zombie84 said:

I wonder then, given the pretty big red shift, does this date to 1980, or was it a print that repertoire cinema had or a private collector had that dates maybe to the mid-80s instead? Print pinkness is a sign of aging and shouldn't be there if it is 1980. I just assumed it was some weird video transfer thing that happened, but you may be on to something.

I believe I bought this as early as 1982. My website originally said 1984, but I realized I had this at least a year before Jedi was released. We got our first Beta machine in 1980, so 1982 sounded about right. (I've been confusing a lot of dates lately, though.)

I don't know if the particular colours on my copy relate to the print used or the duplicating done in the day. There is no way of telling how far removed my tape is from the master. To my eyes, all colours seem equally boosted. They don't look like the red shift I see in my Super8s or 16mm reels. For all we know, the telecine was done the first week of release in the UK, but your theory holds merit.