About this season
A long-running ITV arts and culture series that aired from 1961 to 1968, Tempo was a landmark British television programme dedicated to the performing and visual arts. With a flexible magazine format and an open editorial remit, the series explored cinema, music, dance, photography, literature, theatre, and contemporary cultural life. Combining intellectual ambition with accessible presentation, Tempo established a model for serious arts broadcasting on commercial television and laid the groundwork for later landmark programmes such as Aquarius and The South Bank Show.
Episodes (20)
1. Mods and Rockers
Aired 8 March 1964 • 30 min
Mods and Rockers is a dance created by Peter Darrell for the Western Theatre Ballet based on the music of the Beatles.
2. A Dialogue of Actors
Aired 22 March 1964 • 30 min
3. Postscript to the Ballet
Aired 5 April 1964 • 30 min
4. A Wind of Change: The Art of Franco Zeffirelli
Aired 12 April 1964 • 30 min
5. A Vision of England
Aired 3 May 1964 • 30 min
The Great Shakespeare Exhibition at Stratford-upon-Avon takes you back to 23 April 1564, the day of the poet's birth.
6. The Mime of Jacques Lecoq
Aired 24 May 1964 • 30 min
7. The Christopher Marlowe Murder Mystery
Aired 31 May 1964 • 30 min
8. Crime to Remember
Aired 14 June 1946 • 30 min
Songs, recitations, and Victorian melodrama are used for a series of vignettes on aspects of crime. From the righteous to the romantic and ultimately, the repellent.
9. Ice Shows
Aired 12 July 1964 • 30 min
10. Odetta
Aired 19 July 1964 • 30 min
A profile of the American blues singer Odetta.
11. Some of These Days
Aired 16 August 1964 • 30 min
A profile on Russian-American singer Sophie Tucker.
12. Two-Handers
Aired 23 August 1964 • 30 min
13. A Star of India
Aired 30 August 1964 • 30 min
14. The Prince Maker
Aired 13 September 1964 • 30 min
15. More Minim
Aired 20 September 1964 • 30 min
The South African cast of the 'Wait a Minim' theatre show bring their sparkle and zest for life to the small screen.
16. The Making of a Musical
Aired 10 October 1964 • 30 min
A behind the scenes look at a production of the musical Maggie May.
17. The Music Ladder
Aired 14 November 1964 • 30 min
18. A Man of Runnymede
Aired 22 November 1963 • 30 min
Looking back on the past year since John F. Kennedy was assassinated.
19. The Blues Came Walkin': Part 1
Aired 6 December 1964 • 30 min
20. The Blues Came Walkin': Part 2
Aired 13 December 1964 • 30 min