This blog was first posted by @Babe_TV on their Tumblr account back on 9th December 2014. And while it focuses mostly on XXXpanded, we know how you babe channel fans love your history, so why not include some stories about the others. And you’ll even notice some familiar names pop up as well.
It’s quite remarkable when you timezap back to the earlier Freeview transmissions from a show you think looks pretty much the same today as when it first hit Channel 180 in January 2013, how much has actually changed. I’m sure most fans will have a strong sense of xxXpanded/Xpanded’s lineup having transitioned very significantly in the interim, but as will be evident in this post, the graphics have evolved a fair bit too. And although some of these images have been enhanced to intensify the more subtle colours, the lighting behind the backdrop has clearly gone through changes over time.
During Xpanded’s 2014 spell on Freeview 182, there’s been a long and consistent adherence to the standard call rate of 46p per minute, finally broken by a rise to 61p from the night of 7th to 8th December. But as the pics in this post verify, in 2013 the prices were much more prone to fluctuation. 61p per minute was one of the rates used on Freeview in 2013, along with 26p, 36p and 46p. It should be noted with regard to the current rate (circa December 2014) that Xxxpanded still doesn’t apply connection charges. Connection charges are not merely charges – they’re ‘security’ for babe channels which expect or fear short calls. Potential callers should think not just about the extra cost connection charges add, but about why a channel might put them there in the first place.
Anyway, the pictures… Heading the post is an image from October 2013 – the second most recent in the selection. It’s a typically smile-inducing lineup, featuring Sophie Hart on the left, Sammie Love in the middle, and a fully blonde Elise Evans on the right. (PICS UNAVAILABLE) Sammie is still appearing on Xpanded’s Freeview shows as I write in December 2014. Sophie moved to Babestation in early May 2014 and has proved a very good addition to their lineup, bringing strong presenting skills as well as the range of attributes which effectively made her the face of xxXpanded TV. Elise is unfortunately no longer working the babe channels.
Some of the most memorable names from xxXpanded in 2013 are seen in the above compilation. It’s a compilation which shows at a glance that xxXpanded easily rivalled the big, ‘premium babe channels’ for glamour quality. At the top, another look at Sophie Hart. Middle left is Lily Rose, who’s continued as a long-serving Xpanded girl, and fronts a non-live, early morning FlirtXchange Freeview ad. Middle right, Candy, who needs no introduction on this site, and who happily, as I write, has just returned to the Freeview show. The bottom pic shows another familiar face – that of the ever-vivacious and expressive Hazel Bond.
The above pic comes from very early in the Channel 180 run, deep in the winter of 2013, and shows the original 26p per minute introductory rate, which was rationed in one-hour periods dubbed Happy Hours.
Lenni has been away from the babe channels for a while, but she’s currently the profile pic girl on the Xxxpanded Twitter account, and has continued to work the cam services during her absence from Freeview. In the above pic from autumn 2013 the former Babestation babe is seen on a solo section, complete with an unusual bright red bed sheet, which transforms the look of the xxXpanded set.
And finally, back to the formative Channel 180 broadcasts of early 2013 for a great memory of Lizzy James seducing callers into action.
