Television in 1936


The user comment by sbibb1 says that television was experimental in 1936 when in fact it was very advanced. The BBC's television service was previewed for the public in August 1936 and began regular transmission from November.

Anyway, I agree it's definitely not a science-fiction film!

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I heard its being remade as "The Amazing Malpigian Tubules". Hope the dance numbers get made,too.

Nothing is more beautiful than nothing.

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TV was actually invented in the 20s and around for this and that in the 30's in the US for the very few people who had TVs. Big time network rollout of TV got held up by World War 2.

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Sure did - invented in Scotland by John Logie Baird, there were in fact about 400 receiving sets in Britain at the start of WW2 in 1939. The invention of radar, by another Scotsman, necessitated the use of televison broadcasting towers, and the braodcasting was switched off for the duration of the Battle of Britain, as indeed the rest of the war. Radar, or as it was known the Radio Direction Finding (RDF) was a crucial element in allowing the Royal Air Force to see Luftwaffe raids building up over France, then heading for Britain.

Germany itself had a version of radar, but nowhere near advanced as British RDF.

Had Germany proceeded directly across the Channel after Dunkirk, television and radar would have fallen into Hitler's hands, probably enabling a German victory.

The Germans didn't know what the towers were for, and by the time they had realised the importance, it was too late.

Thankfully.

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I take it that SF was once among the categories for this film. If so it has been amended now. Comedy and Crime and Drama are the genres currently given. Which are about right in equal measures.

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