Photograph from Engineering Manager, John Abbott, no reproduction without permission.
Rigger driver, Ron Lane, standing proudly next to the scanner CMCR9, Pebble Mill’s CM1, which later became BBC Manchester’s North 3. The location is probably a Gardeners’ World outside broadcast, possibly at ‘The Magnolias’, Percy Thrower’s garden, where the weekly gardening show was recorded in much of the 1970s.
Photo by John Abbott, no reproduction without permission.
This photo dates from the 1970s, and shows Bob Hubbard (senior cameraman) and the vision crew, (Ian Dewar on the left) from the outside broadcast truck, CMCR9. The scanner was built in 1969, and was Pebble Mill’s first CM1, later becoming Manchester’s, North 3.
The following comment was left on the Pebble Mill Facebook group:
Dave Bushell: ‘Back in the days of the Ventile jacket – not a Berghaus in sight’
CMCR9 Vision area
CMCR9 Vision area 2
CMCR9 Philips CCUs
Photos by John Abbott, no reproduction without permission.
These photos are from the 1969 outside broadcast scanner, CMCR9, which was Pebble Mill’s original CM1. This scanner became Manchester’s North 3, in around 1979.
The photos show the Vision area of the truck, as well as the Camera Control Units for the original Philips/Pye cameras.
This scanner has recently been restored by a team up in Manchester, and is now owned by Steve Harris.
Rob Cherry added the following comment on the Pebble Mill Facebook Group:
‘Having completed an ‘A’ course at Evesham in December 1974 I went to Pebble Mill Audio Unit and was put out on OBs for that long, hot summer of 1975. All sorts of stuff including the final of “Sportstown” from Wales, somewhere, with Alan Edwards as EM1 or whatever it was called; culminating in what I believe was the first World One-Day Cricket competition in England, including the final at Lord’s. I had to pinch myself. I’m getting paid, for this?’
Photos by John Abbott, no reproduction without permission.
These photos are from an outside broadcast for ‘Gardeners’ World’ with the scanner CMCR9, which was Pebble Mill’s CM1, and later became Manchester’s North 3. The first photo is outside Percy Thrower’s garden. The second is of a rostrum set up for the ‘Gardeners’ World’ OB. I think that the dark shape in the foreground of the second photo is the flap on the roof of the scanner, which was for the inlet and outlet for the air conditioning unit, which was fitted above the cab.
Percy Thrower presented ‘Gardeners’ World’ from 1969 until 1975, when he was dropped by the BBC, because of a contract he entered into with Plant Protection, a subsidiary of ICI, to appear in some commercials.
Keith Brook (Scouse) has identified the right hand cameraman up the tower as Don Cooper and thinks that it’s Tony Wigley in the blue jacket to the right of the lower camera.
Photo by E.M. John Abbott, no reproduction without permission.
The photo is of the Vision Crew of the outside broadcast scanner: CMCR9, Pebble Mill’s CM1 in the 1970s. This scanner went on to become North 3, in Manchester.
The truck was used on programmes like ‘Gardeners’ World’ and ‘Songs of Praise’, as well as dramas and sport.
Included in the photo are: Ian Dewar at the back, Ron Pickering on the phone, Rod Bach at the front and John Allinson on the right. (Thanks to Janet and Ian Collins for the identification!)