Tag: Tim Savage

Pebble Mill Club – final days

Photos by Tim Savage, no reproduction without permission.

Tim took these photos on 23 Nov, 2004, one of the final days at Pebble Mill.

The photos include post production staff including: John Burkill, Jim Gregory, Amrik Manku, Brian Watkiss, Ivor Williams, John Duckmanton, Tony Rayner, Martin Dowell, Mike Bloore, Pete Shannon, John Macavoy, Dave Pick, Frank Stevens.

Please add a comment if you can identify others.

The following comments were added on the Pebble Mill Facebook Group:

Stuart Gandy: ‘In image 1016 the guy in the blue shirt holding a pint is John Macavoy, Engineer, and in image 1017 I see Dave Pick in the check shirt and next to him is Frank Stevens, former engineering services manager.’

Keith Brook: ‘If I may take friendly issue with Stuart Gandy about John Macavoy. He wasn’t just an engineer, he was a god. He was able to invent magical cures for any crazy idea that production could conjure up. Even worse, he would undertand their mumblings and give them more than they ever dreamed of. I hate him. The best days were, of course, when the bar was on the second floor. Very few managers realised all the post recording toxic, adrenaline, hyper-excitement that could corrode a great day’s work was diffused with a few beers upstairs. Incidentally, a truly ‘involving’, ‘participating’ and ‘egalitarian’ system, as we had at The Mill, works in any organisation. British industry, banking and the NHS would be major successes if they applied the same rules.’

Colin Fearnley – editing with an axe!

Colin Fearnley 1986

Photo by Paul Scholes, no reproduction without permission.

Colin Fearnley worked at Pebble Mill in VT.

There is a story about why he has an axe in the head!  Colin had been working on a youth programme with Janet Street Porter, circa 1986.  Apparently it was a very quick turnaround, and a review of the programme said that it looked as if it had been edited by a mad axeman. This spawned a whole host of axe jokes! Colin was probably VT play in man. [See comment below from Colin Fearnley correcting this detail!]

Thanks to Tim Savage for remembering the story of the axes.

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

Paul Colbert: ‘Could have been Reportage or Rough Guides, both of which I worked on as series Director in Manchester with most of the production team commuting on trains and planes to Manchester. Editor J S Porter, with Rachael Purnell and Sharon Ali. Tough times for the production team, even harder than working with Roger Castles on The Clothes Show! London Luvvies!’

Jane Mclean: ‘Was it Behind the Beat? God I HATED working on that programme.’

Dawn Trotman: ‘Behind the Beat. I remember editing that. Crazy hours and Janet Street Porter constantly screaming down the phone. I think we edited it in mechanical workshop? Lovely directors though but stressed.’

Jane Mclean: ‘The stuff of nightmares Dawn – every single aspect – and I mean every! JSP never once came to Brum (thank god) and in the end I refused to answer the phone!’

Dawn Trotman: ‘It was actually a creative time. I worked with some very adventurous directors who did try to re invent the wheel and suceed. Tough going but good times. Not that JSP was of any value but she did surround herself with the best in the business no fool in that respect just very shouty!’

Ian Collins: ‘The Mad Axman nickname was actually given to Jim Hiscox who was the editor working on “Behind The Beat”. I think Colin was the assistant and the axe was added well after the picture was taken.’

Dawn Trotman: ‘I beg to differ Ian. The Mad axeman was originally given to John Bland for a film he cut in about 1983 or 4 . It was set in a military defence barracks very strange ! Can’t remember the name, I think the producer was a Gareth ? And John ended up with a review which said cut by the mad axeman on acid ! We keep the cutting in his room at the end of the film corridor. But I didnt remember Jim being on Behind the Beat I remember Colin working on it . He used to tut over our inserts.’

Ian Collins: ‘Dare I suggest that there were two mad axe men :-)’

Paul Colbert: ‘Surely John Birt was the Mad Axe Man?’

Pickwick Papers – photos by Tim Savage

Photos by Tim Savage, no reproduction without permission.

‘Pickwick Papers’ was a BBC drama series from 1985.  It was hosted at Pebble Mill.  The director was Brian Lighthill, the producer was Barry Letts and the script was written by Terrance Dicks. Bob Chaplin was the lighting designer, Sue Peck and costume designer, Gill Hughes the make-up designer and Myles Lang, the production designer.

The series starred Nigel Stock, Clive Swift (gardening presenter Joe Swift’s father), Jeremy Nicholas, Alan Parnaby, and Colin Douglas.

The first photo features Paul Higton from costume.  The subsequent photos show a horse drawn carriage hired for the shoot. The location was a stately home near Telford.

In the carriage photos (l to r): John Couzens (camera) in navy jumper, centre in blue short-sleeved shirt, Elson Godbolt, Dick Bentley, second from right, it is probably David Robinson, to the right of Dick.

Pebble Mill at One OB


Photos by Tim Savage, no reproduction without permission.

The photos are of an outside broadcast for ‘Pebble Mill at One’ in the Cotswolds.

The first photo of Engineering Manager, John Endall and the horse was probably taken at David Nicholson’s racing yard at Condicote.

The other photos are of a tractor which was in the way of the scanner and took a long time to start and move!

It is Engineering Manager, John Endall sitting on the tractor, with VT editor, Steve Neilson on the far left of the tractor photos. The man in the light anorak could be rigger/driver from BBC Bristol called Ken Townsend.

Thanks to Jayne and Tim Savage, and Dave Bushell for providing the information.

2″ Video Machine Editing – photos by Brian Watkiss



Photos from Brian Watkiss, no reproduction without permission.

These photos show the 2″ Video Tape machines in the VT area of Pebble Mill.  2″ video tape was widely used in the 1970s before 1″ tape took over.

The main problem with 2″ tape was that you couldn’t spool in vision, so if you were looking for a clip from a show, you’d have to keep stopping periodically to see if you were on the right item.  Pebble Mill kept a 2″ machine right into the 1990s, for viewing and clipping archive tapes.

The photos probably date from the late 1970s.

The first photo shows VT editors Nigel Evans (who now works for Avid) and Tim Savage (now an editor and colourist).  I think it is Brian himself in the other photos.

Here are a couple of comments about the Quad machines from the Facebook page:

Pete Simpkin: I remember all the RCA TR22s had a kick dent in the modules near the floor which was the only way to stop video flashing during the run-up!

Steve Dellow: Ah – the old ‘Quad’ machines. As featured extensively in ‘White Powder Christmas’ and ‘Good King Memorex’!