as the first to broadcast seven days a week. Scottish Television’s first sport-related programme was "Fanfare", which debuted on September 2, 1957 where, compered by Archie McCulloch, supporters of rival football club competed against one another each Monday. The company broadcast musical entertainment, variety, documentary films presented by Dr John Grierson, and Scottish sports coverage. It also sponsored Scottish Opera and televised live opera and ballet, networking more opera than similar television companies. Much of
9480-513: The front row, in the middle section of the chamber. The largest party in the Parliament sits in the middle of the semicircle, with opposing parties on either side. The Presiding Officer, parliamentary clerks and officials sit opposite members at the front of the debating chamber. In front of the Presiding Officers' desk is the parliamentary mace , which is made from silver and inlaid with gold panned from Scottish rivers and inscribed with
9600-601: The increase in output, STV had expectations of becoming one of the major players in producing programming for the planned fourth UK television service (then referred to as "ITV2" and which later became Channel 4 ). Managing Director William Brown remarked at the time: "One of the major factors in deciding to extend our activities, is the prospect of becoming nationally involved in the production of networked programmes for ITV2 if and when it begins". In addition, STV were also seeking to consolidate their position to increase its partnership with foreign television stations. The company
9720-424: The independence of Members of the Scottish Parliament tends to be low, and backbench rebellions by members who are discontent with their party's policies are rare. In some circumstances, however, parties announce "free votes", which allows Members to vote as they please. This is typically done on moral issues. Immediately after Decision Time a "Members Debate" is held, which lasts for 45 minutes. Members Business
9840-511: The independent Kingdom of Scotland and existed from the early 13th century until the Kingdom of Scotland merged with the Kingdom of England under the Acts of Union 1707 to form the Kingdom of Great Britain . As a consequence, the Parliament of Scotland ceased to exist, while the Parliament of England , which sat at Westminster , was subsumed into the Parliament of Great Britain . In practice, all of
9960-401: The lockout finished on 29 May. Staff eventually returned on Monday 9 June In 1978, company profits had risen by 21.8% in the first six months of the year, allowing for an increase in local programming. During the 1970s and 1980s, Scottish Television produced a range of religious programming including weekly church services, half-hour religious programmes on a Sunday, religious contributions to
10080-499: The mace is displayed in a glass case, suspended from the lid. At the beginning of each sitting in the chamber, the lid of the case is rotated so that the mace is above the glass, to symbolise that a full meeting of the Parliament is taking place. Parliament typically sits Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from early January to late June and from early September to mid December, with two-week recesses in April and October. Plenary meetings in
10200-405: The main regional news of the day confined to short bulletins before and after the programme, co-presented from Glasgow and Edinburgh. The critics were harsh about the new format – one such newspaper critic described it as The Goon Show – it's Tom and Jerry time but there's not much to laugh at . The Independent Broadcasting Authority also criticised the changes to the programme, and in July 1986,
10320-427: The name of the motion or amendment as well as the proposer and asking " Are we all agreed? ", to which the chamber first votes orally. If there is audible dissent, the Presiding Officer announces " There will be a division " and members vote by means of electronic consoles on their desks. Each MSP has a unique access card with a microchip which, when inserted into the console, identifies them and allows them to vote. As
10440-527: The new Channel 4 , the epilogue Late Call , and occasional documentaries, produced by Executive Producer Rev. Dr Nelson Gray, a Minister of the Congregational Church, and Rev. Eric Hudson, a Minister of the Church of Scotland but as the public service broadcasting requirement receded during the 1990s, the amount of religious programmes were gradually phased out. In October 1981, Scottish Television became
10560-493: The number, remit and membership of parliamentary committees and regulate the passage of legislation (bills) through the Parliament. The Presiding Officer also represents the Scottish Parliament at home and abroad in an official capacity. The Presiding Officer controls debates by calling on members to speak. The Presiding Officer rules on points of order raised by members, which are not subject to debate or appeal. The Presiding Officer may also discipline members who fail to observe
10680-532: The official home of the Scottish Parliament has been a new Scottish Parliament Building , in the Holyrood area of Edinburgh. The Scottish Parliament building was designed by Spanish architect Enric Miralles in partnership with local Edinburgh Architecture firm RMJM which was led by Design Principal Tony Kettle . Some of the principal features of the complex include leaf-shaped buildings, a grass-roofed branch merging into adjacent parkland and gabion walls formed from
10800-470: The overnight strand was relaunched as Scottish Night Time . Scottish refused to adopt the 1999 ITV generic look and instead, alongside Grampian Television , launched a new on-screen logo on 28 February 2000, featuring a blue square with the words 'Scottish TV' – a new set of 15 ident sequences featuring Scottish people and places was produced as part of the revamp. The presentation package remained in use until 6 January 2003, when Scottish and Grampian adopted
10920-499: The principal objectives of the commission was to examine ways of enabling more self-government for Scotland, within the unitary state of the United Kingdom. Kilbrandon published his report in 1973 recommending the establishment of a directly elected Scottish Assembly to legislate for the majority of domestic Scottish affairs. During this time, the discovery of oil in the North Sea and the following " It's Scotland's oil " campaign of
11040-403: The programme began on 11 September 1972, as a successor to Dateline , which had been presented by Bill Tennent since 1970. Its style was very similar to its BBC counterpart Reporting Scotland . Initially co-presented by John Toye and Bill Kerr Elliot, within a year, Toye became its solo presenter, a position he held for 12 years. During the first six years, it was only on air for ten months of
11160-414: The programme including Matt Bingham, Becky Hunter, Alan Saunby, Iona Scott and Roddy Scott. A few months later, the programme was relaunched to tie-in with the newly rebranded STV and the move to new purpose-built, smaller studios at Pacific Quay . The relaunch also saw John MacKay being made its chief solo anchor. On 8 January 2007, Scotland Today launched a sub-regional news service, allowing viewers in
11280-499: The public approved it in a referendum be held on 1 March 1979 . A narrow majority of 51.6% to 48.4% voted in favour of a Scottish Assembly, but the Act also required that at least 40% of the total electorate vote in favour of the proposal. As the turnout was only 63.6%, the vote in favour represented only 32.9% of the eligible voting population, and the Assembly was not established. Throughout
11400-427: The public or groups. The current Mandatory Committees in the fourth Session of the Scottish Parliament are: Public Audit ; Equal Opportunities; European and External Relations; Finance; Public Petitions; Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments; and Delegated Powers and Law Reform. Subject Committees are established at the beginning of each parliamentary session, and again the members on each committee reflect
11520-508: The reconvened Parliament took place on 12 May 1999. The legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament has been amended numerous times since then. The Scotland Act 2012 and Scotland Act 2016 expanded the Parliament's powers, especially over taxation and welfare. The purpose of the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 , the most recent amendment, is to constrain the powers of the devolved institutions and restrict
11640-498: The rules of the Parliament. The debating chamber of the Scottish Parliament has seating arranged in a hemicycle , a design which is common across European legislatures, intended to encourage consensus and compromise. There are 131 seats in the debating chamber. Of the total 131 seats, 129 are occupied by the Parliament's elected MSPs and two are seats for the Scottish Law Officers—the Lord Advocate and
11760-628: The station relied less on in-vision links compared to other ITV stations, although duty announcers also presented short regional news bulletins produced by the Scotland Today newsroom. In-vision continuity was confined to overnight junctions in February 1988 following the launch of 24-hour broadcasting and the start of the Scottish Through the Night service. The practice was abandoned in October 1991, when
11880-419: The station's early output was provided by ATV , under a ten-year deal worth £1 million per year. By 1965, ATV's senior producer Francis Essex had become Scottish's programming controller. However, the station had also gained a reputation for low budget, entertainment-driven programming. It was jokingly said that STV only owned two pieces of equipment; one telecine to show western films and another to show
12000-454: The station's head of news David Scott announced Scotland Today would revert to a harder news format the following Autumn, promising in a newspaper: you won't see pot plants, sofas or sculptures – these are nothing but distractions. The new look programme, launched on Monday 20 October 1986, saw Haig Gordon replaced by former reporter Malcolm Wilson, while feature elements were moved to a new lunchtime programme, Live at One Thirty , which began
12120-471: The stones of previous buildings. Throughout the building there are many repeated motifs, such as shapes based on Raeburn's Skating Minister . Crow-stepped gables and the upturned boat skylights of the Garden Lobby, complete the unique architecture. Queen Elizabeth II opened the new building on 9 October 2004. In 2024, the Scottish Parliament celebrated its 25th anniversary. After each election to
12240-597: The theatres in Perth or Dundee. There would also be a series, The Tamsons , about a Scottish family — but the problem was going to be finding someone who could write this, as not many Scots were experienced in writing for television. Scotsplay was also planned as a children's programme, while In Heaven and Earth was described by Purdy as "our big cultural effort", which would "contain a bit of anything and everything culturally interesting, provocative, or entertaining"; it would run for half an hour. British news would be featured twice
12360-404: The theme continued to be heard until August 1985. After the start of colour broadcasting, the lion rampant symbol was replaced within a year by a stylised 'STV' logo. The solid STV lettering would be met by an outline of the lettering and the background would turn blue once both had met, accompanied by a trumpeted fanfare. Throughout the 1970s and up until 1985, this stylised STV was used as either
12480-451: The traditions, procedures, and standing orders of the English parliament were retained, with the addition of Scottish members in both the Commons and Lords . Following a referendum in 1997 , in which the Scottish electorate voted for devolution, the powers of the devolved legislature were specified by the Scotland Act 1998 . The Act delineates the legislative competence of the Parliament –
12600-408: The west and the east of central Scotland to receive a dedicated bulletin within the main 6pm programme. In the west, the programme covered from Tobermory to Falkirk , with the presenter based in the main Scotland Today studio in Glasgow. Meanwhile, the east opt-out reported from Anstruther to Dunbar and was presented & produced at STV's Edinburgh's studios. The East opt-out was directed from
12720-527: The words: Wisdom , Compassion , Justice and Integrity . The words There shall be a Scottish Parliament , which are the first words of the Scotland Act, are inscribed around the head of the mace, which has a ceremonial role in the meetings of Parliament, representing the authority of the Parliament to make laws. Presented to the Scottish Parliament by the Queen upon Parliament's official opening in July 1999,
12840-424: The year, taking a regular summer break and having its timeslot filled by regional magazine programmes including Isabel on... and Watch This Space . The programme's first editor was Russell Galbraith, then head of news for Scottish Television – he remained in the role until 1982. During the early 1980s, the programme experimented with studio presentation from both Glasgow and Edinburgh, featuring news round-ups from
12960-527: Was alleviated. New Scottish programming, such as Art Attack and How 2 from TVS was being made at the Maidstone Studios , where these programmes were formally based. As a cost-saving measure, the Gateway Theatre studios in Edinburgh, which for a time became the permanent studio home for Take the High Road , were closed in 1994. In 2006, the newly rebranded STV moved from their Cowcaddens base to
13080-437: Was announced by SMG plc (now 'STV Group plc') that Scottish Television would revert to the brand name of ' STV ', used from the start of colour broadcasting in 1969 until 30 August 1985, and which the station was still informally known as. At the same time, Grampian Television would also become known as STV North. The new-look branding was launched on 30 May 2006. In January 2007, the station launched separate news services for
13200-577: Was associated with a public Israeli television company, who used STV's post-production facilities for dubbing foreign language programmes. STV were hoping to be invited to act as an advisor for commercial television in Israel. The company started work on building its new purpose-built complex at Cowcaddens , in early 1972. Original plans were to move to the Millerston area of Glasgow, costing £2 million, but negotiations fell through in mid-1960. The Cowcaddens site
13320-466: Was based at an office in Maidstone (where many of Scottish's new acquisitions were produced) until 1995, but he left the company in 1993. Scottish would continue as a major provider of children's programming throughout the 1990s, including a number of co-productions with other broadcasters and production companies. After retaining its franchise in 1991 unopposed with a bid of just £2,000 a year (just over £5
13440-597: Was founded by Canadian newspaper magnate Roy Thomson (later Lord Thomson). To base the station, he bought the Theatre Royal, Glasgow from Howard & Wyndham Ltd , who became minor partners in the new venture. Thomson invited Canadian television producer Rai Purdy to become the station's first head of programming. In the months leading up to opening night, Purdy pledged that the new channel would provide "first class entertainment" and "as much cultural programming as possible" as well as allowing "Scottish talent every opportunity to develop and be seen on STV". On 24 May 1955,
13560-473: Was held on 6 May 1999, and on 1 July of that year power was transferred from Westminster to the new reconvened Parliament. While the permanent building at Holyrood was being constructed, a temporary home for the Parliament was found in Edinburgh. The General Assembly Hall of the Church of Scotland on the Royal Mile was chosen to host the Parliament. Official photographs and television interviews were held in
13680-533: Was held on Wednesday afternoons. The Presiding Officer (or Deputy Presiding Officer) decides who speaks in chamber debates and the amount of time for which they are allowed to speak. Normally, the Presiding Officer tries to achieve a balance between different viewpoints and political parties when selecting members to speak. Typically, ministers or party leaders open debates, with opening speakers given between 5 and 20 minutes, and succeeding speakers allocated less time. The Presiding Officer can reduce speaking time if
13800-405: Was housed in a specially constructed vehicle, was on show outside the hall. A TV camera which was on display at the STV stand proved to be a big attraction. People standing around near the camera found that their images were being projected on screens at the other end of the hall. Thomson said that, in initial stages, he expected to produce about ten hours a week of Scottish programmes. This was at
13920-567: Was planned to be built in the late 1960s, but was put on hold because of STV's financial position. The company left the Glasgow base at the Theatre Royal in December 1974. In 1975, a short-term strike hit the ITV network in the spring, due to a dispute over the payments agreed before the government-imposed pay freeze came into force. A 19% pay rise had been agreed between the ACTT (Association of Cinematograph Television and Allied Technicians) union, and with
14040-485: Was promoted as Managing Director and started overhauling the workforce by cutting it from 800 to 330 – Macdonald claimed the company was employing many more people though most were now freelancers. In early 1992, J. Nigel Pickard became controller of entertainment and drama features. When he transferred from the outgoing ITV company TVS , some of the station's children's programmes continued production under Scottish Television including Art Attack and How 2 . Pickard
14160-401: Was so appalled by it that he personally axed the programme with the words My God, how long have you been getting away with this? . From the launch of the station, television for schools was pioneered in association with Glasgow Corporation, and post graduate television services initiated, including surgery, in conjunction with universities. Programmes were devised for the emerging countries in
14280-608: Was sourced from a standard 35 mm slide. Filmed inserts into regional news added a significant delay to the airing of programmes. STV, having no film processing capability of its own at Cowcaddens, sub-contracted this to a specialist company – Humphries Film Laboratories. Exposed film would be rushed to an industrial unit in North Glasgow to be processed and returned to Cowcaddens for the 16 mm film to be edited and prepared for transmission. This process often caused much annoyance to reporters and crews alike, as to ensure inclusion of
14400-431: Was to revamp the station's regional news and features output, following criticism from an Independent Broadcasting Authority committee. Scottish's flagship evening programme Scotland Today had previously been revamped from a regional news programme into a topical magazine show supplemented by short bulletins. David Scott was brought in from BBC Scotland as the station's head of news and reverted Scotland Today back to
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