This article was prompted by the Machiavellian thought that by airing in Fusion something really misleading about the activities of the presentation section the so far unpenetrated mystique of our main effort may remain unpenetrated. I must admit that certain sections, notably vision mixers, sound balancers, telecine, VTR, links, MCR and certain production assistants, have a shrewd knowledge of our day-to-day operation, but beyond this club there is such a wide misunderstanding of the role of presentation’s duty team (programme officer, programme officer’s clerk and announcer) that by occasionally letting slip selected phrases like ‘…network considerations … Post Office switch … clock-hour entitlement … electronic cue-dot … George or clean feed …’ we can scare away without much difficulty those people who fondly imagine that the programme officer only has problems at times of breakdown or national crisis. To protect our interests we try to ensure that such people remain in a permanent state of healthy bewilderment about all that goes on in the presentation control room on the first floor at Television House – in fact, to have gone so far as to reveal its location is almost a breach of professional ethics.

It is with this delicate and necessary feeling for the irrelevant that I draw your attention to the photograph reproduced here. It shows Muriel Young and announcer Mel Oxley consorting with Charlie Squires’ mina bird, Will, and a Spanish girl called Magadelaina who is dressed like a Goya painting. The fact that they are all in Studio 10 (another of Presentation’s Secret Weapons) is accounted for by an exhibition of cage birds at Olympia and of Goya’s works at the Royal Academy.

But I had better explain.

For 125 consecutive Fridays ‘London Weekend’ has been transmitted after the early evening news bulletin. Its brief is to tell people what is happening (in the real world, not the telly world) in London over the weekend. The time-honoured ingredients are Laurie West’s weather forecast, a run-down of London’s main sports fixtures and, above all, an illustrated list of selected events ranging from Sheepdog Trials in Hyde Park to a route map of the Lord Mayor’s Show – whatever happens to be on.

It can, of course, be argued that one or two of our viewers might conceivably be unmoved by the prospect of an exhibition of cage birds – though Will is a good ambassador – but it is not London Weekend’s job to invent popular happenings only to describe such exhibitions or goings-on as seem to be of genuine interest in their own field, however unlikely or specialised. Unbelievably, it is only necessary to refer to a display of medieval rooks in Soho or to a collection of antique musical instruments in Holland Park, for someone to ring up, either asking for the address to be repeated or volunteering information about some more recondite subject – such as a rally of greenhouses at Catford.

The sifting of information and the impartial selection of items which seem worthy of a mention involves research in miniature; the explanation on-air requires scriptwriting in miniature; and the transmission, which combines film, slides and Studio 10, involves production in miniature. The transmission is carried out by the duty programme officer, to whom (apart from perhaps a deep breath and a raised eyebrow) it is just part of the evening’s work. The research and preparation is done by a production assistant attached to presentation, who becomes after a few weeks so knowledgeable about London affairs that she is like a walking encyclopaedia. Our current P.A., Helen Best, is always having adventures in the course of her inspection of subject-matter. She has permitted me to reveal that at a preview of rare pottery, including oriental vases worth thousands of pounds, she observed that the experts were inspecting the bottoms of the vases by holding them aloft. Not wishing to be outdone she lifted up what she thought was a particularly beautiful example of Nth dynasty pottery and gazed at it knowledgeably. A mink-clad lady near by eyed her rather oddly. A moment later poor Helen was engulfed in cocktail snacks. Unfortunately the crush was so great that she could only stand her ground with a wintry smile.

One obstacle in the path of accurate research is the unbounded enthusiasm of the PRO types at exhibitions, who provide a flood of information of varying relevance: ‘Two Irish Romany caravans have just managed to make the Camping and Outdoor Life Exhibition. One arrived at Paddington Goods Depot in good time for the show, but its wheels were with the caravan which took a devious route from County Cork to London. Irish Wagontrain Master Mr. Matt Murphy said…’ Sometimes there is a barren-looking weekend, when there really seems to be nothing to which we could send people with a clear conscience. To cover this contingency we have a number of old faithfuls like Kew Gardens, Dockland, the Tower and London Parks, which do yield, if squeezed, a surprising flow of interesting material. When there is a surfeit of events we concentrate on those which have just begun or are just about to finish, and in this way the weekly content remains fairly constant. Frequently it is the ‘dull’ weekend which on close inspection reveals odd little exhibitions of high calibre; on the other hand a reasonably interesting-sounding ‘Display of Boats’ may turn out to be a couple of shelves of dusty models, in which case we ban it loftily from our script.

We do not have any illusions about ‘London Weekend’. It is the kind of item, like the BBC’s ‘Points of View’, which inevitably gets handed to a presentation section because it is short and regular and complicated without being creative in the sense of a proper programme. Nevertheless, although it forms such a small part of the section’s work (a point which I might well be lynched for failing to labour) I have a soft spot for the assignment because for once we are indulging in something which at least approximates to other activities in the programme department. For the section which is obliged to be to some extent ‘apart’, 6.08 p.m. on Fridays is our Moment of Normality, when for a few minutes we find ourselves initiating a contribution to the station output. But who knows? By the time you read this some Master Finger may have tapped the kaleidoscope which governs the pattern of our programmes, and ‘London Weekend’ may have disappeared.

The last sentence was prophetic: after 131 editions ‘London Weekend’ was buried on April 3, 1964

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‘I believe you are the right person I should write to on the following matter. It concerns the film entitled ‘Christmas in Cyprus’, which as you know was made out here largely under the direction of Peter Hunt, and shown over your network on Christmas Day in England.

‘You have very kindly sent us a 35 mm copy of the film and this has been seen by a large number of the security forces in Cyprus. I would like you to know what a very good impression indeed this film has made; it does not overstate the case and it shows very vividly the part played by the Security Forces. I am sure that it has been a big factor in raising the morale of the soldiers.

‘I would, therefore, like to thank you very much for all the trouble taken in preparing this film and for your kindness in letting us have a copy.’

Letter to Captain Brownrigg from Major-General Kenneth Darling, Director of Operations in Cyprus.

‘It is so very nice of you to reply to my letters. I expect you think it is quite mad for a happily-married mother to be writing after photos of TV heroes. But at least it proves what a good job you are all doing. Keep it up!’

Jean Swain, Coventry (Viewer’s letter to programme correspondence).

‘Congratulations and thanks for these very fine programmes. Daniel Farson’s interview with (R.C.) Fr. Christie; “The Killing of the King” – First Class!!!’

Edward O’Hara, Yorks. (Viewer’s postcard).

EXPRESS LIFT

‘Yet for all the fortune he has made in Associated-Television he is still a man of the people. His humour is lusty. His manners are adequate, but not impeccable. When he goes up to his close-carpeted suite in Television House he will still pat the lift boy on the back and know his Christian name.’

Extract from Daily Express story on Mr Lew Grade. We have been asked to deny reports that as a result lift boys are now going to be employed.

‘I would like you to know how much I appreciated your “Hallé at Work” programme. I thought the sound was handled particularly well.’

Viewer’s ‘phone call to Night Duty Officer.
Director: Cyril Coke; sound balancer, Tony Couch.

‘The lady in the programme should be shown off a bit more because she is good looking.’

A 14-year-old boy’s comments on Muriel Young’s appearance in ‘Lucky Dip’.

‘As it turned out we were given a production which can truly be called distinguished. Ronald Marriott directed with the deftest blending of sensitivity and passion, and the acting was good down to the humblest member of the 40-strong cast.’

Denis Thomas, Daily Mail on ‘The Killing of The King’.

‘Please forgive this rather long letter, I know you are busy, but being a strong supporter of commercial TV long before it became a reality, I feel I must let you know my observations of the viewing public.

‘I am an insurance agent and have to call on people in their homes and as my pet subject is TV I know you would be pleased to know that 90 per cent of the people who have a choice of programmes choose ITV. But the biggest let down is the much vaunted ‘‘Play of the Week”’.

‘In contrast, “Film of the Week” is very popular and the general opinion is a film is better than the average play…. So take less notice of M.P.s and enemies of ITV, many of whom haven’t a TV set.’

Letter from Tooting viewer.

‘Being a young housewife whose main pleasures are derived from a three-year-old son and a one-year-old TV set, you may be sure that my choice in programmes is confirmed to those which give the highest degree of entertainment.

‘Therefore, although I have never in all my days written to any personality (not even in my film-struck teenage days) I felt that I must write to you on a superb programme “Look In” which has only one fault – it is too short! Hoping you will continue indefinitely to give myself and others so much pleasure for many a Tuesday evening to come.’

Letter to Michael Ingrams from Mrs Lois D. Morris, Middlesex.

‘Why not have a separate channel for kids. That would suit everybody and please all of us. If that fails, the other alternative rests with the parents. Why do they allow the kids to sit up? They seem to be allowed to do as they please. That is why there is so much delinquency about.’

Letter from Redhill, Surrey, viewer complaining about ‘Mark Saber’ being taken out of the early evening because of the large number of children viewing.

‘I like “Lucky Dip” because you get so many personalities.

I have never written to “Lucky Dip” before because today was the first time I have seen it.’

Young Isle of Wight viewer.

‘Usually the show succeeds: it has some of the drive and guts of Fleet Street, and is not afraid of being brash now and again. I think most viewers would welcome a quarter of an hour’s extension here.

Henry Turton, Punch, on ‘This Week’.

“This Week” turned from men to rabbits and gave us one of those cleverly-cut interviews with children which grip the heart.’

Colin Frame, The Star.
Director: Sheila Gregg; interviewer: Michael Nelson; scriptwriter: Colin Willock.

‘… the people who put on television entertainment have a sense of responsibility appropriate to those who pour shows nightly into the home, where children may be watching. After inquiry into current stage plays I reject with scorn all complaints about TV violence and puerility.’

L. Marsland Gander, Daily Telegraph.

‘I want to hand a belated pat on the back to Associated-Rediffusion…. Associated-Rediffusion was the first company to transmit commercial television programmes in Britain and it has been well aware of its responsibilities in the field of culture from the start. One of its first acts was to place the Hallé Orchestra under long-term contract and for nearly five years it has featured this orchestra in televised performances and on the concert platform. AR-TV also embarked on the ambitious scheme for staging classical plays at the Saville Theatre and, after short runs, transferring them to the television screen. The company is now offering more life drama than any other programme contractor.

The half-hour news feature programme, ‘This Week”, has been maintained in a peak-hour time every week since January, 1956. AR-TV also introduced the first regular television broadcast for schools ever seen in Great Britain, but the Beaverbrooks and the Mayhews prefer to forget about the good things and think only of the Westerns, the variety shows and the advertisements.

‘The Beaverbrook Press has backed many losers in its time but its campaign against television may well turn out to be its biggest failure.’

Ernest Kay, Time and Tide.

With all these faults the play still had some highly entertaining moments. Gladys Young (Aunt Ben) was a delight, and the meetings of the Irish M.P.’s full of life. Costumes and camera work excelled.’

Dick Sear, Daily Mirror, on ‘Parnell’, Play of the Week.
Director: David Boisseau; Costumes designed by Ernest Hewitt; Cameras manned by Vic Gardiner, Jeff Sheppard and the rest of crew 1.

Illustrations by Geraldine Spence

The post They Say… April 1959 appeared first on THIS IS REDIFFUSION from Transdiffusion.

The method was simple. I stood on the kerb — next to Muriel Young. This happened the other day after I had taken Muriel — she is known to everyone in television as “Mu” — to lunch. The effect that Mu’s grey-green eyes had on cab drivers was wonderful to watch…

Taxis zoomed to our part of the kerb from every direction. Once a dental nurse, Muriel’s greatest love was for acting and she trained in repertory. She had parts in a number of films before she became one of ITV’s first female announcers in 1955. She told me she particularly likes appearing in Twenty Questions.

She is naturally inquisitive and likes to ask questions. So we played our own game of “Ten Questions,” but I asked the questions and Muriel gave the answers.

First of all, where did you get the nickname of Mu? — It just happened, said Muriel.

On the screens you always appear to be gay and contented. Do you often feel depressed? — About twice a year. Usually after something wonderful has happened.

Why? — I feel that whatever follows cannot be as exciting.

Do you worry about your work? — I have stopped worrying. I have made mistakes so many times in front of the cameras that whatever happens in the future could not be worse.

What sort of mistakes? — I mispronounce words, sometimes.

Do you consider that you are a lucky person? — Very lucky. I plan to go to America for six weeks in the autumn and, already, I have been offered appearances in five television shows.

Do you think luck has had anything to do with your success on television? – Yes. I started as an announcer on ITV and since then I have done every kind of job.

Have you any hobbies? — Yes. I love gardening.

What do you plan to do in the future? — Go on with television.

Which programme do you like best? — I like them all. But, in Twenty Questions, I sit next to Frankie Howerd and he keeps me in fits of laughter. Such a dear.

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Leslie Mitchell makes the first continuity announcement on Associated-Rediffusion:

A year or so later, Redvers Kyle makes the same announcement:

Jon Kelley does a quick station identification for Rediffusion London in the late 1960s:

Redvers Kyle and Jon Kelley close Rediffusion for the final time on 29 July (early 30 July) 1968:

Rediffusion’s William Squire (using the name Frobisher Collingwood) introduces ABC’s Professional Wresting, taped the previous Saturday and shown on Rediffusion on a Wednesday in 1965:

Rediffusion starts the day in June 1967 in this recreation of the visuals over a real recording of the audio. Redvers Kyle reminds us that Independent Television will be covering the tournament at Wimbledon:

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The first Associated Rediffusion authority announcement, and thus ITV’s very first announcement of any kind.

Noticeable is how the pattern for announcements had not yet been set. A slogan – This is London – gets a look in, but the ITA do not.

The channel gets a mention, but so does the VHF band. Also missing is the word ‘weekdays’ – a word that was not available in English at the time, so the rather longer circumlocution “every week from Monday to Friday” has to be used.

Complete audio for the station’s evening start-up, from which the above excerpt is taken. It begins with variations on the traditional tune British Grenadiers and includes a fanfare by Charles Williams, closing with an excerpt from Elgar’s Cockaigne overture.

Using the same script as the above, the voiceover here is spoken by a female announcer, probably Muriel Young (or possibly Shirley Butler). The opening music is from the Prelude to Richard Addinsell’s orchestral suite based on his music for the 1945 David Lean film Blithe Spirit. This startup was probably used to open afternoon transmissions, but only for a brief period immediately after broadcasts began in September 1955.

A year later, and the announcement has been significantly simplified: the Independent Television Authority receives what is by now its required mention. This announcement preceded Eric Coates’ Music Everywhere, used September 1956 to late 1957.

Another year further on, and the pattern of authority announcements is now set. A-R complies with Redvers Kyle – one of the quintessential voices of ITV – reading an announcement that provides everything the ITA could want. Gone now is the ident in the middle of the announcement, and also – in fallout from the Suez crisis – the some might say militaristic tune that accompanied the first announcement. Instead, this announcement was accompanied by S. Bates’ Associated-Rediffusion March, used from 1958-64.

Several years later, Redvers Kyle (for once again, it is he) adopts the ‘voice of god’ tones of Mitchell for the final version of the announcement.

The whole look of the station has been lightened, the name simplified and the heavy music of the past changed for The Widespread World of Rediffusion, a Dankworth piece which has never dated (except, perhaps, for the ‘summer holidays’ middle) and gives a thrill of anticipation as it builds to a climax.

The Swinging Ident

1964, and a relaunch of station identity – in order to compete effectively with the new BBC-2 – brought A-R firmly into the 1960s and saw the London weekday ITV service itself renamed ‘Rediffusion, London’.

The adastral rotated anticlockwise constantly, unlike the ‘clockwise then stop’ of the A-R idents.

The post Seen and Heard appeared first on THIS IS REDIFFUSION from Transdiffusion.

In April 1961, Associated-Rediffusion, the first commercial television company ever to broadcast in the UK, and on-air since September 1955, maintained a Presentation section comprising the Head, Neil Bramson (ex French horn player in the London Symphony Orchestra if my memory serves me well, and apparently the originator of A-R’s ‘morse code’ ident); three transmission controllers (idiosyncratically called ‘Programme Officers’ or ‘POs’ by A-R), Alec Gunn, Harry Sloan and Wendy Powell; one Assistant Programme Officer, Allen Taylor; and one trainee (myself). There was also Peter Martin, whose function was to ensure that the commercial reel make-up (nearly all film in those days) conformed to the relevant laws, to oversee the slotting-in of community service announcements where necessary, and to provide film cue sheets to help the POs take commercial breaks smoothly. Supporting all these, there was a secretarial staff of six ladies (including, at one time, my wife) to prepare the schedules and to log each transmission shift in its entirety, to the exact second.

To write the link scripts, there was a separate promotions department, which in those days gave work to, among others, Hugh Whitemore, later to become a distinguished playwright. It was then A-R’s policy to use continuity announcers in vision for some early shifts (mostly linking children’s programmes). The three main ‘voices’ of that time were Redvers Kyle, Dick Norton and Tom Glazer, supported from time to time (for example holiday relief) by Dick Graham, Nick Worrall and Mel Oxley, to name a few, who otherwise mostly had full-time careers elsewhere. Later, Anne Aldred was another personality who provided a welcome feminine presence. Yet others included the late Laurie West (Squadron-Leader L.J. West), who prepared the weather forecast; Muriel Young, who had a desk in our office, despite her major role as anchor-woman for a number of children’s programmes; various puppeteers such as Wally Whyton and Ivan Owen (through whom I first met Ollie Beak and Basil Brush); and certain seasonal fixtures who would come into our tiny studio to deliver the latest on the cricket scores, for example.

Head of Presentation reported to Assistant Controller of Programmes (Planning), Cyril Francis in my day, who, with the other ACPs, reported to John McMillan and, ultimately, the Board.

Operationally, the Presentation Control Room was staffed by a Programme Officer, a secretarial assistant (to log the output), a vision mixer and a sound balancer, with a duty announcer to make all scheduled announcements and, importantly, any unscheduled ones that might be necessary. This crew worked closely with engineers in the Master Control Room, Central Control Room and/or Central Apparatus Rooms, with their attendant line/link operators, who were the final liaison with the engineers at the transmitter.

One aspect of the operation that kept us busy was that, as well as having the responsibility of providing a full television service for the London area from Monday to Friday, A-R was also ‘Nominated Contractor’ for that same period. This meant that, should anything arise to necessitate changes to the published programme timings, the whole commercial television network had to be informed so as to reorganize their schedules to conform to network requirements, or make their own individual arrangements. A conference call would be made on the ‘red phone’; the roll of the entire network was called; and negotiations would begin. For much of the 60s that would have involved A-R, ATV, Granada, Anglia, Southern, Television Wales and West (TWW), Wales West and North (WWN), Border, Tyne-Tees, Scottish Television, Grampian, Westward and Channel. ATV, who took over responsibility for the London area at weekends, became Nominated Contractor for Saturday and Sunday.

Mistakes were rare. Broadcasting regulations at that time were stringent, and we were acutely conscious of our station output being closely monitored for abuses. But I can confidently report that the ethos of the company kept us on our toes; the procedures handed down to us from our ex-Royal Navy masters (in Office Organizational Memoranda, or OOMs), although sometimes rather quaint, were always explicit, rather like Queen’s Regulations and Admiralty Instructions in the Navy itself.

Inevitably, though, freak events would sometimes occur. Once, during a race meeting outside broadcast somewhere up-country, the microwave link was momentarily broken. It was only for a second or two, but the receiving equipment did what it had been designed to do, making a quick search to find the signal again – and found the BBC instead! A most unsettling experience. I seem to remember hearing that favourite expression from the engineers: “OK leaving me, mate!”

There were also times when it paid to have some local knowledge. John McMillan, who had a razor-sharp mind and always seemed to know exactly what was happening, also had the unfortunate drawback of sounding intoxicated and slurring his words when on the telephone. Whereas certain other senior executives had been known to take a sudden dislike to some programme you were busy transmitting and, in their cups, would demand it be taken off, with John Mac you had to listen carefully – and do what you were told.

For years, ITV was not permitted to transmit the Queen’s Christmas message: that always came from the BBC. The first year the ‘ban’ was lifted, I was on duty on Christmas Day and I decided I would rehearse the BBC’s tape for duration and any technical problems. Just as well I did: the Beeb, whether accidentally or by design, had left an unusable Take 1 on the front of the tape – where Her Majesty dried! Had I transmitted that, there would have been hell to pay.

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