This is a timeline of the notable events in the televising of snooker in the United Kingdom.

1930s

YearDateEvent
1937 14 April An exhibition match between Horace Lindrum and Willie Smith is shown on the BBC.[1]

1950s

YearDateEvent
1950 8 September First outside broadcast of snooker: Joe Davis against Walter Lindrum at Leicester Square Hall.[2]
1953 27 March The BBC shows a 30-minute programme of the final of the World Snooker Championship.[3]
1955 18 March The BBC shows a 30-minute programme featuring coverage of the final of the 1955 World Snooker Championship.[4]

1960s

YearDateEvent
1960 28 November One hour of the final of the amateur All-England Pairs Championship is shown live on Midland ITV. Mark Wildman and George Gibson defeat John Price and Cliff Wilson 3–1.[5][6]
1962 The 1962–63 Television Tournament is shown on ITV.[7][8]
1964 The 1964 Television Tournament is shown on ITV.[9]
There is live coverage of the Northern section of the 1964 English Amateur Championship.[10] John Spencer defeats George Scott.[11]
1965 The final Television Tournament takes place and again it is covered by ITV.[12]
1968 8 September The Sunday Times publishes the article "Great TV Snooker Frame-up", exposing the fixing of non-tournament televised matches for "the artificial production of climaxes".[13]
1969 23 July Snooker tournament Pot Black launches on BBC Two. It is used as a way of showcasing colour television which has recently launched on the channel.[14]

1970s

YearDateEvent
1971 & 1972 Highlights of the four Park Drive 2000 tournaments are shown on Grandstand.[10]
1973 21 & 28 April The BBC covers the World Snooker Championship, albeit in very limited form with coverage restricted to a semi-final (21st) and the final (28th) and is broadcast during the Saturday afternoon Grandstand programme.[15][16]
Highlights of the 1973 Norwich Union Open are shown on an edition of World of Sport.[10]
1974 20 & 27 April The BBC covers the 1974 World Snooker Championship. Coverage is identical to the previous year with brief coverage during Grandstand.[17]
1974 Norwich Union Open highlights are shown on an edition of World of Sport.[10]
1975 18 January The BBC shows recorded coverage of the final frames of the inaugural Masters. It is broadcast during Grandstand one day after the tournament ends.[18]
1976 The BBC covers the 1976 World Snooker Championship and once again, coverage is broadcast during Grandstand.
1977 28–30 April BBC TV coverage for the first Crucible championship increases slightly but is still limited to highlights of the semi-finals and some coverage of the final on Grandstand and in an additional late night highlights programme.[19]
3 December The BBC shows coverage of the final of the first UK Championship, on BBC One's Grandstand programme.[20] The BBC has broadcast the event ever since, gradually increasing its coverage over the years.
24 December ITV's World of Sport shows highlights from the Dry Blackthorn Cup.[10]
1978 17–29 April The BBC shows daily coverage of the World Snooker Championship for the first time; 14 nightly highlights programmes are shown with additional Saturday afternoon coverage on Grandstand.[21]
5 November ITV shows brief highlights of the first Champion of Champions in World of Sport.[22]
30 November – 2 December The BBC extends coverage of the UK Championship with two late-night highlights of the semi-finals before showing the final on Grandstand.
1979 16–28 April TV coverage of the World Championship is extended to include an early-evening "Frame of the Day" programme,[23] as well as live coverage of parts of the final.
20–27 October BBC television shows the inaugural World Cup with daily coverage in the afternoon and evening.

1980s

YearDateEvent
1980 7–9 February The BBC extends coverage of the Masters event and airs coverage of two quarter-finals, the semi-finals and the final.
22 April – 5 May The BBC shows daily live coverage of the World Snooker Championship for the first time.[24]
22–29 November The BBC shows daily coverage of the second week of the UK Championship for the first time.
1981 29 January – 1 February The BBC adds an extra day of coverage of the Masters with all quarter-finals being shown alongside live and recorded coverage of the final on the day that it is played.
4–7 March ITV shows coverage of the first Yamaha Organs Trophy (which later becomes known as the British Open, with ITV showing the tournament until 1993). The coverage has three daily highlights programmes and full coverage of the final on Saturday.
14–20 September ITV shows another new event, the Jameson International Open, with daily late night highlights lasting the whole week and further coverage at the weekend including the final.
1982 11 January ITV shows the first televised maximum 147 break when Steve Davis achieves it during the Lada Classic.
1–7 March The International Masters (previously the Yamaha Organs Trophy) extends to seven days with ITV showing afternoon and evening coverage.
2–10 October The Jameson International Open extends to eight days with daily coverage being shown in the afternoon and late at night.
15–19 December ITV shows the World Doubles Championship. Consequently, both ITV and the BBC are now airing four tournaments per season.
1983 10–16 January The Lada Classic extends to eight days, starting on Sunday 9 January. ITV begins coverage on the second day of the tournament.
1984 22–29 January The BBC shows the entire Masters tournament for the first time.
1985 29 April The 1985 World Snooker Championship final between Steve Davis and Dennis Taylor attracts the largest-ever audience for a BBC Two programme, pulling in 18.5 million viewers at the climax of the match shortly after midnight.
1986 17 April Following the 1986 event, Pot Black is put on hiatus as it is seen as outdated in the world of multiple events being broadcast on both the BBC and ITV.
1988 ITV broadcasts all five editions of the World Matchplay tournament. ITV sees this event as being a replacement for the World Doubles Championship, which it had televised since that tournament began in 1982.[25]
19–27 November The UK Championship slims down to become a nine-day event and the BBC, for the first time, shows live and recorded coverage from each day.

1990s

YearDateEvent
1991 2 September After a five-year break, Pot Black returns.
1993 6 March ITV ends its coverage of snooker after its broadcast of the 1993 British Open. It has previously shown around four events each year.
1999 ITV makes a brief return to snooker when it televises the Champions Cup and the Nations Cup.

2000s

YearDateEvent
2001 19 August ITV's return to snooker broadcasting ends after it shows the 2001 Champions Cup.
2003 Eurosport broadcasts snooker for the first time.[26] The channel goes on to provide extensive coverage of the sport both in the UK and across Europe.
2005 8 January Premier League Snooker is relaunched, with Sky Sports broadcasting the event over a four-month period.
29 October Pot Black returns as a one-day tournament and is broadcast on the BBC's Grandstand. The event features eight players.[14]
2007 6 October Pot Black is held for the final time after three events as a one-day tournament.[14]

2010s

YearDateEvent
2010 October ITV returns to the green baize when it broadcasts coverage of a new tournament called Power Snooker. The following year ITV signs a deal to show the next three events.[27]
2011 28–30 January Sky Sports broadcasts live coverage of the first Snooker Shoot Out.[28] Sky shows the event until 2015.
2013 25 February – 3 March ITV makes a full return to snooker when it signs a deal to broadcast the World Open. This is the first world ranking event ITV has shown for 20 years.[29] It only shows the event once before it moves to Eurosport.
19–24 November ITV expands its snooker coverage when it shows the revived Champion of Champions tournament. Coverage is broadcast on ITV4.[30] It continues to show the tournament to this day.
2016 12–14 February The Snooker Shoot Out transfers to ITV, which shows the next three events.[31]
28 April Eurosport announces that it will continue to show snooker's biggest tournaments for the next ten years with a new deal running until 2026.[26]
Eurosport makes some of its snooker coverage available on free-to-air television when it begins simulcasting coverage on free-to-air channel Quest.[32]
2017 8 December The BBC announces a multi-year extension to its coverage of snooker's "Triple Crown" events meaning that the Masters, UK Championship and World Championship will stay on BBC screens until the end of the 2023/24 season.[33]
2019 21–24 February The Shoot Out moves to Eurosport and Quest.[34]
19–24 March ITV televises a new tournament – the Tour Championship. Consequently, ITV now broadcasts four top snooker tournaments each year with current deals running until 2022.[35]

2020s

YearDateEvent
2020 21–28 July For the first time, Eurosport broadcasts coverage of the qualifying rounds of the World Snooker Championship.[36]
19 August The BBC broadcasts the World Seniors Snooker Championship for the first time.[37]
13 September FreeSports begins showing snooker for the first time with coverage of the first-ever ranking edition of the 2020 Championship League. FreeSports also covered the 2021 tournament. Earlier in the year, ITV4 launched the first sporting event after the pandemic caused a total shutdown of sporting events across the world, with this modified version of the Championship League.
2021 2 July ITV Sport acquires the host broadcasting rights to the revived British Open. Eurosport, which has previously broadcast the tournament in the UK, will continue to show the event for European viewers outside the UK.

References

  1. ↑ "Television". The Observer. 11 April 1937. p. 13.
  2. ↑ "untitled article". Lincolnshire Echo. 9 Sep 1950. p. 6.
  3. ↑ "BBC Two Television – 27 March 1953 – Snooker: World Match Play Championships Final". BBC Genome Project. BBC. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  4. ↑ "BBC Two Television – 18 March 1955 – World Professional Snooker Championship". BBC Genome Project. BBC. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  5. ↑ "Your TV today: Midlands ITV". Daily Mirror. 28 November 1960. p. 16.
  6. ↑ "South wins BA&CC Television Snooker Pairs". Billiards and Snooker. January 1961. p. 11.
  7. ↑ "Television tournament". The Billiard Player. Billiards Association and Control Council. August 1962. p. 15.
  8. ↑ "Barron in ITV snooker tournament semi-final". Cornish Guardian. 10 January 1963. p. 11.
  9. ↑ "BA&CC Amateur Televised (ITV) Invitation Trophy Jonathan Barron beats Mario Berni 4–3 in splendid final". Billiards and Snooker. Billiards Association and Control Council. July 1964. p. 15.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Everton, Clive (1985). "Snooker in the Television Age". Snooker: The Records. Enfield: Guinness Superlatives. pp. 6–13. ISBN 978-0-85112-448-3.
  11. ↑ "The English Amateur Championship". Billiards and Snooker. April 1964. p. 3.
  12. ↑ "1965 championships". Billiards and Snooker. May 1965. p. 16.
  13. ↑ Everton, Clive. "Television snooker". Billiards and Snooker. pp. 3–4.
  14. 1 2 3 "Pot Black". UKGameshows.com. Retrieved 17 May 2010.
  15. ↑ BBC Genome Project - BBC1 listings 21 April 1973
  16. ↑ BBC Genome Project - BBC1 listings 28 April 1973
  17. ↑ BBC Genome Project - BBC1 listings 20 April 1974
  18. ↑ BBC Programme Index - BBC1 listings 18 January 1975
  19. ↑ "BBC Two Television – 29 April 1977 – Snooker". BBC Genome Project. BBC. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  20. ↑ "Saturday TV". The Times (London). 3 December 1977. p. 10 – via The Times Digital Archive. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  21. ↑ "BBC Two Television – 17 April 1978 – Snooker". BBC Genome Project. BBC. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  22. ↑ "Weekend broadcasting – Personal choice". The Times. 5 November 1978. p. 11.
  23. ↑ "BBC Two Television – 16 April 1979 – Snooker". BBC Genome Project. BBC. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  24. ↑ "BBC Two Television – 22 April 1980 – Snooker". BBC Genome Project. BBC. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  25. ↑ Turner, Chris. "World Matchplay". cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk. Chris Turner's Snooker Archive. Archived from the original on 28 February 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2011.
  26. 1 2 Eurosport pots 10-year deal with World Snooker
  27. ↑ ITV4 pots multi-yearn Power Snooker deal
  28. ↑ "Sky to televise World Snooker Shoot-Out". worldsnooker.com. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 17 May 2010. Retrieved 18 May 2010.
  29. ↑ "SNOOKER: ITV4 to screen 2013 Haikou World Open". 19 February 2013.
  30. ↑ ITV to screen Champion of Champions event
  31. ↑ "ITV4 To Televise Snooker Shoot-Out". World Snooker. 2015-08-14. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  32. ↑ China Open to be broadcast live on Quest
  33. ↑ BBC retains World Snooker 'Triple Crown' rights to 2024
  34. ↑ "Snooker Shoot Out Here To Stay As Eurosport And Quest Agree To Take Over As Host Broadcaster". World Snooker. 2018-04-30. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  35. ↑ ITV extends World Snooker Tour deal to 2022
  36. ↑ Eurosport to show World Snooker Championship qualifying
  37. ↑ SOTB (2020-08-18). "BBC to broadcast World Seniors Snooker Championship". Sport on the Box. Retrieved 2020-12-08.
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