Memories of Aberfan – John Howarth

Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I started my career in professional broadcasting at Pebble Mill as a vacation trainee engineer. I remember Alan Edwards man ops, who was the engineering manager at Aberfan 50 years ago today, who stopped the riggers from going to help, because they had a job to do as part of the news team, to report the historical events, so they should not be repeated. I remember my Welsh teacher mother Olwen holding me and weeping as we watched the families digging for their children. I am so glad that John Humphries and Huw Edwards, fellow Taffia have remembered and so eloquently reported on the anniversary. I have never forgotten, and so it would appear neither have they. I was privileged to work with John in SPUR, BBC TV News when he was South Africa Correspondent, & Lime Grove BBC NCA 1978-1988, and under Brigadier Alan Protheroe DDG Ed Tel News, and finished my career as Acting Planning Manager BBC NCA Resources, before resigning when the BIRT/Checkland double act took office. I am glad someone else remembers Pebble Mill, speaking as a BBC Pensioner.

John Howarth

The following comment was left on the Pebble Mill Facebook page:

Dave Bushell: ‘One of my Bristol engineering colleagues was at Aberfan. The Bristol OB unit, MCR 28 was in South Wales for a job and was diverted to provide coverage. He spoke of the difficulties the crew had staying at their posts when the urge to help was so overwhelming.’

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Jill Archer’s Aga

Copyright Martin Fenton, no reproduction without permission

Copyright Martin Fenton, no reproduction without permission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Jill Archer’s Aga, and presumably quite a bit of her kitchen equipment piled on top! It would have been regularly used during recordings of The Archers.

Martin Fenton took this photo in Radio Studio 3 in Pebble Mill in 2003, where The Archers used to be recorded.

The following comments were left on the Pebble Mill Facebook page:

Kathryn Shuttleworth: ‘We still have the Aga but it nearly didn’t make it as there were concerns about the weight of it! I’m pretty sure there was some concrete reinforcements installed, not just for the Aga but the entire BBC building structure. A team from Aga did the move to The Mailbox as it had to be dismantled into many pieces and reassembled. It really does weigh a tonne!’

Malcolm Hickman: ‘When I used to do the guided tours of Pebble Mill (sometimes helping Sheila Brown) the Archers Studio was always very popular.’

 

 

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Danger in the Ice – John Williams

danger-in-the-ice-jw danger-in-the-ice-1-jw

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Copyright, John Williams, no reproduction without permission.

The article above is from John Williams memoirs, Shoot First, No Ordinary Life. It tells the story of a dangerous and highly memoriable shoot in Antarctica, for a Pebble Mill at One documentary, Langley South. It was published in the October 2016 issue of the BBC pensioners online magazine – Prospero. The link to the article is here: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/mypension/en/prospero_oct_2016.pdf

The documentary was transmitted as inserts in 1981, as part of Pebble Mill at One, and as a four part documentary series on BBC2 in April 1982. Here are the Radio Times entries, courtesy of the BBC Genome project:

Monday 19th April 1982

“The first of four films in which
Bob Langley journeys to the White continent of Antarctica and examines its potential for mankind. The Falkland Islands are his first staging post. a last outpost of the British Empire in the South Atlantic. In recent weeks this tiny colony has been the centre of world attention as neighbouring Argentina has laid claim to the islands.
Against this background some of the 1,800 islanders talk of their hopes for the future.
Editor PETER HERCOMBE”

Tuesday 20th April 1982

“On the second leg of his journey to the Antarctic, Bob Langley embarks on the Royal Navy’s Ice Patrol Ship Endurance for the voyage from the Falkland Islands to the southern ice cap. The journey takes him across the notorious Drake Passage off the tip of Cape Horn, through a mine-field of icebergs and after a brief respite at an abandoned whaling station, onward to a dangerous and uncharted corner of the Antarctic peninsula.”

Wednesday 21st April 1982

“In the third film report from British Antarctica Bob Langley, aboard the Royal Navy’s Ice Patrol ship Endurance, becomes trapped in the ice in the Weddell Sea. It is like history repeating itself. In 1915 another Endurance, under the command of Sir Ernest Shackleton , was trapped in these very waters, triggering off a feat of survival which rates as one of the greatest of all escape stories”

Thursday 22nd April 1982

“In this final film report from Antarctica, Bob Langley visits British and American scientific bases and meets the. modern pioneers. Antarctica is known to contain vast mineral riches. Its seas are teeming with protein. It could be vital to our future as other continents exhaust their own resources.”

John’s book is A4, 216 pages full colour, 96,500 words; it is being sold at cost £14, plus postage or can be collected.If you would like a copy please contact John on john@willbriar.myzen.co

 

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Beth Porter, continuity photo from The Deep Concern

Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to Beth Porter for sharing this continuity photo of The Deep Concern, a six part thriller, transmitted in 1979, written by Elwyn Jones, directed by Richard Callanan, and produced by David Rose.

Beth Porter’s (long and amusing) autobiography Walking on my Hands, is available for a couple of pounds on Kindle, on the link below. Chapter 12 includes Beth’s adventures with the BBC.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Walking-My-Hands-responsibility-Streisand-ebook/dp/B01DUWNSRQ/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1460027101&sr=8-3&keywords=kindle+Beth+Porter

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Rainbow City screening

Errol John and Gemma Jones in Rainbow City. Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

Errol John and Gemma Jones in Rainbow City. Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first episode of Rainbow City, a six part series made at Gosta Green in 1967, was screened at the Midlands Arts Centre on Saturday 15th October, as part of the Flatpack Festival.

The drama starred Errol John as a black lawyer, and Gemma Jones as his white wife. It the test of time remarkably well, being well made and very watchable. The episode we saw tackled issues of racism, and immigration, which are obviously as relevant today as in the 1960s.

Here is the entry from the Radio Times for 5th July 1967, courtesy of the BBC Genome project: http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/9a9e4b546dae447391293d00d0408d6d:

Created by JOHN ELLIOT in What Sort of a Boy? by JOHN ELLIOT and HORACE JAMES
Cast in order of appearance:
Music by RAM JOHN HOLDER and MICHAEL McKENZIE
Designed by Margaret Peacock Produced and directed by JOHN ELLIOT
From the Midlands
Contributors

Designed By: Margaret Peacock
Directed By: John Elliot
John Steele: Errol John
Dennis Jackson: Horage James
Rawlings: Graham Weston
Pitt: Colin Skipp
Noel Hall: Calvin Butler
Receptionist: Ianthe Agelasto
John Sleele: Errol John
Inspector: Frank Veasey
Secretary: Yolande Fermin
Works Supervisor: Leslie Dunn
Mrs Jackson: Myrtle Robinson
Mary Steele: Gemma Jones
Sister: Frances Dunn
Nurse: Nina Baden-Semper
Schoolteacher: Dolores Mantez
Clergyman: Ian Copper
Youth Leader: Calvin Lockhart
Carol Wright: Ann Curthoys
Mark Andrews: Lloyd Reckord

 

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