Match of the Day has been a staple of British television since it first aired in 1964. In fact, the soccer highlights show holds the Guinness World Record for the longest running soccer television show in the world. . The BBC have posted footage from their archives on YouTube, offering a fascinating glimpse into the making of Match of the Day in 1974.
It follows the production of a match between West Ham United and Liverpool at London’s Boleyn Ground for the finale of the 1974 league season. The footage takes viewers inside camera nests, the commentary box and the vans of production at the stadium as well as the studio, as 90 minutes of game action is converted into around 25 minutes of highlights for broadcast.
Match of the Day 1974
As well as behind-the-scenes exposure, we caught some fun glimpses of the match-day atmosphere at Upton Park. There are shots of both sets of supporters making their way to the ground, signing in the stands, and West Ham goalkeeper Mervyn Day making a brilliant save on Alec Lindsay’s PK attempt.
After the game, the editing work on the images for the night’s broadcast is shown. Amid the thumping sound of typewriters blaring in the background, the studio team is picking highlights to present with relatively new slow-motion playback technology, positioning the cameras, setting up screen overlays, and rehearsing the script with the host. Jimmy Hill. The clip closes as the show’s delicious theme song plays and the show goes live.
It’s a short watch, just under 15 minutes. And since a good deal of the footage is shown without modern narration, it acts as a fun little window into the world of classic early-to-mid-’70s football and sports TV production in the UK. You can view the full mini-doc below:
