Alexandra Palace marks 90 years since television began there with a free East Court display from 19 September, twelve dated events and a plaque on 2 November.
Alexandra Palace has published the full programme for its season marking 90 years since television broadcasting began there, and the centrepiece is free.
A display called BBC TV 90 at Ally Pally opens in the East Court on Saturday 19 September and runs until Monday 30 November. It is open daily from 9am to 5pm, costs nothing and needs no booking. The Palace says it uses archive imagery to set out the people, programmes and technology behind the early years of television on the hill.
Around it sit twelve dated events between now and late November, listed on the Palace’s own BBC TV 90 programme page. Most are ticketed. One, on the anniversary itself, is free.
Why the date matters
On 2 November 1936, the presenter Leslie Mitchell opened the evening with the line “This is direct television from the studios at Alexandra Palace.” The Palace describes that broadcast as the launch of the world’s first regular public high-definition television service.
The BBC had moved into the building the year before, in 1935. The site held far more than a transmitter. In its account of the anniversary, published on 20 August, the Palace lists what was here:
- television studios
- BBC offices and dressing rooms
- scenery stores, props and technical facilities
- a fleet of BBC broadcast vehicles, parked in the East Court
The two September talks
These are the first things you can book. Both are in the Creativity Pavilion, and both open their doors at 13:45.
| Date | Event | Times |
|---|---|---|
| Sun 20 Sept | Young Man with Ideas: Dallas Bower and the 1937 Television Demonstration Film | 14:00 to 16:00 |
| Sun 27 Sept | Pioneering Women in Early Television, with Dr Kate Murphy | 14:00 to 15:00 |
The 20 September event pairs the film historian Ian Christie, Emeritus Professor of Film and Media History at Birkbeck, with Lisa Kerrigan, Senior Curator of Television at the BFI National Archive. It includes a screening of the BBC’s 1937 Television Demonstration Film. The Palace explains what that film was for: it went out at 11am each day so television retailers could demonstrate sets to customers.
The 27 September talk is given by Dr Kate Murphy, who worked at the BBC for 24 years, mostly on Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. Her subject is the women who were in television from the start, in production, make-up, wardrobe and as the BBC’s first on-screen announcers. The Palace singles out the producer Mary Adams, who moved from radio to television in 1937 and was paid more than all the newly recruited male producers.
October and November
- Thu 1 Oct: The Pre-War Popularity of Picture Page
- Fri 2 Oct: SUMMIT Ally Pally, the roof walk, at an anniversary price
- Sun 4 Oct: Who Was Seen?
- Thu 8 Oct: Eurovision at 70
- Sun 18 Oct: Did Television Transmission Help Win The War?
- Wed 21 Oct: Rhythm Stick Club Night, Live From Ally Pally
- Thu 22 Oct: Watch with Mother: Trailblazing Children’s Television
- Mon 2 Nov: APTS: Desmond Campbell, Behind the Scenes of Early TV
- Mon 2 Nov: World Origin Site plaque unveiling, free
- Wed 18 to Thu 19 Nov: What Are You Looking At?
The roof walk has an anniversary price and a code
SUMMIT Ally Pally, the walk across the Palace roof beside the transmitter mast, is being sold on Friday 2 October at £19.36 for adults and £15.40 for children. The adult price is a nod to 1936. The Palace says you need the discount code BBCTV90 at checkout to get it, and that its terms and conditions apply.
2 November: a plaque, and it is free
Ninety years to the day, on Monday 2 November 2026, a World Origin Site plaque will be unveiled in the East Court. The Palace’s programme page lists the unveiling as free. World Origin Site plaques mark places where something of international significance was first invented, discovered or used.
The same day carries a talk from the Alexandra Palace Television Society, whose archive the Palace says is being drawn on across the season, including films shown in public for the first time. The transmitter mast is to be illuminated as part of the celebrations, and new digital exhibitions are going up on Google Arts and Culture.
Two performances round the programme off in November, from the Alexandra Palace Young Actors Company, for ages 16 to 28, and the Ally Pally Ensemble, for over 50s. The Palace says both look at the journey from early television to the digital present.
What it means for you
- The East Court display is free, daily 9am to 5pm, from 19 September to 30 November. No ticket, no booking.
- The talks are ticketed and prices appear at the booking stage on each event page. Both September talks are on a Sunday afternoon.
- For the roof walk on 2 October, use code BBCTV90 or you pay the standard price.
- The 2 November plaque unveiling is free.
- Alexandra Palace is on Alexandra Palace Way, N22 7AY, about a mile north of Crouch End Broadway in a straight line. Our things to do guide covers the park, and our parking page covers what it costs to leave a car locally.
Alexandra Park and Palace Charitable Trust is a registered charity, number 281991. Programme details were taken from the Palace’s own event pages on 1 September 2026. Check them before travelling, because line-ups and times change.
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