From VHS to catch-up: taping the telly
Last looked over: 14 October 2026 · BritCast TV team
British living rooms went from VHS recorders in the late 1970s and 1980s to hard-disc boxes such as Sky+ in 2001, then to catch-up apps like BBC iPlayer. On IPTV, catch-up is offered channel by channel by the source, shown with a clock in the guide, rather than recorded on your own box.
- VHS won the home-video format war against Betamax and Video 2000.
- Sky+ arrived in 2001 and made pausing live TV normal.
- IPTV catch-up depends on each channel's source; not every channel has it.
The video recorder years
Home video recorders arrived in British shops at the end of the 1970s. VHS saw off Betamax and Philips’ Video 2000, and by the mid-80s rental shops stood on every high street. Setting the timer on the recorder was notoriously fiddly; plenty of us came home to a tape of the wrong channel.
Hard discs and pausing live TV
Sky+ launched in 2001 with a hard disc instead of a tape: record two programmes while watching a third, pause live television, and record a whole series at the press of a button. Freeview and Freesat recorders followed.
Catch-up takes over
BBC iPlayer arrived in 2007, and the other broadcasters followed with their own apps. For many households, recording simply stopped being necessary.
Catch-up on IPTV
On an IPTV service, catch-up is provided by the source for each channel and appears as a clock symbol in the guide. Press left in TiviMate or open Catch Up in Smarters to step back through the last few days. Not every channel offers it, and we never promise that one will.