Amazing facts-Britain's oldest colour television

Britain's oldest colour telly 'still going strong' 42 years on, says 69-year-old owner
By Luke Salked

For 42 years Derek Wills has had the same television – and not once has he had to call out the repair man.

The 22 inch TV was among the first colour sets in Britain. Indeed, with an infra-red remote it was the last word in home entertainment.

The set has weathered the video age, the arrival of DVDs, satellite, cable and digital and not once has it so much as blinked.





Mr Wills has watched everything from the first man walking on the moon to the fall of the Berlin Wall to England's 2005 Ashes victory on his trusty 42-year-old telly

It may be the oldest working colour TV in Britain but, says 69-year-old Mr Wills, the picture is still so good that only HD TV betters it.

He bought the set in 1968 for more than £300 so that he could watch the likes of Dixon of Dock Green and Z Cars.

The BBC had only just begun its colour broadcasts in 1967.


Since then, he estimates he has watched as many as 70,000 hours on it, witnessing milestones such as the fall of the Berlin Wall and the freeing of Nelson Mandela, not to mention 11 World Cups.

Mr Wills, a former engineer, said: ‘It was far, far ahead of its time. It’s got a beautiful picture. It takes a Freeview box and gives all the stations. It was a lot of money in those days but it was really good.


‘The neighbours used to come round to see it. We had a great big H aerial on the roof and used to get quite a good signal.

‘Obviously, HD knocks spots off it today, but for its day it was brilliant.