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TVTimes

British TV listings magazine

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionNov 17, 2025
Entity authorityQ7672252
Source-derived summary

TV Times is a British television listings magazine. From 1955 until 1991, it was the only source of seven-day listings for ITV and, from 1982, Channel 4 (as well as S4C in Wales in an enclosed local supplement titled Sbec). The magazine did not circulate nationally until 1968 as some (usually smaller) regional stations opted to produce their own listings publications. Until the market was deregulated, its nearest rival was Radio Times – owned then by the BBC and at the time the only source of weekly BBC television and radio schedules. However the two magazines were very different in character, and viewers wanting the full listings for the coming week were required to purchase both publications. The TV Times branding was also used for several broadcast spin-offs on ITV, including the Miss TV Times and The TV Times Awards during the 1970s and 1980s.

Previously published by Independent Television Publications, owned by the participating ITV companies, the magazine was acquired by IPC Media in 1989, which became Time Inc. UK in 2014 and then TI Media in 2018. It was acquired by Future plc in 2020.

History and profile

TV Times was launched on 22 September 1955, with the start of transmissions of the first ITV station, Associated-Rediffusion.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “TVTimes” as british TV listings magazine. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around TVTimes, British and listings.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1955, 1991, 1982, 1968—that can be checked directly. The authority record carries competing date values—1955-01-01, 1955-09-22—which should remain separate until their references and qualifiers are resolved. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with TVTimes, British and listings providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “TVTimes”, the useful work is to connect “british TV listings magazine” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Nov 17, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q7672252. 3 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1955, 1991, 1982 and 1968.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “TVTimes”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow TVTimes primary sources, TVTimes archive and TVTimes research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “TVTimes”?
  2. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
  3. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Subject index

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from TVTimes” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.