Here’s a picture taken on That Was The Week That Was, probably in 1963 –
Robin Sutherland found it on the Museum of the Broadcast Television Camera website, and it turns out to have been taken by cameraman Michael Barrett. Robin wondered who the cameraman in the picture was, taking his ease in a typical studio pose.
The answers ……
Doug Coldwell
This looks like Dickie Ashman (demon cyclist and George V look-alike ) .
John Henshall
It’s Dickie Ashman sitting on that pedestal!
Tony Crake
Is it Dickie Ashman? who was later a TM.
Peter Booth
That’s Dickie Ashman and probably with a roll-up in his hand!
Chris Wickham
I am pretty sure that the cameraman was the late great Dickie Ashman, for years the No 2 to Ted Langley. Dickie kept the crew running. He once told me he had not taken a day off work through illness in his life but sadly within six months of retirement he had passed away. He did not own a car but used his bicycle everywhere and was a pillar of the YHA. He was always full of fun and will be remembered kindly by all who knew him.
Clive Doig
Pretty certain this Dickie Ashman, who I believe was for a while on crew 4 in the late 50s. I certainly worked with him for a while. A great funny guy who had lots of stories. An ardent cyclist he used to ride a racing tricycle to work, which is an impossible velocipede to control. Once one has grown up, thrown away the stabilisers and is used to the two wheeled variety, you try to balance by leaning and simply go round in circles.
Dick Hibberd
I didn’t recognise him at first without his cycle clips on!
Or perhaps this was after his bike was run over by a steam roller, and Dickie lost his sandwiches, as well as his bike that day!
Colin Widgery
Dickie was late for work on one occasion and after the crew took the mickey at this rare event he explained he had been involved in a road accident.
He had been waiting at a junction when a steam roller came up behind and its central front bar caught the back wheel of the bike. The bike wouldn’t move and the steam roller didn’t stop and Dickie had thrown himself off and watched as the bike was severely bent.
The tyres were still in perfect condition and he wrote to Dunlop explaining the event and praising the high quality of their tyres. He was hoping for a free supply of tyres at the very least but all he got was a letter saying they would expect nothing less from their products.
I love a good story!
