Quiet Week-End

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32395, 7 September 1970, Page 3

Quiet Week-End

There was very little in the television programmes on Friday and Saturday evenings to persuade the average viewer he was on a good thing. Two films, of no great quality, and some very familiar fare filled in these two evenings, with the introduction of “Personality Squares” as a replacement for “Catchword,” and the finals of the $lOOO talent contest “Musiquest ’7O” about the only new subjects of note. On Friday night there was a quarter-hour with the members of the New Zealand Maori Theatre, in Moscow. Inai Te Wiata is always worth hearing, no matter how light his choice of item, and there was some most attractive group singing. But the members of the company interviewed on their impressions of Moscow did not do very much better than the average citizen stopped by an N.Z.B.C. reporter in the street and asked, who, for instance, was likely to win the next British election. “Personality Squares” gives a great deal of scope for amusing nonsense, much as the famous radio “My Word” programme used to do. Several of the nine personalities there to offer information (true or false?) to contestants made use of this opportunity. It was a bright enough show, run by Les Andrews, a confident and cheerful compere.

■ tator in South Africa—is “in i the game.” It is always “no i score yet in the game” or i “fifteen minutes gone in the 1 game.” As the occasional : variation, this phrase, and the other, are acceptable. But i no-one actually feeds a scrum, • and very nearly everyone ' realises that “no score yet” ■ refers to the account of the ’ match being broadcast. Having opened up the ! whole wide world of pet hates, a brief reference to “Bracki en’s World.” We only saw a ■ few minutes of the start, this I time, followed by the last 10 . minutes or so, having i switched on again in preparai tion for the feature film. It i becomes increasingly hard to : understand just why this rub- - bish is on at all, let alone on • Saturday evening. One can i understand that there is a ’ shortage of television mai terial available for purchase, ■ and that just about all the t imported programmes, good , or bad, hold high ratings : overseas and are therefore allegedly the best available. i But the inclusion of “Brae- • ken’s World” on N.Z.B.C. proj grammes is an insult. ; They allowed viewers a . little glimpse of the delights ; ahead in the next episode, i And it seems that some sweet i little starlet is to be organised into a sort of call-girl role, to further her career; ’by her mother. We can . hardly wait.—PANDORA.

“Musiquest,” in which the standard of performance was a little below that of other recent musical programmes, was not improved by a further display of determined gaiety by Pete Sinclair. To this viewer, Peter Sinclair is a reasonable sort of front man. But the moment the credit lines call him Pete, we are all in for another demonstration of what a marvellous time everyone is having. The contest was won by ‘The Wayfarers,” a group which sang “Leaving On A Jet Plane,” and it was a pity that this number was chosen by two of the finalists. There was a further reminder on Saturday night of the good quality of the Rugby films made at Lancaster Park. Rugby football from CHTV3 is probably of better quality than that shown elsewhere. The commentaries are sound and useful. But constant repetition will kill the most felicitous phrase; and “feeding the scrum” does not even begin with that advantage. When it is used every time the ball is put into a scrum, it becomes very wearisome indeed. Another beloved also of the N.Z.B.C. commen-

CHTV3 2.00: Headline news. 2.03: Man Alive “Panto.” Documentary (Repeat). 2.53: Something Special “Morey Amsterdam" (Repeat). 3.23: Petticoat Junction. Comedy. 3.47: Pride and Prejudice “Pride.” Second of six parts. 4.12: Transtel Magazine. 4.22: The Herbs (Puppets). 4.36: Carrot Top’s Song Book. 5.06: H. R. Pufnstuf ‘The Magic Path.” (New series). 5.27: Partners in View. 5.42: Headline news, weather. 5.45: Sexton Blake “The Great Soccer Mystery." Last of three parts. Detective. 6.10: Mad Movies. 6.36: Price to Play. Music. 7.00: Network news. 7.15: Weather. The South Tonight. 7.35: The Governor and J.J. “The Second First Lady.” (Dan Dailey, Julie Sommars, Neva Patterson, James Callaghan). Comedy (New series). 8.00: Sherlock Holmes “The Blue Carbuncle.” Detective. (Final). 8.49: Grandstand. Sport. 9.14: Newsbrief. 9.16: Beggar My Neighbour “My Fair Harry Butt.” Comedy. 9.45: Thirty-Minute Theatre “Invasion.” 10.16: Rugby International Third test, N.Z. v. South Africa, first half. 11.01: Late news, weather. 11.08: Rugby, second half.

NATIONAL LINK [lncluding 3YA, Christchurch (690 kilocycles); 2YA, Wellington (570 kilocycles); 4YA, Dunedin (780 kilocycles); and 3YZ. Greymouth (920 kilocycles).) 7 p.m.: N.Z.B.C. Sporting Service. 7.7: Viva Espana. 7.30: Thanks for the Memory. 8.0: Rhythm on Record. 8.30: Weather and News. 9.0: Thunder Rock. 10.30: N.Z.B.C. News, Comment, Weather. 10.45: Blood Sport. 11.0: 8.8. C. News and Commentary. 11.15: Indoor Basketball. 12.0: News and Weather. 12.6 a.m.: The Clitheroe Kid. 1.0: Our Country Observed Through Sound: South African Broadcasting Corporation feature. 1.25: Rugby: N.Z. v. Gazelles. 4.9: Cabaret Time.

3YC, CHRISTCHURCH (960 kilocycles) 7.5 p.m.: Janet Marslanc (soprano), Owen Jenser (piano), Beethoven: . Si> Sacred Songs, Op. 48 Knowest thou the land? 7.42 Boyce: Symphony No. 3 in C —Wuerttemberg Chambei Orchestra under Joerj Faerber. 7.30: Astronomj Today. 7.45: Brahms: Inter mezzi in B minor; E minor C major; Rhapsody in E flat Op. 119—Stephen Bishof (piano). 8.0: Music of Aus tralia. (1) Alfred Hill (1870

1960): Green Water—Sydney Symphony Orchestra under Sir Eugene Goossens (Reader, Alistair Duncan). A talk about Hill by Andrew D. McCredie precedes the music. 8.18: Prokofiev: Fleeting Visions, Op. 22 (trans. Barshai) —Moscow Chamber Orchestra under Rudolf Barshai. 8.34: Britten: Songs and Proverbs of William Blake— Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (baritone), Benjamin Britten (piano). 9.0: Tel Aviv Quartet. Joseph Tai: Quartet No. 1. Haydn: Quartet Op. 74, No. 2. 10.0: Henry Wood Promenade Concert. Walton: Partita (1958). Sibelius: Symphony No. 3 in C, Op. 52 (1907)—Halle Orchestra under Sir John Barbirolli (8.8. C.

3ZB, CHRISTCHURCH (1100 kilocycles) 8.2 p.m.: Take It From i Here. 8.30: Stump the Brains Trust. 9/2: Frontline for Students. 10.30: Till the Midnight Hour. 3ZM, CHRISTCHURCH (1400 kilocycles) ; 7.30 p.m.: Canterbury Re- ' quests. 8.30: Food For ■ Thought. 9.0: The Springtime—lt Brings on the , Shearing. 9.30: Franz Wink- ' ler Quartet and Ricardo ■ Santos. 10.0: From the Top ■ Pops.