Category: Drama

The Long, The Short and The Tall – Andy Woodhouse

As part of my training in 1979, I was attached to the technical team of a couple of productions including a drama, a BBC Schools’ production of The Long, the Short and the Tall recorded over 3 days at Pebble Mill. The producer/director was Ron Smedley. Key acting cast is listed at https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b73aef97d. The episodes were subsequently transmitted as a single play. More details at IMDB https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13411812/?ref_=adv_li_tt. I can recall the lighting director was Barry Hill, the technical manger was Ron Irvine, the sound supervisor was Alastair Askham, and the vision mixer was Mark Kershaw.

The production was divided into 3 half-hour transmissions, each episode was allocated one studio day and recorded “live to tape” multiple times. Ron Smedley wanted the uninterrupted action from the stage play to be available in this TV production, enabling the actors to react better to the rapid dialogue segments. The production used a single set that occupied most of the floor area in Studio A, including a jungle setting at the rear of the hut. One shot in the programme needed a wide shot of that jungle and the entrance to the hut, but the camera shot would have included a lot of the lighting rig, so a glass shot was created to hide this unwanted area.

by Andy Woodhouse

Hut interior (right) and jungle (left). Floor at edge of hut is quite crowded with technical kit. Photo by Andy Woodhouse, no reproduction without permission

Multiple sound booms and camera cranes in use. Photo by Andy Woodhouse, no reproduction without permission.

Close positioning of the cameras and sound booms on the floor. Photo by Andy Woodhouse, no reproduction without permission.

Shows size of jungle area, and use of bounced light for the hut interior. Photo by Andy Woodhouse, no reproduction without permission.

Shows the camera at the left side, with the artist, Steve Mitchell, painting onto the glass to add the scenery extensions. The artists monitor showing the composited image is just to the left of centre. Photo by Andy Woodhouse, no reproduction without permission.

Cutout in the scene cloth, the glass in the frame, and the two artists at work. Photo by Andy Woodhouse, no reproduction without permission.

Detail of the painted glass. Photo by Andy Woodhouse, no reproduction without permission.

 

Lesley Weaver left the following comment on the Pebble Mill Facebook page:

Lovely to see this production pop up. I worked on it, I was assistant to the lovely Make-up Designer Carol Churchill, and I looked after actor Micheal Kitchen who I remember as being really nice.

 

A Sort of Innocence photographs – James French

A Sort of Innocence was recorded in October 1986. James French was cameraman, and has shared and captioned these photos taken on location in Hereford.

Don’t know who the extra is leaning against the wall. Guy with cigarette is Production Manager, Peter Rose; not sure about stripey, guy with white fleck in hair is Director, John Gorrie; lady is Producer, Ruth Boswell; on right is Sound Supervisor, Ray Bailey.


Grip is Ron Fleet, then Director, John Gorrie and me (2nd Camera) on Elemack dolly.

Me and John Gorrie again

Ron and me again in the foreground. Tim Everett holding the sound boom. I think the actor standing is Linus Roache and sitting in the Jaguar XJS is Kenneth Cranham.

Leaning on tripod is Rigger Supervisor, George Stevenson; Grip, Ron Fleet; cable-bashing is Rigger, Barry Clarke; on dolly is Camera Supervisor, Keith Salmon, with back to camera is Tim Everett (sound) and holding the boom pole is Tony Wass.

No caption necessary as all folk are named elsewhere.

Lighting Director, Barry Chatfield with Lastolite.

Grip, Ron Fleet; Rigger, Barry Clarke; Camera Supervisor, Keith Salmon

Lighting technicians (Sparks!): Roger Hynes and Dave Walter, with Rigger Supervisor, George Stevenson.

Dresser, Paul Higton; Designers, Martin Boddison and John Lindlar; Dresser, Shaun Lowe.

Me again (one of my favourite pics – I actually look like I know what I am doing!)

The only additional people on here are the boy, Actor, Neil Jeffery and with his back to us (next to Neil), Actor, Michael Byrne.

Carol Parks

Photo by John Greening. Included, left to right: Belinda Cherrington, Carol Parks, Jane Barton

 

This poem was written by Make Up Designer, Gill Hughes, in response to the death, in Autumn 2021, of drama Producer, Carol Parks. Gill worked with Carol on many drama productions.

THE END
It doesn’t happen to us
Not our generation.
The Go-Getters
The Movers
The Shakers
The ones who were going to change the World
Not to us
The Hippies, The Long Hair
The Pill, Sex, Rock and Roll
That was us
Our journey is not yet done
The Script not yet finished
Girl Power, Emancipation
There are some paragraphs to unfold
Before the Full Stop
THE END
Gill Hughes, Make Up Designer

All Memories Great and Small

Copyright resides with the original holder, no reproduction without permission

Here is an article from the Darlington and Stockton Times. Costume designer, Janice Rider and make-up artist, Vivien Oldham travelled up to the north east to attend the ‘All Creatures’ book signing event.
“SCORES of people attended an author event and book signing for the recent second edition of “All Memories Great and Small” by Oliver Crocker, last Saturday.
The book is about the making of the original, and much loved, BBC television series “All Creatures Great and Small”, based on the James Herriot books of Thirsk vet Alf Wight.
Channel Five have recently remade the show, and the second series is mid-way through its run.
From the original series, Mr Crocker brought along Ali Lewis, who played a young Rosie Herriot, Paul Lyon, who was young Jimmy Herriot in series four, and Jessica Sewell, who was Mary, granddaughter to Thora Hird in two episodes, to the signing at White Rose Books in Thirsk. Accompanying them were costume designer Janice Rider and make-up artist Vivien Oldham. In support was Alf Wight’s daughter, Dr Rosie Page, who gave valuable information to the author for his book.
Mr Crocker thanked the White Rose Books for hosting the signing event and told everyone present about the writing of the original edition and the revamped and extended version.
Visitors from around the country, who had travelled long distances in some cases, were thrilled to meet members of the cast, the real life Rosie, and the author. At the end of the afternoon the whole party walked over to Kirkgate, to the Herriot Museum to chat with Dr Page.”
https://www.darlingtonandstocktontimes.co.uk/news/19634434.creatures-great-small-visitors-thrilled-herriot-book-event/?fbclid=IwAR0pwKMgwzQX-euPl2c0i7DfIcbMxvZmWYQVV1Az9HYVwHUGsL6-YRqZTOw

Gwen Arthy obituary by Carol Churchill

Gwen Arthy smartening Brian Glover up on ‘Shakespeare or Bust’. Photo by Graham Pettifer, no reproduction without permission

 

This obituary for Gwen Arthy, by Carol Churchill was published in The Guardian 15 July 2021. Here is the link to the article: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2021/jul/15/gwen-arthy-obituary?fbclid=IwAR0ps6b0vYMCqicmXcM5XFsZH3wQwyUkMuUr6SkrKtv2T7rErr68WLWmWfc

My former boss, Gwen Arthy, who has died aged 94, was head of makeup at BBC Pebble Mill from 1971 until 1985.

Gwen was born in Rochford, Essex, where her father was a baker.
She studied at the Central School of Art and Design in London, later to become Central St Martins. Her first employment was with a troupe of puppeteers, among whom was a young Ronnie Barker. She then moved to the costume-makers Angels, suppliers to film, theatre and TV, where one of her first tasks was to sculpt a nose for the baritone Tito Gobbi to wear in Tosca.

Gwen joined the BBC in London in 1964 to train as a makeup artist, before moving to the BBC studios at Gosta Green in Birmingham and then to the brand new Pebble Mill in 1971, where she became head of makeup. Programmes for which she designed makeup included Shakespeare or Bust (1970), The Brothers (1972), Nuts in May (1976) and Great Expectations (1981). When we worked on Who Pays the Ferryman? (1977), Gwen and I, as her assistant, were required to go to Crete for three months, where we shared many laughs, evenings in tavernas and midnight swims. As a result we became good friends

In 1985 she took early retirement and returned to her roots in Essex, settling in Leigh-on-Sea, where she found a lively artistic community in which she soon became involved. Over the years she became a prolific painter, in many different styles, and as well as having her own show her work was hung in many exhibitions, including the summer exhibition at the Royal Academy.

When ill health made her housebound she missed her art classes and her ability to put paint on canvas more than anything. Her interest in colour, form and texture was an integral part of her life. While she had still been able, she had travelled to many places to paint, in the UK and abroad, but her favourite, to which she returned many times, was the Isles of Scilly.

Gwen’s son, Tim, was given up for adoption in the early 1960s, but happily, in 2005, they were reunited and Gwen got to know her granddaughter, Amber.

While Gwen could be a demanding boss, she was very supportive of her staff and loved spending convivial evenings, and occasional lunchtimes, with them in the BBC Club, doing their best to empty the bar of its stock of Gordon’s gin. Gwen loved her home and garden and always had a cat, the last of whom was called Biscuit.

Carol Churchill