[Tech1] Early BBC Radio mics and cameras

[David Taylor]

Re The Hoy climb of 1967.
Thank you Alan and Mike for the information.

I see from a video Mike sent me that there were two radio cameras, although
more 'radio cameramen'...ie climbers with the little Thompson cameras were
credited.
I also found that the documentary about the 1967 Hoy programme is in fact
available in full on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/k6aYKZwr15k
No ferry available, so they organised a Landing Craft to get the trucks
there...and that was just the start. The bits about the OB de-rig tent
having been destroyed 1 day before the TX was due and it all somehow coming
together are amazing.

DaveT

On Wed, 17 Mar 2021 at 21:47, Alan Taylor via Tech1 <tech1 at tech-ops.co.uk>
wrote:

> At the start of my career, I was recruited into the engineering stream
> rather than the operations side and briefly worked as the technical
> assistant on the radio camera with cameraman John Pilblad and engineer John
> Scrivens?   Don’t remember much about the B&W radio camera itself, but do
> recall that the portable back pack used wet electrolyte batteries, (
> possibly silver zinc cells ? ).  The cells had transparent glass cases and
> there were little coloured plastic balls inside of different densities.
> You could judge the state of the batteries by which plastic balls were
> floating or had sunk.
>
> Producers were well used to the batteries failing and it wasn’t a quick
> job to swap for freshly charged batteries.  If the batteries failed towards
> the end of the show, the radio camera was effectively useless for the rest
> of that show. Unsurprisingly, if the radio camera team fancied an early
> finish, the cameraman would tell the director that the batteries were
> rapidly failing and they would be cleared to return to the truck, start
> derigging early and get away nice and sharpish.
>
> Alan Taylor
>
>
>
>
>
> On 17 Mar 2021, at 19:37, Brian Summers via Tech1 <tech1 at tech-ops.co.uk>
> wrote:
>
> 
>
> The Radio cameras in use at that time,  1967,  were monochrome and
> probably this Thomson model introduced in 1962.
> http://www.tvcameramuseum.org/thomson/chf503/p2.html  which, together
> with its predecessor had been in use since about 1957.  The BBC had several.
>
>
>
> In the late 1960s (1978/8 in the USA) portable colour cameras were a
> desperate thing, the first one that BBC OBs had (that was any good at all)
> was the Philips/Norelco PCP90. The Marconi MkVIIIP did not appear until
> 1974.
>
>
>
> Brian Summers
>
> www.tvcameramuseum.org
>
>
>
> *From:* David Taylor [mailto:david at davidtaylorsound.co.uk]
> *Sent:* 17 March 2021 17:04
> *To:* Tech-Ops-chit-chat <tech1 at tech-ops.co.uk>
> *Subject:* Early BBC Radio mics and cameras
>
>
>
> The BBC Archive page has the interesting video of the 1967 broadcast
> covering the climb of The Old Man Of Hoy.
>
> It can be seen here:
>
> https://www.facebook.com/BBCArchive/videos/1967-old-man-of-hoy/603517470021287/
>
>
>
> Now this item has been discussed on Tech-Ops before of course, but I do
> find it fascinating to contemplate the difficulties involved.
>
> In July 1967 we have:
> 1:"Four Radio Cameramen": Each with small portable cameras with
> 'back-packs'. They aren't LDK14's since they came much later, so are they
> Marconi VIIIP portables, or something even earlier? I love the cameraman
> 'leaning' back to shoot up the rock face, even if he is being held by a
> colleague.
> 2: The camera Radio TX kit. We see this big piece of kit being 'held on'
> alongside that cameraman.
>
> 3: Radio mic from Joe Brown. The mic would be taped to his helmet I guess,
> but there's the receiver and the VHF aerials to house, plus mains feed.
> 4: Radio ear-piece to Joe Brown. So there's the transmitter for that as
> well.
>
> 5: Chris Bonnington, standing in a gale - obviously being 'boomed' . The
> BBC R&D reported on the Senny 805 in 1966, so it could be that. I remember
> Senny made 'windshields', but that was before the Rycote 'sheep' outer
> cover (question to Chris Woolfe perhaps)?
>
> 6: Getting the signal out from The Orkneys....now that would have been fun
> . Microwave for vision, plus laying the PO lines across from the nearest
> connection block, to the site for the audio and comms.
>
> 7: The de-rigged gear from MCR27 - in a tented Control Room I guess. If
> there are 4 Radio cameras, plus say 2 or 3 Pye MkVI's, it's quite a rig in
> that tent. More camera CCU kit than MCR27 usually used. Three days of
> transmissions to 'endure' in the rain.
>
>
>
> 'Merit Awards' for all I reckon!
>
>
>
> So when did the first Radio Cameras arrive? And the first use by the BBC
> of radio mics?
>
> ATV were proud at having radio mics in use on The Palladium Shows from
> 1961. They had a transistor transmitter, but a whooping VHF receiver, plus
> the big Yagi aerials that went with it. I guess the BBC were able to do
> that as well around that time?
>
>
>
> David T
>
> www.postfade.co.uk
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