1956 in British television

This is a list of British television related events from 1956.

Events

February

17 February – The Midlands becomes the first part of the UK outside London to receive ITV, when ATV Midlands begins broadcasting their weekday franchise. The weekend franchise, ABC, appears a day later.

March

28 March – Television transmissions begin from the new Crystal Palace site in south London for the BBC.

April

28 April – ITV, at that point only available in the London area and in the Midlands, shows cricket for the first time, when it broadcasts the Australian touring team's match against the Duke of Norfolk's XI at Arundel Castle.

May

3 May – Granada Television begins broadcasting, extending ITV's coverage to Northern England from Winter Hill transmitting station, but starts broadcasting across Yorkshire only in late Autumn. ABC's weekend franchise begins two days later.
10 May - British TV debut of Gunsmoke as Gun Law, on ITV. The TV programme will have a 20 year run on ITV before moving to other channels.
24 May – The BBC broadcasts the very first Eurovision Song Contest, live from Switzerland. However no act or artist was chosen by the BBC to represent the United Kingdom, due to the competition clashing with the short-lived Festival of British Popular Songs.

June

18 June – Irish playwright Brendan Behan is drunk when interviewed by Malcolm Muggeridge on the BBC's Panorama and for the first time on British television utters the word "fuck".

July

6 July – Hancock's Half Hour debuts on the BBC Television.
8 July – The anthology drama series Armchair Theatre, produced by ABC Weekend TV for the ITV network, begins its run.
July – The BBC shows Glorious Goodwood for the first time.

September

15 September – The Adventures of Sir Lancelot debuts on ITV. After being sold to the NBC network in the United States, it later becomes the first British television series ever to be made in colour. It premieres in the United States on 24 September.

October

31 October – On popular ITV television talk show Free Speech, an especially bitter debate on the Suez Crisis takes place, with leftist historian A. J. P. Taylor and Labour journalist and future party leader Michael Foot calling their fellow-panellist, Conservative MP Robert Boothby, a "criminal" for supporting the war.

November

3 November – The Emley Moor transmitting station enters service, broadcasting ITV programmes to Yorkshire from its original lattice tower.
8 November – The BBC airs a drama, Man From the Sun, concerning racial prejudice in the UK.
November – Rowntree's launch their long-running ITV advertising campaign using the slogan "Don't forget the fruit gums, Mum."

December

25 December
*Christmas Day highlights include the British TV debut of The Lone Ranger on BBC TV.
*PG Tips launch their long-running ITV advertising campaign using a chimpanzees' tea party with voices provided by Peter Sellers.

Unknown

Trade test colour films are broadcast on BBC Television for the first time

Debuts

BBC Television Service/BBC TV

8 January – Space School
12 January – Strictly T-T
17 January – The Frontiers of Science
21 January – Tales from Soho
5 February – The White Falcon
21 February – Nathaniel Titlark
24 February – Jane Eyre
8 March – Men in Battle
10 March – My Friend Charles
29 March – Billy Cotton Band Show
5 April – Double Cross
6 April – Diving To Adventure
10 April – Picture Parade
15 April – Rex Milligan
21 April – Opportunity Murder
7 May – The Adventures of the Big Man
24 May – Eurovision Song Contest
4 July – Abigail and Roger
6 July – Hancock's Half Hour
21 August – The Black Tulip
25 August – Bill Radford: Reporter
28 September – David Copperfield
4 October – Whack-O!
6 October – Potts in Parovia
20 October – The Other Man
28 October
* Kidnapped
* The Recording Angells
10 November – Evans Abode
13 November – The Watch Tower
1 December
*The Norman Wisdom Show
*The Crime of the Century
25 December – The Lone Ranger
28 December – Vanity Fair
Unknown – ''Champion the Wonder Horse''

ITV

6 January – This Week
16 February – Alfred Marks Time
20 February – The Count of Monte Cristo
2 March – I'm Not Bothered
27 April – The Tony Hancock Show
2 May – A Show Called Fred
7 May - The Monday Club
8 May - Zoo Time
9 May – Gunsmoke
10 May - Spot the Tune
11 May – My Sister and I
19 May - The 64,000 Question
8 June - Palais Party
9 June – Those Kids
13 June – Opportunity Knocks
8 July – Armchair Theatre
20 July – My Husband and I
31 July – The Crimson Ramblers
14 August – Two for the Money
15 September
*The Adventures of Aggie
*The Adventures of Sir Lancelot
*The Buccaneers
*Wyatt Earp
*The Strange World of Planet X
17 September
*Sailor of Fortune
*Son of Fred
18 September – Do You Trust Your Wife?
20 September – Over to William
21 September – Assignment Foreign Legion
2 October - My Wife's Sister
3 November – Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
5 November – What the Papers Say
1 December – The Errol Flynn Theatre
15 December – The Trollenberg Terror
24 December – Boyd Q.C.
31 December – Cool for Cats
Unknown
*Alfred Hitchcock Presents
*Highway Patrol
*''The Bob Cummings Show''

Television shows

1920s

''BBC Wimbledon''

1930s

1940s

The Ed Sullivan Show
''Come Dancing''

1950s

Ending this year

''Fabian of the Yard''

Births

6 January – Angus Deayton, actor and television presenter
9 January – Imelda Staunton, actress
25 January – Bill Turnbull, television presenter
8 February – Richard Sharp, banker and Chairman of the BBC
14 February – Tom Watt, radio presenter, journalist and actor
11 March – Helen Rollason, sports journalist and television presenter
19 April – Sue Barker, tennis player and television presenter
20 April – Georgie Glen, Scottish actress
26 April – Koo Stark, American-born actress
13 May – Richard Madeley, television presenter
28 May – Julie Peasgood, actress, author and television presenter
1 June – Louise Plowright, actress
10 October – Amanda Burton, actress
30 October – Juliet Stevenson, actress
16 November – Lorraine Heggessey, television executive
28 November – Lucy Gutteridge, actress
7 December – Anna Soubry, television journalist, barrister and politician