Monthly Archives: May 2011

Regional Clubs Day – photos from Gail Herbert

Photos from Gail Herbert, no reproduction without permission.

Pebble Mill had a very active BBC Club.  The Club was not only the focus of socialising and drinking, but also of sporting activity.  Each year there would be a Regional Clubs Day, where members of other BBC Clubs from around England would get together and compete in different sporting events.

Gail’s photos include:

Photo 1: Regional Clubs Day ’90, (left to right) Gail Herbert Chairman, David Waine President, Linda Parsonage Club Manager

Photo 2: BBC Pebble Mill Club members celebrating winning various cups. Some of the people in this shot are: Jane Dance, Julie Adams, Karen Hewson, Sue Brown, David Waine, Ted Woodhead, Colin Spears, Andy Turley

Photo 3: Regional Clubs Day (left to right), Sue Williams, Stan McDermott, Colin Bayliss, Billy Bennett, Tony Noble, Sue Brown, Keith Bojczuk, Colin Barnett

Regional News Opt-Out – photos by Jim Knights

Photos by Jim Knights, no reproduction without permission.

These photos are of a regional news opt out programme recorded in Berlin, and presumably about the Berlin Wall.  Jim Knights was the cameraman, and appears in most of the programmes.  The programme was probably produced at Pebble Mill, although it may pre-date the Pebble Mill years, and be from when the Birmingham newsroom was in Broad Street.

Please add a comment if you can identify other people in the photos, can date it, or add more information.

Broke – Photos by Willoughby Gullachsen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photos by Willoughby Gullachsen, no reproduction without permission.

‘Broke’ was part of the BBC 2 ‘Screenplay’ anthology series, being transmitted in 1991.  It was written by Stephen Bill, directed by Alan Dosser and produced at Pebble Mill by Barry Hanson.

The BFI database includes the following synopsis:

‘Ken Bannister is a wealthy, self-made man, who gives some work to his friend Francis Meeks, whose own small business is just getting oof the ground, commissioning him to refurbish the country club. However, when he asks for his money, Ken can’t pay, having been declared bankrupt, although this doesn’t seem to affect his affluent lifestyle in any way. Francis stands by helpless, watching his business and home go to rack and ruin, until his determined wife Melanie steps in.’ http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/460448

‘Broke’ starred Timothy Spall, Sheila Kelley, Larry Lamb, Susan Wooldridge, and Leo Bill.

The photo of the crew includes Alan Dosser (director), Steve Saunderson (camera), Tim Everett (sound), and Bob Jacobs (1st AD).

Terry Powell (dresser) remembers that ‘Broke’ was the 1st time he worked with Timothy Spall,  and through it became good friends. When he left the BBC to go freelance he worked with Tim on many a show and still sees him today.

 

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BBC Radio Birmingham – Blog by Nick Owen

I first worked at Pebble Mill in 1973 after I landed a job as a news producer on BBC Radio Birmingham, the forerunner of BBC WM.  It was a case of third time lucky getting into the BBC, having failed twice in the previous months to get a job in the Midlands Today newsroom. I arrived from The Birmingham Post and was overwhelmed with all the technology! I was always hopeless with anything mechanical, so learning to work a tape recorder was terrifying, but I got the hang of it in the end and became pretty adept at editing too, with razor blades and tape etc! I was told I had a fairly boring voice so I had to work on my intonation, to try to sound a bit more interested, but I really felt I had found my vocation. In fact, I loved it.  It wasn’t long before I read my first live bulletin – I was introduced on air by a young disc jockey called Les Ross, but I have no idea what happened to him!

Ultimately, I became Sports Producer, following my friend Jim Rosenthal, and that took me all over the country and Europe following the fortunes of our football teams.  Up the corridor, of course, was the Midlands Today newsroom with such luminaries as Tom Coyne, Alan Towers, Geoffrey Green and Tony Francis ( whom I’d trained with long before I came to Birmingham). I remember one day Tom Coyne said hello to me in the gents and I was so thrilled I nearly had an accident.

I left in 1978 to join ATV but returned to Pebble Mill to present Good Morning with Anne and Nick in 1992. More about that some other time, but I have to say thanks to the BBC at Pebble Mill for giving me my first chance in television back in August 1977.  They were doing a regional opt to herald the start of the football season, but Tony Francis, who would normally have been expected to front it, was away on holiday so they were clearly desperate and asked me!  I co-hosted it with Peter Windows, then a familiar face on continuity, and our studio guest was someone who became a great friend Larry Canning, the former Aston Villa player, then well known as a reporter for Sport on Two. The show was produced by another long standing friend, Rob Kirk, now at Sky News.

Some very happy days!

Nick Owen


Midlands Opt-Out Locations – photos by Jim Knights

Photos by Jim Knights, no reproduction without permission.

The photos are from ‘Midlands Opt-Out’ location shoots, dating from the mid 1980s.  Each week there would be a 30′ Regional Opt-Out’ programme, which tended to be location based programme.  Jim Knights is the cameraman (sporting a Top Gear jacket), and he thinks that the other chap in the first photo is Charlie Tremanye (who went to World in Action, rose to Exec Producer and now produces reality TV in the USA and is quite a TV big-wig) and the PA is Linda Flavell.  The other two photos are also from ‘Midlands Opt-Out’ locations.

Thanks to Jane Marriott for providing information about Charlie Tremanye.

Please add a comment if you have more information.