[Tech1] Trooping The Colour

[John Cox]

 What magnificent coverage of the Trooping this morning in vision and sound!  In the 1950s we struggled to get clean voice effects (shouted orders) we used a two foot reflecting parabola dish and omni microphones, six foot long Electrovoice 643 shotgun mics, (there is a picture of Albert operating one in the BBC Handbook for 1957)  Three foot long Labor gun mics, Sennheiser battery operated 815 mics later, 816 phantom power. I expect nowadays Radio Mics. Does anyone know? The distinction between effects and commentary was very clear, congratulations to everyone involved

 In the 1950s the BBC OBs were very welcomed at Horse Guards parade ground. We always used both offices of the Major General, alternating commentators, Richard Dimbleby, Wynford Vaughan Thomas and Michael Seth Smith, between Radio and TV each year. Later we were pushed out to other parts of the ground. The offices are now used exclusively for the Royals. I was standing next to Richard Dimbleby in the office on the Admiralty side of the building  when Big Ben struck eleven O’clock (probably1956) when the Queen had not appeared, the clock at the top of the Major General’s office was stopped and only struck when the Queen arrived fifteen minutes later. After the parade when the Queen heard of this she was very annoyed and made sure in the following years that everything was kept to strict timing.

 I try to watch the RAF fly past each year. I flew in the first fly past to Celebrate the King’s Birthday in 1950 Thursday June 8th. Four Lincoln Bombers from RAF Hemswell near Gainsborough and nine Lincolns from RAF Binbrook near Hull. We formed up over the east (one aircraft peeled off) and flew in a straight line along the strand above Trafalgar Square where the blue of the  two fountains was exceptionally clear and then on to Buckingham Palace. I sat in the wireless operators metal bucket seat cushioned by my parachute not daring to touch the receiver 1155 or transmitter 1154 but I think communication was carried out by VHF on the fairly new 1143 sets. I stood up to look at the scene below  from the strand to the palace, after, we the flew down to Brighton turned left on to Dover turned left again, over the Wash and back To RAF Hemswell after a most exciting trip.  
 How much gravel was used in covering the ground? ,also I didn’t see any soldiers fainting as in previous years, My sympathies’ are with the soldiers left to clear up the excreta from the well behaved horses after the show.

On the attached picture (hopefully) which came from the magazine “Majesty”  ( I added the blue) I was in the last Lincoln from 97 squadron with Master Pilot Horn as the pilot, on the port side just under the astrodome!
Sent from Mail for Windows 10
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