Tag: Philip Morgan

Radio WM – photos by Philip Morgan

Photos by Philip Morgan, no reproduction without permission.

Here are some photos by Philip Morgan of Radio WM, taken in November 2004, at the viewing before the auction to sell off all the Pebble Mill fixtures and fittings, before the building was demolished.

I particularly like the sign for ‘Radio Birmingham 206’ pinned up by the clock.

Andy Walters, adds the following information: ‘There is still some equipment in use today that has those BBC Radio Birmingham stickers on. I don’t think any of that kit was included in the auction as it was being used for projects on the days of the auction. The Mk. 3 desks were taken away for spares by BBC Radio Lincolnshire. The pictures look to be of Area 3 (phone in room) and Area 2 (WM self-op studio) on the first floor. Hard to believe but there are still some stations using Mk 3’s today and there are still shelves of Mk 3 spares in the Mailbox for these stations. They were built like brick out houses.’

Pebble Mill signage – photos by Philip Morgan

Photos by Philip Morgan, no reproduction without permission.

Philip took these photos in November 2004, once all the different departments had moved out of Pebble Mill, on one of the preview days before the auction selling off fixtures and pieces of equipment.

The various notices and signage give an insight into broadcasting practices of the time, and I wonder if Pebble Mill was the only BBC building with a croquet lawn!

Croquet lawn booking board

Studio B stripped down – photos by Philip Morgan

Photos by Philip Morgan, no reproduction without permission.

These photos were taken by Philip Morgan in November 2004, on the viewing days before the auction of Pebble Mill equipment, after the building was decommissioned, but before demolition.

The photos are of Studio B, which was the Midlands Today Studio, on the first floor, overlooking the courtyard.

Radio Studio 2 before auction – photos Philip Morgan

Photos by Philip Morgan, no reproduction without permission.  Philip took these photos in November 2004, when Pebble Mill was emptied before the auction to sell off the majority of  the building’s contents.  You can see the auction lot numbers on some items in the photos.

The photos feature Radio Studio 2, as well as 1/4 inch tape machines, recording rooms etc.

Studio 2 was mainly used for recording music sessions for Radio 2 – ‘BBC Big Band’, sessions for Paul Jones’ blues programme, for ‘Country Club’ which became ‘Bob Harris Country’ and many others. It was also used to record “as live” programmes with an invited audience e.g. a Cajun series.  Pam Relton remembers ‘Voice of the People’ being recorded in there,with Jenny de Yong producing.

Thanks to Philip Morgan for making the photos available, and to Sue Welch for providing information about Studio 2.