Teletext

Digital text was found mainly in standalone computers until 1971, when it was experimentally inserted into the vertical blanking interval, a TV equivalent of the lines between film frames. Teletext, as it was called, went into development at the BBC and included mosaic characters for drawing, in a choice of eight colours. It was launched to the public as Ceefax on 23 September 1974. Broadcasters the world over adopted the same system – here are examples from the various channels’ teletext services.

A few choice cuts from the teletext services above.