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Ferguson 14" TV set, 1950s
| Although this Ferguson is (I think) the 1956 model, the set my father hired in 1953 was almost identical to look at. It had simpler knobs, though. It could only receive one channel (BBC), but that was the only channel there was to receive. When ITV started a year or two later, the set had to go back to the shop (Janes & Adams in Barnet High Street) to have a 'converter' fitted. To get ITV, you had to switch on the converter, which was mounted on the back of the set. The set was horribly temperamental after the converter was fitted, and often had to be thumped to make it work properly. In fact TV sets in general went wrong very frequently, which is why most people chose to hire rather than buy. The hire shop would send a mechanic straight away if the set went so wrong that thumping wouldn't do the trick. |