That Was the Year That Was - 1998
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Description
1998 After many years of troubles in Northern Ireland both sides agree to the Good Friday peace agreement. The US President Bill Clinton denies he had "sexual relations" with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, but later admits it. The Soviet Union Banking system suffers a meltdown when the Rouble lost 70% of its value against US dollar in 6 months with several of the largest Russians banks collapsing. U.N.I.C.E.F. reports there are approximately 250 million child laborers worldwide. Politically, there was real progress in Northern Ireland when, after 30 years of violence and nearly two years of intensive peace talks, an agreement was reached. The 'Good Friday Agreement', as it was called, laid down a future of friendship and harmony and led to British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the Republic of Ireland's leader, Bertie Ahern, receiving acclaim from all corners. The much talked about 'Human Rights Act' received royal assent, meaning that the UK had to fall in line with the 'European Convention on Human Rights'. Amongst other things, it gave a legal right to life, a fair trial and freedom of expression; prohibiting discrimination, torture, and the death penalty. Some saw it as necessary for a civilized society whilst others saw it as yet more interfering European bureaucracy. Another arrival from Europe causing debate was the 43rd Eurovision Song Contest. This year's competition was held in Birmingham and hopes were high for UK entry Imaani and her song 'Where Are You?'. She pulled off an admiral 2nd place behind Israel's entrant, male-to-female transsexual Dana International. The winner attracted much post-contest hype and publicity, then everyone remembered that it was only the Eurovision song contest anyway. As for Imanni, the fact you don't even recognise the name tells you all you need to know about her subsequent music career. Also giving hope to the UK (well, the English part of it anyway) was World Cup 98 in France. As always, fans were hoping / praying / begging that this would indeed be the year and, as near always, things went a little bit wrong. England were the victims of penalties again (this time to Argentina) and, new face on the block David Beckham was the victim of his own temper. Having been sent off for a silly kick at one of the Argies, Beckham got blamed for everything and was hated by everyone (including, probably, Victoria). No doubt Jim, Barbara, Anthony, Dave and Denise, of the Royle family, would have been watching the World Cup from the comfort of their sofa in their council house in Manchester. Who would have thought that a TV show about other people watching TV would be such a success? Actually, they didn't just watch TV, they also smoked cigarettes, made cups of tea and broke wind! It's doubtful whether Jim Royle would have been impressed with American cult import 'South Park' but the rest of the UK certainly got into it; millions tuning in every week to see "Who killed Kenny?" (many more may have tuned into find out who had killed Beckham!) The cinemas saw a swing back to America for the big successes of the year with no noticeable UK films coming out in 1998. The bloody 'Saving Private Ryan' was a second world war hit starring Tom Hanks; the story involving a group of soldiers with orders to safely take home a Private James Ryan to his mother, whose other 3 sons have already been killed. A lot less bloody and a lot more singing and dancing was the re-release of 'Grease'. The high school love story coming back to the big screen 20 years after its original release (this time with enhanced colour and digital sound). Easter 1998 floods At the start of Easter 1998 (9-10 April) a stationary band of heavy rain affected the Midlands. This resulted in floods in which five people died and thousands had to be evacuated from their homes. The wettest area, with over 75 mm, stretched from Worcestershire towards The Wash and the flooded towns included Evesham, Leamington Spa, Stratford-on-Avon, Bedford, Northampton and Huntingdon. TV Soaps Hayley Patterson, British soap's first transgender character, is first seen in Coronation Street. Hayley (played by Julie Hesmondhalgh) is a regular in the series for several years, and helps to change public attitudes towards transgender issues. The character is killed off in a dramatic and emotional right to die storyline in January 2014 after Hesmondhalgh decided to leave the show. An episode of Coronation Street in which the character Deirdre Rachid is jailed for mortgage and credit card fraud is watched by 16.5 million viewers, giving the soap its highest Sunday viewing figures since the weekend episode was added in 1996. The crimes having been committed by her lover, Jon Lindsay, Deirdre's wrongful conviction sparks a public outcry. Her case is championed by national newspapers, and even Prime Minister Tony Blair offers to refer the conviction to Home Secretary Jack Straw. 17 April – Coronation Street character Deirdre Rachid is freed from prison after her lover Jon Lindsay is exposed as a bigamist. Four separate tabloid newspapers subsequently claim victory in securing her release, but the soap's producers say they always planned for the jail storyline to conclude after three weeks. 14 September – Data released by the National Grid indicates that a special edition of EastEnders aired the previous evening beat ITV's Sunday edition of Coronation Street. Power surges recorded as the programmes ended suggest three times as many viewers tuned into EastEnders than did Coronation Street. 29 September – Former Spandau Ballet guitarist turned actor Martin Kemp is to join the cast of EastEnders as a nightclub owner, it is confirmed. The National Grid reports a surge in the use of electricity at 8.00pm, as the Coronation Street episode featuring the death of the character Des Barnes (played by Philip Middlemiss) reaches its conclusion. 22 November – The BBC confirms that Patsy Palmer, who plays Bianca Butcher in EastEnders will leave the soap in 1999 to spend more time with her family. 2 December – The Commission for Racial Equality has called on British soaps to change the way black and Asian people are portrayed after Marcus Wrigley, a new black character in Coronation Street, was seen breaking into a house in one of his first scenes. 21 December – Coronation Street unveils its first Asian family, the Desais, who will be seen on screen from the New Year. They are Ravi Desai (played by Saeed Jaffrey, his daughter Nita (Rebecca Sarker) and son Vikram (Chris Bisson), and will take over the running of the corner shop from Fred Eliot (John Savident). The National Federation of SubPostmasters criticises the forthcoming Christmas Day episode of Emmerdale for featuring the death of a village postmaster during a robbery, expressing concerns it could prompt a spate of copycat incidents. The union calls on ITV to pull the episode, which sees the character Vic Windsor (Alun Lewis) killed after he strikes his head during a robbery at his post office. ITV says it has taken care not to breach Post Office security during the episode's filming. 30 December – Provisional viewing figures indicate that BBC One had seven of the top ten most watched programmes over the Christmas weekend. The 28 December episode of EastEnders achieved first place with 15.7m viewers, followed by an episode of Coronation Street from the previous day with 15.1m. The final episode of Men Behaving Badly was watched by 14m viewers. 31 December – An episode of EastEnders in which the character Tiffany Mitchell is killed when she is hit by a car driven by Frank Butcher is watched by 22 million viewers. Byker Grove: When Ant and Dec were PJ and Duncan. Twenty five years before "gritty" and "groundbreaking" became standard TV adjectives, the BBC's teen soap Byker Grove was just that. Filmed on Tyneside, based around a local youth club, its cast was recruited from ordinary schools, unearthing future stars who say they would not be where they are today without it. Although it is almost unthinkable, it was a time when Ant did not automatically come with television co-presenter Dec. Declan Donnelly played Duncan in the first series of Byker Grove but Anthony McPartlin's PJ did not appear until series two. "I don't really remember you being there," Ant has said. "You weren't really on my radar." Dec has admitted they did not "hit it off". Their characters became friends before they did. Starting on 8 November 1989, the show's first run was only six episodes long. But the BBC's decision to bring in EastEnders director Matthew Robinson was testament to its commitment. Storylines about teenage pregnancy, drug addiction and child abuse hauled in the audience and earned it a Bafta nomination. With success came complaints from parents and, in the case of the famous gay kiss, nationwide tabloid outrage and calls for Robinson's head. Although Noddy Fishwick's shy peck at Gary Hendrix's cheek in a dark '90s cinema was angrily unrequited, it was the first gay kiss on UK children's television. Former head of BBC children's television, Anne Home, has said it "did cause a certain amount of furore". "We had a number of complaints but often adults don't watch long enough to see that actually there is a very strong moral at the end of it." Location manager and assistant director Si King - now one half of the Hairy Bikers - believes the show was "loud and proud" of its regional identity and its focus on serious issues "everybody in the country could relate to". It lasted for 17 years and more than 340 episodes. Google was founded The world’s most popular search engine was launched in 1998. It’s pretty crazy to imagine a life without Google since it’s how we access information online. The first Apple iMac was introduced Remember those colorful bubble desktop computers that were frustratingly slow? Apple’s iMac has certainly improved, but man, that pinwheel of death was the worst. The Furby became every child’s worst nightmare It served no purpose but to creep you out at unexpected moments. The Furby tripled in price for the 1998 holiday season. The worst part is that it was REVIVED in 2012, with digital eyes, no less. The first portable MP3 player is released The MPMan music player debuted in Asia in March 1998, and it was the first mass-produced portable solid state digital audio player. 1998 Timeline 5 January – The UK takes over the Presidency of the EC's Council of Ministers until 30 June. 6 January – The BBC and ITV agree their scheduling arrangements for the 1998 World Cup, which will see both England and Scotland's opening matches airing on BBC One, while each nation's second group match will air on ITV. 7 January – The BBC confirms that Helen Rollason will return to TV screens to present weekend sports bulletins for BBC One and BBC Two following treatment for colon cancer. 8 January – The ITV docudrama Miracle at Sea: The Rescue of Tony Bullimore reconstructs the events of yachtsman Tony Bullimore's dramatic rescue after his boat capsized during the 1996 Vendée Globe yacht race. 9 January – Chat show host Michael Parkinson returns to television after several years with a new series of Parkinson. Guests on the first edition are Sir Anthony Hopkins, Barry Manilow and Paul Merton. 12 January – Location filming begins for a one-off episode of Australian soap Home and Away set in Ironbridge, Shropshire. This is the first occasion the serial has filmed an episode overseas. The storyline, aired later in the year, sees Irene Roberts (Lynne McGranger) arrive in the UK to help Selina Roberts (Tempany Deckert), who is recovering from a bout of malaria. Selina is also reunited with her on screen fiancé Steven Matheson (Adam Willits). 21 January – The former Conservative MP Rupert Allason loses a libel action against BBC Worldwide and Hat Trick Productions over comments made in a 1996 book based on the satirical television programme Have I Got News for You. A paragraph in Have I Got 1997 for You, had noted "...given Mr Allason's fondness for pursuing libel actions, there are also excellent legal reasons for not referring to him as a conniving little shit". 26 January – Hayley Patterson, British soap's first transgender character, is first seen in Coronation Street. Hayley (played by Julie Hesmondhalgh) is a regular in the series for several years, and helps to change public attitudes towards transgender issues. The character is killed off in a dramatic and emotional right to die storyline in January 2014 after Hesmondhalgh decided to leave the show. 3 February – Stamps commemorating Diana, Princess of Wales go on sale across Britain. 4 February – Debut of The Pepsi Chart Show on Channel 5. Initially presented by Rhona Mitra and Eddy Temple-Morris the programme is intended as a stablemate to the Pepsi Chart that airs across commercial radio. The show becomes one of the channel's most watched programmes, but has difficulty attracting some of the bigger acts of the day. 6 March – Central Weekend is briefly taken off air when a member of the audience becomes aggressive during a discussion about women's football. 7 – 22 February – Great Britain and Northern Ireland compete at the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, and win one bronze medal. 9 March – The name Tyne Tees Television is returned to ITV viewers in the North East of England, having been rebranded as Channel 3 North East two years previously. 12 February – Mohamed Al Fayed, the father of Dodi Fayed, says that he is "99.9% certain" that his son's death in the car crash that also claimed the life of Diana, Princess of Wales on 31 August 1997 was a conspiracy to kill rather than an accident. He also claims that his son had purchased an engagement ring just before the crash and had been preparing to propose marriage to Diana. A lawyer in Mr Al Fayed's native Egypt is planning to sue The Queen and prime minister Tony Blair on the grounds that they had conspired to kill Diana because her love for a Muslim would embarrass the state. 2 March – Channel 5 begins a rerun of the 1980s Australian soap Sons and Daughters. This is the programme's first networked showing as its previous run on ITV had varied from region to region. 3 March – Millennium Dome construction begins. 29 March - BBC America launches in the United States. 31 March – Rolls-Royce Motors acquired by the German car manufacturer BMW. April – Vauxhall launches its fourth generation Astra small family car range. The initial range consists of hatchbacks and estates, with coupe and saloons due next year and a cabriolet in two years. 1 April – The historic counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire are re-established, 24 years after they merged to form Hereford and Worcester. 10 April – The Good Friday Agreement, an agreement between the UK and Irish governments, and the main political parties in Northern Ireland is signed. 27 April – Kevin Lloyd, who has played Tosh Lines in The Bill since 1988, is dismissed from the role by ITV due to his alcoholism. He died, aged 49, within a week. 2 May – Police in Maryland, United States of America, reveal that they have arrested and bailed former footballer Justin Fashanu over an allegation of sexual assault against a 17-year-old male, and they believe he has now breached his bail conditions and fled the country. 9 May – Eurovision Song Contest held in Birmingham at the National Indoor Arena. The contest is presented by Terry Wogan and Ulrika Jonsson and won by Israel's Dana International singing "Diva". 15 May – 24th G8 summit held in Birmingham. 20 May – Nurses Deborah Parry and Lucille McLauchlan, who had been convicted in Saudi Arabia for the murder of Yvonne Gilford the previous year, have their sentences commuted by the order of King Fahd and are returned to the UK. 23 May – A referendum on the Good Friday Agreement is held in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland with 95% and 71% support respectively. 25 May – Labour MP George Galloway demands an investigation into an edition of Panorama aired on 21 May, which he describes as "racist". The edition had focussed on two British nurses accused of the murder of Yvonne Gifford, a colleague with whom they worked in Saudi Arabia, and included a reconstruction of the two women being interrogated by Saudi Police. Galloway describes the programme as "tabloid television at its worst". 28 May – Channel 4 is censured by the Broadcasting Standards Commission for an episode of the series TV Dinners in which a woman's afterbirth was served up to friends and relatives as pâté. Several viewers, including MP Kevin McNamara complained about the programme, shown in February, which the Commission deemed had broken a taboo and "would have been disagreeable to many". 3 June – The Big Breakfast co-presenter Denise van Outen apologises for taking an ashtray and tissue box holder from Buckingham Palace. She took the items while attending a royal reception two days earlier, but returns them with a note of apology following criticism in the press. 5 June – The BBC signs a deal with BSkyB to make BBC channels available through Sky Digital when it is launched later in the year. 9 June – Film critic and host of The Film Programme, Barry Norman announces he will leave the BBC after 25 years to join BSkyB. He will leave Film 98 at the end of its current run and join Sky in September. 10 June – The BBC switches on its digital signal. 10 June – 12 July – The BBC and ITV show live coverage of the 1998 FIFA World Cup. 11 June – Blue Peter presenters Katy Hill and Richard Bacon bury a time capsule containing various items associated with the programme in the foundations of the Millennium Dome. It will be opened in 2050. 13 June – Jason Searle wins the ninth series of Stars in Their Eyes, performing as Neil Diamond. 15 June – First general-circulation issue of a two pound coin, with a bi-metallic design (dated 1997). The DVD format is released onto the UK market for the first time. Among the first set of titles released on the new format is Jumanji. 25 June – The final episode of BBC One's The Human Body is the first British television programme to show the final moments of a cancer patient. Herbert Mower, who died the previous year, had given permission for his death to be recorded for the series. 26 June – Launch of the music channel Kiss TV. 3 July – So Graham Norton debuts on Channel 4. 10 July – BBC Chairman Sir Christopher Bland officially opens the BBC News Centre. 12 July – Three young children are killed in a loyalist arson attack in Ballymoney, Northern Ireland. 31 July - Crime and Disorder Act receives Royal Assent. It introduces Anti-Social Behaviour Orders, Sex Offender Orders, Parenting Orders, and 'racially aggravated' offences. It makes it possible for a young person between ten and fourteen to be presumed capable of committing an offence and formally abolishes capital punishment for treason and piracy, the last civilian offences for which the death penalty remained theoretically available. The government announces a total ban on the use of landmines by the British military. 10 August – Manchester United TV begins broadcasting, making Manchester United F.C. the world's first football team to have its own television channel. 12 August – The Independent Television Commission upholds a viewer's complaint after a member of the girl band B*Witched used the phrase "feck off" during a live interview on children's channel Nickelodeon on 13 May. 15 August – A car bomb explodes in the Northern Irish market town of Omagh, killing 29 people – the worst terrorist atrocity in the history of The Troubles in Northern Ireland. 19 August – It is reported that talk show host Vanessa Feltz has been sacked by Anglia Television because of her "unreal" demands to have her wages doubled to £2.75 million. 22 August – Reading F.C. move into their new Madejski Stadium, named after chairman John Madejski, near junction 12 of the M4 motorway in the south of Reading. It seats more than 24,000 spectators. 24 August - First RFID human implantation tested in the United Kingdom by Kevin Warwick at the University of Reading. The Netherlands is selected as the venue for the trial of the two Libyans who are charged with the Lockerbie aircraft bombing that killed 270 people in December 1988. 25 August – Channel 5 is reprimanded by the Independent Television Commission for showing a commercial during its soap, Family Affairs after both featured the same actor. The advert for McDonald's, aired on 18 May, featured actor Stephen Hoyle, who plays Liam Tripp in the series. The ITC has strict rules governing the separation of television programmes and commercials, and after two viewers complained about the incident, rules that Channel 5 had breached its regulations. 27 August – Vanessa Feltz signs an exclusive two year contract with the BBC. 28 August – The satellite TV channel Bravo launches The Doll's House, an online series enabling internet users to observe the lives of four women living in a house in London. The women were selected from 250 applicants to live rent free in the house for six months, with weekly highlights of their activities being aired on the channel's men's magazine, The Basement. The project, inspired by JenniCam, a US site established by Jennifer Ringley, follows an experiment by Bravo earlier in the year, where cameras chronicled the life of actress Sara West over three months. The Doll's House later attracts some media attention after one of the housemates slept with a male partner, unaware they were both on camera at the time. 29 August – The BBC's domestic TV channels become available on Sky Digital's satellite service. An unintended consequence of this is that people in the rest of Europe can now watch BBC One and Two, using viewing cards from the UK, as the signal is encrypted for rights reasons. This applies even within the UK: people in England can now watch BBC channels from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and vice versa. September – Ford launches its new Focus range of family hatchbacks, saloons and estates, which will eventually replace the long-running Escort. 1 September – Channel 4 pulls a documentary from the following day's schedule after learning that it was faked. Daddy's Girl told the story of aspiring model Victoria and her father, Marcus, who spoke candidly of his feelings about his daughter's career. But father and daughter were revealed to be boyfriend and girlfriend when Victoria's real father contacted Channel 4 after seeing a trailer for the documentary. 4 September – ITV broadcasts the first edition of its new game show, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. 5 September – ITV's football magazine programme On the Ball debuts with Gabby Yorath as presenter. Debut of The Moment of Truth, a game show presented by Cilla Black in which families or groups of friends can win prizes if one of their number is able to complete a difficult task, such as getting 24 tiddlywinks into a pot in under two minutes or memorising then playing the US national anthem on a xylophone. The programme achieves audiences of nine million, but is criticised as cruel because children are shown the prizes even though they could lose, and are visibly distressed when their family loses. Black herself later admits she was not "emotionally prepared" for the reaction of losing contestants, and the rules are changed to allow larger consolation prizes for the second series. 8 September – The Real IRA announces a ceasefire. 9 September – Manchester United informs the London Stock Exchange that it has accepted a £623.4m takeover bid by Rupert Murdoch's British Sky Broadcasting. 10 September – Sky Movies Screen 1, Sky Movies Screen 2 and Sky Movies Gold are Change to Sky Premier, Sky Moviemax and Sky Cinema. In Northern Ireland, David Trimble of the Ulster Unionist Party meets Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin — the first such meeting between Republicans and Loyalists since 1922. 14 September – Data released by the National Grid indicates that a special edition of EastEnders aired the previous evening beat ITV's Sunday edition of Coronation Street. Power surges recorded as the programmes ended suggest three times as many viewers tuned into EastEnders than did Coronation Street. 16 September – The Union Jack dress worn by the Spice Girl Geri Halliwell is sold at Sotheby's for £41,320. 17 September – ITV's This Morning conducts the first live test of the anti-impotence drug Viagra. 18 September – In an attempt to attract more viewers to its soap Family Affairs, Channel 5 announces that its entire central cast, the Hart family will be killed off in a dramatic storyline. 21 September – Footage of US President Bill Clinton's recent testimony to a Grand Jury about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky is released to US television networks, and aired by broadcasters around the world, including in the UK. 23 September – BBC Choice, the UK's first digital-only TV station, launches.[46] BBC Parliament also launches on the same day, having replaced The Parliamentary Channel. The BBC warns Blue Peter viewers to ignore a hoax chain letter claiming to be supported by the programme. ITV's autumn schedule will include what is reported to be the most expensive costume drama the broadcaster has ever made—the seafaring adventure Hornblower, which will cost £3 million an episode to produce. 28 September – Three police officers are awarded substantial libel damages against Granada Television at the High Court after the broadcast of an April 1992 edition of World in Action which accused them of fabricating evidence against a prisoner charged with the murder of his cell mate. 29 September – Former Spandau Ballet guitarist turned actor Martin Kemp is to join the cast of EastEnders as a nightclub owner, it is confirmed. 1 October – Digital satellite television launches in the UK, operated by Sky Digital. This sees the start of UK channels transmitting in 16:9 widescreen. Sky Sports News is launched. 5 October – ITV adopts a new set of idents with lower case lettering, and themed around a heart design. Sarah, Duchess of York makes her debut as a television talk show host on Sky One with the first in a ten-part series titled Sarah... Surviving Life. Each week she will interview guests who have been through traumatic experiences, discussing with them how they overcame their difficulties. Guests in the first episode include a woman who was raped by serial killer Fred West, a man who killed someone, and a car crash survivor. The programme is panned by critics, and axed in February 1999 because of poor viewing figures. 6 October – The BBC announce plans to revamp its news bulletins following an 18 month review of news programming, the largest ever undertaken in the UK. Changes will include a new look Six O'Clock News concentrating on national and regional stories, and an increase in world news stories for the 'Nine O'Clock News. 7 October – On the day's edition of The Big Breakfast, Denise van Outen announces her intention to leave the programme at the end of the year. 10 October – BBC Two airs Blue Peter Night, a selection of programmes celebrating 40 years of the children's television series Blue Peter. 13 October – Debut of Delia's How to Cook, a basic cookery programme presented by Delia Smith. The series is criticised by chef and restauranteur Gary Rhodes for its back-to-basics approach, while the Devon Fire Brigade criticise a piece of advice she gives in an edition to people who wish to season a new frying pan–to heat oil in it and leave it to simmer on low heat for eight hours. 15 October – The BBC loses the broadcasting rights to test match cricket after the England and Wales Cricket Board accepts a rival £103 million four-year bid from Channel 4 and BSkyB. The decision brings to an end sixty years of continuous cricket coverage by the BBC. 16 October – Police place General Augusto Pinochet, the 83-year-old former dictator of Chile, into house arrest during his medical treatment in Britain at the request of Spain. A man who got drunk and ran amok on the set of Central Television's Central Weekend during a debate on women's football in March, forcing the show to be taken off the air, is jailed for 12 months over the incident. 19 October – Richard Bacon becomes the first ever Blue Peter presenter to have his contract terminated in mid-run after the tabloid newspaper News of the World publishes a report of him taking cocaine. After his dismissal the Head of BBC children's programmes, Lorraine Heggessey, goes on air to explain the situation to CBBC viewers. 27 October – As part of its Q.E.D. strand, BBC One airs Hope for Helen, a documentary following television presenter Helen Rollason's fight against terminal cancer. She had been diagnosed with the condition the previous year and given three months to live. November – Peugeot launches the 206 supermini, which is being built at the Ryton plant near Coventry. 9 November – Human Rights Act receives Royal Assent. 15 November – Digital terrestrial television launches in the UK, operated by ONdigital which became ITV Digital almost 3 years later. 18 November – The British Egg Information Service reports that egg sales have increased by 10% since the debut of Delia Smith's BBC Two series Delia's How to Cook, a series that teaches viewers basic cookery skills. The National Grid reports a surge in the use of electricity at 8.00pm, as the Coronation Street episode featuring the death of the character Des Barnes (played by Philip Middlemiss) reaches its conclusion. 19 November – ITV is given permission to move its 10.00 pm news bulletin by the Independent Television Commission, a decision that will allow the channel to axe News at Ten in early 1999. ITV wanted to move the programme because of declining ratings, and to make way for films and television dramas to air uninterrupted in its evening schedule, but the plans had been criticised by senior journalists and politicians, who fear it will lead to a reduction in the quality of evening television. Once the changes are implemented, ITV's main evening bulletin will air at 6.30 pm, with a shorter news programme at 11.00 pm. Members of the National Assembly Against Racism, one of Britain's leading anti-racism groups, stage a protest outside the headquarters of Channel 4 as the channel airs a Dispatches documentary that claims to have established that most juvenile gang rapes are carried out by black youths. 20 November – The Independent Television Commission orders ITV to take its advertising campaign for digital television off air because it is "derogatory" towards satellite television. The campaign had featured a crossed out satellite dish, and had attracted complaints from other major broadcasters in the week it was shown. The regulator also decides that future digital television advertising campaigns by ITV must be submitted to the Broadcast Advertising Clearance Centre before going on air. At London's Wandsworth County Court the makers of Channel 4's Fifteen to One are awarded a county court judgment against Trevor Montague, a former series champion who broke the show's rule that losing contestants cannot appear on the programme again. Having lost in 1989, Montague re-applied under a different name in 1992 and went on to become series champion, but was subsequently identified by a contestant who watched a repeat of the show on Challenge TV. Montague must pay £3,562 in compensation, and return his prizes – two goblets and a set of decanters – to Regent Productions. 22 November – The BBC confirms that Patsy Palmer, who plays Bianca Butcher in EastEnders will leave the soap in 1999 to spend more time with her family. 24 November – The Queen's Speech is interrupted by MPs and peers, when the Queen began to outlay the government's plan to abolish the rights of 700 hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords. 26 November – Tony Blair becomes the first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to address the Oireachtas (Irish parliament). 27 November – ITV has scrapped plans for a documentary investigating claims of anti-English racism in Scotland because there was not enough evidence to support it, the Daily Record reports. December – The Ford Focus is voted European Car of the Year. 2 December – ITV airs the first celebrity special of Stars in Their Eyes, an edition that includes Carol Vorderman performing as Cher, and five female cast members of Coronation Street as The Spice Girls. The edition is won by Steven Houghton as Tony Hadley. 3 December – Channel 4 announces it has secured a £400,000 deal to air the only international interview with Monica Lewinsky, the woman at the centre of the sex scandal involving US President Bill Clinton. 7 December – Long-running current affairs series World in Action ends after 35 years. Launch of the UK's second digital-only TV station ITV2. 9 December – Channel 4 News unveils a new look for its hour long bulletin and a new set, which will be seen on air from January 1999 and marks the biggest change for the programme since its launch in 1982. Jon Snow will continue to present the bulletin. 10 December - John Pople wins the Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for his development of computational methods in quantum chemistry". John Hume and David Trimble win the Nobel Peace Prize. 11 December – BBC governors reject a request to give Scotland its own Six O'Clock News bulletin. Instead an extra £20m will be spent on new jobs and programming in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. 12 December – The Commission for Racial Equality has called on British soaps to change the way black and Asian people are portrayed after Marcus Wrigley, a new black character in Coronation Street, was seen breaking into a house in one of his first scenes. Viewers of The Living Channel accidentally see five minutes of an adult film being aired by Television X following a switching error by the company relaying both channels. The interruption, which occurs during an edition of The Jerry Springer Show generates seven complaints to the Independent Television Commission. The company responsible for the glitch later apologises, and makes technical changes to ensure it won't happen again. 14 December – After a world-record-breaking 75 consecutive victories, Ian Lygo makes his final appearance on the Channel 5 game show 100%, after being forced to retire by the show's producers. After 25 years presenting Sooty Matthew Corbett announces his retirement and hand picks Richard Cadell and Liana Bridges as his successors in the very last edition of Sooty & Co. 15 December – Holiday presenter Jill Dando rules herself out of becoming the face of a planned relaunched BBC Six O'Clock News following much media speculation on the topic. Dando says she plans to leave BBC News to concentrate on her presenting roles. 16 December – Regular programming is interrupted when the United States and United Kingdom launch air strikes against Iraq after that country failed to comply with United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction. 17 December – Jane Root is appointed Controller of BBC Two, becoming the first female head of a BBC channel. She will replace the outgoing incumbent, Mark Thompson in January 1999. 18 December – BBC political correspondent Huw Edwards is confirmed as the new face of the Six O'Clock News, taking over when the programme is revamped next year. Carlton Television is fined £2 million by the Independent Television Commission for a 1996 documentary titled The Connection in which actors pretended to be drug traffickers. 19 December – Denise van Outen presents the final of the first Record of the Year for ITV, a show allowing viewers to vote for their favourite single of 1998 through a phone-in poll. More than a million viewers call to register their vote, making the poll the UK's largest ever television phone poll. Of the ten songs shortlisted for the show, Irish boy band Boyzone's single "No Matter What" emerges as the winner. 21 December – Coronation Street unveils its first Asian family, the Desais, who will be seen on screen from the New Year. They are Ravi Desai (played by Saeed Jaffrey, his daughter Nita (Rebecca Sarker) and son Vikram (Chris Bisson), and will take over the running of the corner shop from Fred Eliot (John Savident). The National Federation of SubPostmasters criticises the forthcoming Christmas Day episode of Emmerdale for featuring the death of a village postmaster during a robbery, expressing concerns it could prompt a spate of copycat incidents. The union calls on ITV to pull the episode, which sees the character Vic Windsor (Alun Lewis) killed after he strikes his head during a robbery at his post office. ITV says it has taken care not to breach Post Office security during the episode's filming. 24 December – A £30 million advertising campaign for the Millennium Dome kicks off with a 60 second commercial voiced by actor Jeremy Irons that invites viewers to imagine the achievements of the past 1,000 years had happened in one day. Major events such as the Consecration of Westminster Abbey, the plays of William Shakespeare and the Fall of the Berlin Wall are highlighted against the backdrop of the Easter Island Statues from sunrise to sunset.[95] 25 December – Channel 4 airs The Omen, a film depicting the Antichrist, at 10.30pm.[96][97] This leads to six viewer complaints that its scheduling on Christmas Day was in poor taste, and the Broadcasting Standards Commission later agrees with this sentiment.[98] However, the ruling in May 1999 draws criticism from Channel 4 Chief Executive Michael Jackson, who describes it as "typical of how the commission fails to get things in proportion" and says he would schedule the film similarly again. 26 December – Great Boxing Day Storm: Severe gale force winds hit Ireland, southern Scotland and northern England. Roads, railways and electricity are disrupted. 29 December – Killing of British tourists in Yemen: Three British tourists are amongst those shot during a gun battle to free them from kidnappers in Yemen. Mathematicians Richard Borcherds and William Timothy Gowers win Fields Medal. The DVD format, first sold in the UK in June this year, sells just over 6,000 discs by the end of the year. 30 December – Provisional viewing figures indicate that BBC One had seven of the top ten most watched programmes over the Christmas weekend. The 28 December episode of EastEnders achieved first place with 15.7m viewers, followed by an episode of Coronation Street from the previous day with 15.1m. The final episode of Men Behaving Badly was watched by 14m viewers. 31 December – An episode of EastEnders in which the character Tiffany Mitchell is killed when she is hit by a car driven by Frank Butcher is watched by 22 million viewers. Television BBC1 20 July – Heartburn Hotel (1998–2000) 14 September - The Royle Family (1998–2000, 2006–2012) Bob the Builder (1998–present) 12 November – Dinnerladies (1998–2000) BBC2 15 January – Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends (1998–2000) 15 February – This Morning with Richard Not Judy (1998–1999) 13 October – Delia's How to Cook (1998–2002) ITV (Including ITV and ITV2) 24 January – Ice Warriors (1998) 6 March – Airline (1998–2006) April – Diggit (1998–2003) 16 May – Don't Try This at Home (1998–2001) 23 June – Cadfael The Holy Thief (1998 Season 4 Episode 1) 29 August – SMTV Live (1998–2003) CD:UK (1998–2006) 4 September – Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (1998–2014) 15 November – Cold Feet (1998–2003) 23 December – Cadfael The Potter's Field (1998) 28 December - Cadfael The Pilgrim of Hate (1998, Season 4 Episode 3, last) Power Rangers Lost Galaxy (1998–1999) Channel 4 12 April – Scrapheap Challenge (1998–2010) 3 July – So Graham Norton (1998–2002) 30 September – The 11 O'Clock Show (1998–2000) 25 October – T4 (1998–2012) 30 October – Streetmate (1998–2007) Channel 5 2 January – PB Bear and Friends (1998) 4 February – The Pepsi Chart Show (1998–2002) 28 April – Open House with Gloria Hunniford (1998–2003) Nickelodeon UK 23 February – Renford Rejects (1998–2001) Cartoon Network 18 November – The Powerpuff Girls (1998–2005) Charts Number-one singles "Perfect Day" - Various Artists "Never Ever" - All Saints "All Around the World" - Oasis "You Make Me Wanna" - Usher "Doctor Jones" - Aqua "My Heart Will Go On" - Céline Dion "Brimful of Asha" - Cornershop "Frozen" - Madonna "My Heart Will Go On" - Céline Dion "It's Like That" - Run DMC vs Jason Nevins "All That I Need" - Boyzone "Under The Bridge / Lady Marmalade" - All Saints "Turn Back Time" - Aqua "Feel It" - The Tamperer featuring Maya "C'est la Vie" - B*Witched "Three Lions '98" - Baddiel & Skinner and the Lightning Seeds "Because We Want To" - Billie "Freak Me" - Another Level "Deeper Underground" - Jamiroquai "Viva Forever" - Spice Girls "No Matter What" - Boyzone "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next" - Manic Street Preachers "Bootie Call" - All Saints "Millennium" - Robbie Williams "I Want You Back" - Melanie B featuring Missy Elliott "Rollercoaster" - B*Witched "Girlfriend" - Billie "Gym and Tonic" - Spacedust "Believe" - Cher "To You I Belong" - B*Witched "Goodbye" - Spice Girls "Chocolate Salty Balls" - Chef -
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Link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/20654194@N07/18297619352/
Resource type: Image
Added by: Peter Smith
Last modified: 6 years, 10 months ago
Viewed: 738 times
Picture Taken: 2015-05-31T12:28:52 -
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