First colour Match of the Day: the night BBC1 caught up (1969)
The first colour Match of the Day on BBC1 went out on Saturday 15 November 1969, and it showed Liverpool beating West Ham United 2-0 at Anfield, with goals from Chris Lawler and Bobby Graham in front of 39,668. It aired on the very night BBC1 switched to a full colour service, so the football and the channel turned colour together.
It was the first colour football on Britain’s main channel, though not the earliest anywhere on television: BBC2 had been broadcasting in colour for more than two years by then.
Key Facts
- Liverpool 2-0 West Ham United, First Division, at Anfield on Saturday 15 November 1969, attendance 39,668.
- Chris Lawler opened the scoring on 27 minutes and Bobby Graham added the second on 60 minutes; half-time was Liverpool 1-0 West Ham.
- The broadcast went out the same night BBC1 launched its full colour service, 15 November 1969.
- BBC2 had already carried colour since 1 July 1967, more than two years earlier.
- West Ham’s line-up included Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst, Trevor Brooking and a 22-year-old Harry Redknapp.
- Steve Peplow made his Liverpool debut in this match; Bill Shankly managed the hosts, Ron Greenwood the visitors.
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The match the country saw in colour
The fixture that carried the moment was an ordinary First Division Saturday. Liverpool beat West Ham United 2-0 at Anfield, kicking off at 15:00 on 15 November 1969, and led 1-0 at half-time. Chris Lawler put the hosts ahead on 27 minutes, set up by Bobby Graham, and Graham himself made it 2-0 on 60 minutes from a Tommy Smith pass. The attendance was 39,668.
The team sheets are the reason the footage is worth watching. Bill Shankly’s Liverpool were mid-rebuild, with Ian St John, Emlyn Hughes and Ian Callaghan in the side and the young Steve Peplow handed his debut. Ron Greenwood’s West Ham brought two of England’s 1966 World Cup winners to Anfield in Bobby Moore and Geoff Hurst, alongside Trevor Brooking, Billy Bonds and a 22-year-old Harry Redknapp. A viewer switching on a colour set for the first time was looking at a good chunk of the England side that had won the World Cup three years before.
| Minute | Scorer | Assist | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27′ | Chris Lawler | Bobby Graham | Liverpool 1-0 West Ham |
| 60′ | Bobby Graham | Tommy Smith | Liverpool 2-0 West Ham |
Why it was the first colour Match of the Day, but only on BBC1
The first colour Match of the Day on the main channel
BBC1 launched its full colour service on 15 November 1969, the same day as this match, and Match of the Day was among the shows it carried in colour that day. So the accurate line is that this was the first colour football on BBC1, the main channel, not the first anywhere on British television. BBC2 had a head start of more than two years.
BBC2 launched colour to the British public on 1 July 1967, opening with the Wimbledon tennis, which made it Europe’s first colour channel. For more than two years, only BBC2 carried colour while BBC1 stayed in black and white. Match of the Day sat on BBC1 for most of that period, which is exactly why its main-channel colour debut had to wait until the 1969 switchover.
The Stamford Bridge edition that came first
There was an earlier colour edition, and it went out on BBC2. The first colour Match of the Day aired on 2 November 1968, showing Chelsea against Manchester City. BBC2 had colour from mid-1967, so a colour edition on that channel in late 1968 followed naturally, whereas BBC1 could not have managed one before its own 1969 switch.
The distinction is easy to lose because the 15 November 1969 programme genuinely was a big night for most viewers. The great majority of the audience watched BBC1, not BBC2, so for them this Liverpool win really was the first football they had ever seen in colour at home. All three things are true at once. It was the first colour Match of the Day on BBC1, the first colour football for nearly everyone watching, and the second colour edition of the programme overall.
A Liverpool bookend, five years on
There is a tidy symmetry in the choice of match. The very first Match of the Day of all, on 22 August 1964, also featured Liverpool, a 3-2 win over Arsenal at Anfield presented by Kenneth Wolstenholme, who opened by telling viewers they were “in Beatleville” for the match. Roger Hunt scored the first goal the programme ever showed. Five years later the same club, the same ground and the same Shankly were on screen again as the show made its colour bow on BBC1. Whether the BBC planned that echo or simply drew Anfield twice is impossible to say.
READ MORE: More football firsts, dated and checked, in our On This Day series →
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About the First Colour Match of the Day
When was the first colour Match of the Day on BBC1?
The first colour Match of the Day on BBC1 was broadcast on Saturday 15 November 1969. That was the same day BBC1 launched its full colour service. The programme showed Liverpool beating West Ham United 2-0 at Anfield. It is fair to call it the first colour football on Britain’s main channel, but not the earliest anywhere on television.
Which match did the first colour Match of the Day on BBC1 show?
It showed Liverpool 2-0 West Ham United, a First Division match at Anfield on 15 November 1969. Chris Lawler scored on 27 minutes and Bobby Graham on 60 minutes. The attendance was 39,668. West Ham’s side that day included Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Trevor Brooking.
Was Liverpool 2-0 West Ham really the first football shown in colour on British television?
No, and this is the common mistake. It was the first colour Match of the Day on BBC1, but BBC2 had been broadcasting in colour since 1 July 1967. An earlier colour edition of the programme had already gone out on BBC2 in 1968. So the correct claim is limited to BBC1, the main channel, rather than television as a whole.
What was the earlier colour Match of the Day, and when did it air?
The first colour Match of the Day aired on 2 November 1968 on BBC2, showing Chelsea against Manchester City. Because BBC2 already had colour from 1967, that edition was possible more than a year before BBC1 turned colour. Either way, BBC2 was showing colour football first.
Why did BBC1 get colour football so much later than BBC2?
BBC2 was the channel Britain used to introduce colour, launching the service on 1 July 1967 with Wimbledon tennis. BBC1 and ITV did not switch to full colour until 15 November 1969. Match of the Day spent that gap on BBC1, so it could not appear in colour on its home channel until the switchover. The 1969 Liverpool match simply happened to be the fixture that fell on the changeover weekend.
Who scored in Liverpool 2-0 West Ham on 15 November 1969?
Chris Lawler and Bobby Graham scored for Liverpool. Lawler struck first on 27 minutes, assisted by Graham, and Graham added the second on 60 minutes from a Tommy Smith pass. West Ham United did not score, and the half-time score was Liverpool 1-0 West Ham. The final result was Liverpool 2-0 West Ham United.
What was the attendance for the 1969 colour Match of the Day fixture?
The attendance at Anfield was 39,668. The match was a First Division fixture played on a Saturday afternoon, with a 15:00 kick-off. The colour cameras filmed for the highlights programme shown that evening.
Did 15 November 1969 mark BBC1 turning colour in general?
Yes. Full colour launched on BBC1 and ITV on 15 November 1969. Match of the Day was among the programmes carried on BBC1’s colour service that opening day. So the football and the channel changed to colour on the same date. That coincidence is why the match is remembered as a broadcast first at all.
Which famous players featured for West Ham that day?
West Ham United fielded Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Trevor Brooking. Moore and Hurst had both started England’s 1966 World Cup final win three years earlier. The side also included Billy Bonds and a young Harry Redknapp. For a first colour outing, it was a line-up stacked with recognisable names.
When did Match of the Day first appear on television at all?
The very first edition of the programme went out on 22 August 1964. It showed Liverpool beating Arsenal 3-2 at Anfield, presented by Kenneth Wolstenholme, with Roger Hunt scoring the first goal ever seen on the show. That original edition went out in black and white, because colour television did not reach Britain until 1967. The colour milestone described here came five years after that debut.
Who managed Liverpool and West Ham in the 1969 match?
Bill Shankly managed Liverpool and Ron Greenwood managed West Ham United. Shankly was in the middle of building his second great Liverpool side, and Steve Peplow made his debut in this match. Greenwood’s West Ham were still built around their 1966 World Cup contingent. Both managers are among the most influential English football figures of the era.
How should you describe this match accurately without overclaiming?
Call it the first colour Match of the Day on BBC1, or the first colour football on the main channel. Avoid calling it the earliest colour football broadcast in Britain, because BBC2 got there first from 1967. For most viewers at home it genuinely was the first they had seen in colour, since the bulk of the audience watched BBC1. Holding those two truths together is the honest way to tell the story.
Where can I check the details of the 1969 Liverpool v West Ham match?
The date, venue, 2-0 score and 39,668 attendance are all firmly documented, along with the scorers, minutes and line-ups. The colour television timeline, from the 1967 BBC2 launch to the 1969 BBC1 switchover, is equally well recorded. The sources behind these details are listed at the foot of this article.
The first colour Match of the Day, in its proper place
Strip away the fond memory and you are left with a solid broadcast first that needs one qualifier to stay true: it belongs to BBC1, not television at large. Liverpool 2-0 West Ham on 15 November 1969 was the colour football the main channel served up on the day it turned colour, five years after the same club opened the programme in black and white. You can trace more dated, checked football firsts through our On This Day series.
Sources: LFChistory, 11v11, National Science and Media Museum, British Online Archives, Comicus, Liverpool FC.
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