The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen regional and national centres in the UK, as well as a branch in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

History

The group was formed as the Television Society on 7 September 1927, a time when television was still in its experimental stage. Regular high-definition (then defined as at least 200 lines) broadcasts did not even begin for another nine years until the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

began its transmissions from

Alexandra Palace Alexandra Palace is an entertainment and sports venue in North London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. A listed building, Grade II listed building, it is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and th ...

in 1936. In addition to serving as a forum for scientists and engineers, the society published regular newsletters charting the development of the new medium. These documents now form important historical records of the early history of television broadcasting. The society was granted its Royal title in 1966. The

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

became patron of the Society in November 1997.

Activities

The society regularly holds meetings and seminars, attended by members of the public and professionals from various areas of the

television industry Television (TV) is a telecommunications, telecommunication media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of signal transmission, ...

, and it also publishes the monthly magazine ''Television'', covering a broad range of television topics. Major events held by the RTS include the biennial RTS Cambridge Convention, a three-day event held at

King's College, Cambridge King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...

. The convention, chaired by one of the UK's major broadcasters, brings together influential figures from the television industry for a series of stimulating talks. The RTS also hosts "Anatomy of a Hit" events, which gather together the writers, cast and commissioner of some of Britain's most successful TV shows to discuss their qualities. Recent programmes discussed have included '' Sherlock'', ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'', and ''

Humans Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

''. The society also holds a substantial archive of printed, photographic, and audio-visual material of value to television historians and scholars.

Awards

Each year, the Royal Television Society hosts six United Kingdom wide national award ceremonies, as well as 21 regional award ceremonies, as of 2024, across 14 nations and regions in the

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National Awards

RTS Programme Awards The Royal Television Society Programme Awards, (often referred to as the RTS Awards) seek to recognise programmes or individuals who have made a positive and material contribution to their genre: either because their content or originality in for ...

* RTS Craft & Design Awards *RTS Television Journalism Awards *RTS Student Television Awards, in addition to regional student awards shown in next section *RTS Young Technologist Awards, given to those seen as potential future leaders in broadcasting technology *RTS Pilgrim Awards, acknowledging the outstanding work of RTS volunteers

Regional Awards

RTS Futures

RTS Futures was launched in 2007 to help people in the early stages of their television careers. RTS Futures offers the opportunity to meet with senior industry professionals, such as series producers and commissioners, as well as their peers in the television industry. RTS Futures hosts a wide range of talks and training sessions aimed at helping young people progress in the business. Recent events have included How to be the Best Researcher and the RTS Futures Entry Level Training Fair.

Presidents of the Society

There have been 19 presidents of the Society, from its founding in 1927 through to 2016; since October 2016, the position has been left vacant.

Notelist

References

External links

* {{Media in the United Kingdom, comporg 1927 establishments in the United Kingdom British television awards Educational charities based in the United Kingdom Organisations based in the City of London Organizations established in 1927 Television organisations in the United Kingdom