How (TV series)

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How
Also known asHow 2 (1990–2006)
HOW (2020–2022)
GenreEducational
Created by Jack Hargreaves
Directed byGeorge Egan
Angus Wright
Anthony Howard
Chris McMaster
Presented by Fred Dinenage (1966–2022)
Bunty James (1966–1976)
Jon Miller (1966–1981)
Jack Hargreaves (1966–1981)
Dr. Tom Gaskell (1969)
Jill Graham (1969–1970)
Marian Davies (1977–1981)
Gareth Jones (1990–2006)
Carol Vorderman (1990–1998)
Siân Lloyd (1997)
Gail Porter (1999)
Gail McKenna (2000–2006)
Vick Hope (2020–2022)
Sam Homewood (2020–2022)
Frankie Vu (2020–2022)
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons17 (original)
15 (How 2)
2 (revival)
34 (total)
No. of episodes250 (original)
198 (How 2)
20 (revival)
418 (total)
Production
ProducersStephen Wade
Kevin Goldstein-Jackson
Angus Wright
Production locations Southampton Studios (1966–1981)
Maidstone Studios (1990–2006, 2020)
The Bottle Yard Studios (2022)
Running time45 minutes (inc. adverts)
Production companies Southern Television (1966–1981)
Television South (TVS) (1990–1992)
STV Studios (1993–2006)
Lion TV (2004–2006)
Terrific Television (2020–2022) [1]
Original release
Network ITV/CITV
Release22 March 1966 (1966-03-22) –
19 August 1981 (1981-08-19)
21 September 1990 – 1 September 2006
15 November 2020 – 6 May 2022

How (usually stylised as HOW) [2] [3] is a British educational television programme created by Jack Hargreaves. It was produced from 1966 by Southern Television, for which Hargreaves was a presenter and deputy programme controller. [4] It lasted until 1981, when the company lost its franchise to TVS.

Contents

History

How was originally devised by Hargreaves for an audience of adults returning home from the pub. Its aim would be to give facts and demonstrations that could settle arguments or be used as pub tricks. [ citation needed ] A one-off pilot was broadcast at 11.15pm on 22 March 1966, to viewers in the Southern Television area only.

Following the pilot, Hargreaves felt the show might work better in an afternoon slot, aimed at making facts fun for children. [5] At 5.25 pm on Monday 11 April 1966, Southern broadcast the first programme in the series of How, which would continue in a similar format for the next 15 years. Produced in Southern's Southampton studios, it provided answers to questions beginning with the word "How". Each episode began with the presenters all raising one hand and saying "How" simultaneously (mimicking the stereotypical Native American greeting). Topics commonly covered included science, history, mathematics, and simple puzzles. The formula proved so successful that it was soon broadcast by the whole ITV network and given two slots per week.

The show was originally presented by Hargreaves alone. He was joined by Fred Dinenage (1966–1981), Jon Miller (1966–1981), Bunty James (1966–1969 and 1970–1976), Dr. Tom Gaskell (1969), Jill Graham (1969–1970) and Marian Davies (1977–1981). Occasional stand-ins for Hargreaves included Barry Bucknell. [6]

The series came to an end in 1981 when Southern Television lost its ITV franchise. The majority of episodes no longer exist. [7]

Transmission guide

Original How (1966–1981)

How 2 (1990–2006)

HOW (revival) (2020–2022)

Revival

In 1990, the series was revived as How 2 by TVS. Presenter Fred Dinenage returned, accompanied by Gareth Jones, Carol Vorderman, Gail McKenna and Sian Lloyd. This show aired on Children's ITV (known as CiTV) and ran for 16 years, until 2006. [8]

In 2019, How 2 was made available on Amazon Prime Video in the UK. [9]

Also in 2019, the CITV channel commissioned a further revival of the format. [10] Due for air November 2020, with Fred Dinenage making his second return to the series franchise, alongside a new team of Vick Hope, Sam Homewood and Frankie Vu. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Hargreaves</span> Journalist and broadcaster

Jack Hargreaves OBE, full name John Herbert Hargreaves, was an English television presenter and writer whose enduring interest was to comment without nostalgia or sentimentality on accelerating distortions in relations between the city and the countryside, seeking – in entertaining ways – to question and rebut metropolitan assumptions about its character and function. Hargreaves is remembered for appearing on How, a children's programme which he also conceived, about how things worked or ought to work. It ran from 1966 on Southern Television and networked on ITV until the demise of Southern in 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred Dinenage</span> British television presenter and author (born 1942)

Frederick Edgar Dinenage is a British author, broadcaster and television presenter. His television career has spanned nearly 60 years, including the long-running children's programme How and ITV's regional programming in the south of England. Dinenage retired from presenting regional news on ITV Meridian on 16 December 2021, after 38 years as a news anchor.

How 2 is an informative educational programme produced by TVS between 1990 and 1991, and STV Studios from 1992 to 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CITV</span> British free-to-air TV channel for children

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Bunty Gunn is a former British television presenter who is best known for her appearances on the educational children's television science programme How in the 1960s and 1970s with Jack Hargreaves, Jon Miller and Fred Dinenage.

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References

  1. ↑ "How – Terrific TV".
  2. ↑ "HOW – Watch episodes".
  3. ↑ "Watch CITV live".
  4. ↑ Sheridan, Simon (2004). The A-Z of Classic Children's Television: From Alberto Frog to Zebedee. Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. pp. 131–134. ISBN   1903111277.
  5. ↑ "Jon Miller: Boffin presenter of 'How'". The Independent. 6 August 2008.
  6. ↑ "How!". TV Cream.
  7. ↑ "How". Lostshows. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  8. ↑ "How / How 2 (1967–81, 1990–)". BFI Screenonline. 2003–14. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  9. ↑ "Watch How 2 | Prime Video". www.amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
  10. ↑ "Young Audiences Content Fund announces first slate". Kidscreen. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  11. ↑ "The new HOW presenters are…". Press Centre. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
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