Rather artificially, the discussion of “1917” is split between the photography and the sound:
“1917” – The Sound of Silence
A very important piece by Alan Taylor introduces the topic of sound in film and television, starting with “1917” and discusses other soundscapes and sound supervisor contributions.
“1917” – An apparent single shot
There have been a number of single shot productions in both film and television. This article considers “1917” photography and other notable (single|)shots.Get It Right
Crossing the line in a Railway Carriage….– and the horrible framing and reverse cuts in “Shetland” …
Oh The Irony
The BBC’s jewel, the BBC Television Centre, destroyed and the rump now used by ITV.The Elephant in the Room
…is of course, the Coronavirus, Covid-19. Some bits and pieces about this unprecedented affair in our lives. Some humourous, some serious…ETD Memories
Evesham station, the Wood Norton Hall Bus timetable (1963) and more …Presentation Times
Two pieces from Bernie.The first one is a video of people in the Presentation Department in 1986.
The second one is Bernie’s take on the production of Christmas programme trails.
Special Feature: The Camera as Actor
Bernie Newnham’s daughter asked him to write down all the shows that he had ever worked on (for a specific project). He was trying to remember the series name of a documentary that he had worked on and typed his name into a search engine. To his surprise, his name came up in an entry about a book called “Exploring Television Acting”. One chapter in this book takes an academic look at the performance of the camera as an actor in the drama.Quatermass Quiz
Some questions for you to answer, based around the last scene of the last episode of “Quatermass and the Pit”.Studio Planning Stencils
It started out as a request for dimensions of the microphone booms, and the replies included a number of studio planning stencils.Back In Time For Christmas
“Back in time for Dinner”, “Back in time for the Corner Shop”…Some of us would like to book a seat on Tardis back to a 1950s Christmas …
Back to the summer of 1986…
And while we are at it … a photo from the summer of 1986 provoked a discussion about cameras and crews and cheap cameras and no crews…Doctor Who
And, of course, time travel automatically means a visit to the Doctor.(N.B. the first series with Jodie Whittaker.)
Sangers Yard
The number of the early episodes of “Doctor Who” were telerecorded in Studio D, Lime Grove.Lime Grove was an untidy collection of seemingly ad-hoc construction and alleys and yards, fire escapes and strange corners…
There was Sanger’s ?Yard…
More About Moles
There are always stories about the Mole Crane; This page also includes the “Code of Practice” for using the Mole.Peds, Cranes and Mountings
David Lawson remembered a database that he compiled about 2000 giving data for most camera mountings available at that time, including and many from the history of camera peds, cranes and other mountings. It is written in hand coded HTML so is a bit crude by today’s standards but at least this one works. If anyone wants to take the data, upgrade it and make a proper database out of it, David says, feel free.Roger Bunce also has produced a draft data book.
Sounds Sensational
A miscellany of articles about sound, starting with the amazing Voces8 then on to miking up multiple singers…Sound Matters
A miscellany of articles about sound, starting with TD7s, press conferences, and such like of interest to the gentlemen of sound, seguing to favourite films.Articulated MCRs
Were there any articulated Mobile Control Rooms? Find out here…TV Theatre – trip and stories
We were invited to visit the newly refurbished Shepherd’s Bush Empire, known to us as the Television Theatre. Bernie Newnham has pictures of the visit.
Hugh Sheppard commented:
Lovely piccies of the onetime ‘TV Theatre’, but whither the back seats of the stalls? I can recall sitting there at tea-breaks circa 1960 with a 3-legged performer (and very nice chap) called Rolf… something-or-other. Maybe they all had to be taken out in case of contamination by association…
Vernon Dyer commented:
Empty, house lights or not, doesn’t it look different without the ramp, apron, etc. The refurbishment looks splendid – back to how it presumably looked in its music-hall heyday.
Lots of us worked in the television Theatre over the years. Here are some more tales – or should that be Mole tales…
TV transmitters and aerials
Technical information about TV transmitters and aerials.Railway … Stations
Starts out talking about a railway program and ends up considering two nations divided by a common language.Bits and Pieces
A miscellany of items that didn’t fit anywhere else but are really interesting…PLUGE
Picture Line-up Generating equipment and Vision ControlDancers on Camera
Ballet dances and TV camerasConnections
A little bit of whimsy ….Colour Supplement
Woking U3A Video Production Group create their own cookery show – How to Make a Microwave Mug Cake.Colour (Separation Overlay) Supplement
Floella Benjamin and the dancing cameras.FREE GIFT!!
Construct your own Vinten Heron from card!(You will have to supply your own Lynda Barron …)
To construct your own Heron , here is all you need – full instructions and the parts sheets.
