Ferreting about

Dave Buckley

TV Training had four PSC kits which used 416s all with furry windgags which we referred to as ‘doogles’ for obvious reasons! When bought they each came with a small brush with stiff bristles so that any tangles could be brushed out. Also the washing instructions stated ‘hand wash in warm water with soap flakes’ (or words to that effect). I bought a box of ‘Dreft’ soap flakes and when any windgag looked as though it wanted a clean, took it home overnight and washed it.

One weekend, I borrowed one of the mics with a doogle windgag, plus the departments Nagra to record a series of interviews at the Grimsdyke Hotel in Harrow Weald (one time home of Gilbert of G and S fame). When not in use I would hold the mic under my arm, which from the back looked as though  I was carrying a small dog. While in a marquee in the ground, I was tapped on the shoulder and turned round to see a policeman with a big grin on his face, who said that dogs weren’t allowed in the tent! It was a pity that the business end of the mic didn’t have mouth, nose and two eyes stuck on as this would have made the joke even funnier!

In TVTs training studio, the problem with noisy AKG capsules was to  turn on a spare 1K lantern and sit the offending units under the beam to dry them out.

 

Nick Ware

Pretty sure it’s “Dougal” as in “Magic Roundabout” voiced by Robbie Williams. [Ed: this is the movie: “The Magic Roundabout” (2005) starring: Robbie Williams, Ian McKellen and Bill Nighy amongst others]

 

Colin Hassell

When I used to watch Magic Roundabout it was Eric Thompson voicing it.

 

David Denness

Not just voicing it but writing the children’s scripts replacing the political voice over from France, where the series originated.

 

John Howell

If I recall correctly,  we called it a “ferret” on the EastEnders Lot.

 

Alec Bray

Eric Thompson was a guest on LNLU when I was seconded to Pres B. He read a poem “Bagpipe Music” by Louis MacNeice (from 1941 a producer for BBC radio):  the last verse is rather depressing

It’s no go my honey love, it’s no go my poppet;
Work your hands from day to day, the winds will blow the profit.
The glass is falling hour by hour, the glass will fall forever,
But if you break the bloody glass you won’t hold up the weather.

I got talking with Eric in hostility after the programme (as happened on LNLU), and I mentioned that I really enjoyed, not only Eric’s reading of the poem, but the poem itself. Eric said that he would send me a copy (of the script) plus a couple of other bits. and this he did! I will always remember Eric for interesting a TO !

Spike Milligan

Alan Taylor

I did a series of shows called “Troupers”. They were directed by Don Sayer and the basic premise was that for each episode, a legendary, veteran performer would go onstage in a regional theatre and talk about their life, linking to various VT clips along the way.   Or as one performer cynically remarked,  we’re making our own obituaries. 

Spike Milligan was booked for one and having enjoyed his humour, I was rather looking forward to it. At the planning meeting, all the heads of department had done several of these shows, so most aspects had already been worked out. Don Sayer went through the script with everyone. Those were the days of ten second cues to run a VT and the plan was the same as for all the previous shows – Spike would talk for a few minutes and then  utter a key word. By the time he finished that sentence, the VT would be up to speed and we could cut to it. 

Having worked with Spike a little bit, I asked whether Spike fully understood the need to say the trigger word followed by exactly ten seconds of what was scripted. Don assured me that Spike was an experienced broadcaster who knew how television worked and what needed to be done.

Spike went on stage at The Questors in Ealing, the audience loved him, he loved the audience. He went off doing his own glorious thing for an hour or so of hilarious mayhem. He didn’t get anywhere close to uttering any of the trigger words, or even vaguely referencing the phrase that was supposed to contain them. The play button on the VT machine grew cobwebs. 

Don was the only one who appeared to be surprised that things went that way. 

Big Specials

Graeme Wall

We did [a Shirley Bassey special]  in TC1 about 1975. Big circular set with the audience in one half and the orchestra in the other,  stage in the centre.  There were possibly 2 peds and a Heron (or 3 peds, the memory is a bit dim). inside the set and the Nike and a Mole tracking round outside, looking over the top.

 

Alasdair Lawrance

I remember a big music prog with Yvonne Littlewood that started off with two Moles, two Herons and a ped.

By the end of the first day, it was one Heron and four peds…..

Almost certainly TC1, and although just cable bashing, I remember being exhausted at the end of the day, mauling all this machinery about, getting it out into the scenery runway, there being no more room elsewhere….

Tea Bar Nike

Graham Maunder

The … great Nike story of my era was when we were working with [Stewart Morris] one weekend and the Nike we had failed. The only other one at TVC that weekend was in TC1 on a drama that wasn’t in use on the Sunday. Sadly there was a full cyc cloth around the studio so the scene doors couldn’t be used. Undeterred we took it through the red tea bar, the south lifts (quite literally THROUGH the goods lift) and somehow got it into the studio. Simon [Morris], I think,  [was] ballast that evening!!

 

Peter Fox

Yes we did all that wiggling under the Red Tea-Bar doors with Simon as ballast but are you sure “we” did the lift trick? Because I recall John Latus getting into trouble at a later date for having driven a Nike through the lift (by proxy of course) and stretching the cables (three tons).  Or was it a delayed repercussion for our same inspired and magnificent show-saving efforts?