20th May 2025
John Wyver writes: At the bottom of column 5 on page 2 of the Thursday 20 May 1937 edition of The Era newspaper was a story headlined 'Look In When You're Passing'. Part of the Gaumont British media conglomerate, this
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12th May 2025
John Wyver writes: Today's post is an extract from chapter 7 of Magic Rays of Light: The Early Years of Television in Britain, to be published in January 2026.
On or about 12 May 1937 British television changed. That was certainly
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11th May 2025
The 150th original OTD post in this series.
John Wyver writes: Monday 2 May 1938 (I know, I know) saw pianist Harriet Cohen together with the a modestly enhanced BBC Television Orchestra give a studio concert at Alexandra Palace of
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9th May 2025
John Wyver writes: The evening of Tuesday 9 May was marked by an unfortunate incident in the studio at Alexandra Palace. During a 10-minute edition of Speaking Personally, in which R. B. Bennett, former Prime Minister of Canada, was
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8th May 2025
John Wyver writes: Thirty months into the high definition service Mary Adams' Talks programmes were becoming increasingly ambitious, with an increasing number of broadcasts featuring multiple guests. Perhaps the most ambitious was the 50-minute Salute to America on the evening
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7th May 2025
John Wyver writes: On Sunday 7 May 1939 the critic 'E.H.R.' contributed his usual television review column to The Observer. It was a fairly run-of-the-mill filing, but it gives us occasion to take a brief look at the state of
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6th May 2025
John Wyver writes: Saturday 6 May 1939 saw an exceptional morning broadcast from midday covering the departure from Waterloo of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, along with the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret (both only going as far as Portsmouth),
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5th May 2025
Daily Telegraph, 6 May 1938, with a picture (and apologies for the quality of the reproduction) taken in the studio during the previous evening's Picture Page.
2nd May 2025
John Wyver writes: Ninety years ago tonight, on Thursday 2 May 1935, Ivor Novello's musical Glamorous Night premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. The first nighters were enthralled and the box office registered exceptionally healthy sales. The
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1st May 2025
John Wyver writes: 'One of the big television occasions of the year,' was how Radio Times (above) trailed the live outside broadcast of the musical comedy Me and My Girl from the Victoria Palace on the evening of Monday
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