Category: Blog

‘Now The News From Your Region’ – Maurice Blisson

‘NOW THE NEWS FROM YOUR REGION’
I wonder how many people remember the VHF regional radio news bulletins that used to go out at 6.55 and 7.55 am every weekday from Pebble Mill during the 70s.They were read mainly by John Hogarth and also by Christopher Stagg, David Stevens, Terry Coates and Guy Thomas, if my memory serves me right- and it’s been 30 years!.They were written by a reluctant team of BBC journalists, including me, who got in before 6am and cobbled together a read of overnight stories(left by the late sub the previous evening) to give our limited, but growing, VHF audience the latest news from the West and East Midlands, together with a brief weather roundup. Sometimes a tape insert was included, from the likes of reporters Barney Bamford, Geoffrey Green and Kay Alexander. I seem to remember Sue Beardsmore may have been involved on the technical side.Then along came breakfast optouts, the continuing expansion of local radio, a separate East Midlands region based at Nottingham and waveband changes and the bulletin became superfluous and disappeared without any fanfare.   David and Guy went on to television news and continuity but the others disappeared.  How many are still with us?

Maurice Blisson


Weekend Live – Keith Ackrill’s photos

Photos taken by Ketih Ackrill, not to be reproduced without permission.  ‘Weekend Live’ was a live entertainment show, staged in the courtyard behind Studio 3.

Sophia & Constance – Maggie Thomas’s photos

These photos were taken by Makeup Artist, Maggie Thomas, on location in France (Paris and Rouen), in the Black Country Museum in Dudley, and in Studio A at BBC Pebble Mill.  ‘Sophia & Constance’ was a 6 part period drama, transmitted by the BBC in 1988.  It was an adaptation of Arnold Bennett’s novel: ‘The Old Wives’ Tale’.  It is set in 1964 in the town of Bursley in the potteries.  It is the tale of 2 sisters: Sophia and Constance.  Constance is the older and quieter sister, and is content to live and work in the family’s draper’s shop, whilst Sophia is more adventurous and outrages the family by becoming a schoolteacher.  The series was directed by Allison Romey and David Hugh, and produced by John Harris.  The Executive Producer was Colin Rogers.  The cast included: Catherine Cusack, Melissa Greenwood, Patricia Routledge, Alfred Burke, Nigel Bradshaw, Freda Davies and John Scott Martin.

Pebble Mill at One – Keith Ackrill’s photos

Most of these photos of Pebble Mill at One were taken by Director Keith Ackrill, and must not be reproduced without his permission.  They include photos of Donny Mcleod interviewing Ron Moody and Jimmy Saville, George Hamilton IV and Andy Williams in rehearsal, as well as a black and white photo from 1975 of the Pebble Mill film crew on location in Burnley.  This photo features, left to right: Richard Ganniclift (cam), Sam Hanna (contributor), Peter Casselberg (sound), Keith Ackrill (director), Tim Johnson (cam).