12 years in Brum

How does one condense twelve-and-a-half years of achievements, trials and tribulations into a short article of this nature. As soon as I started to think back over the years, my mind recalled so many incidents pleasant and unpleasant, amusing and horrifying, enough in fact to compile a book; but on second thoughts, under the existing laws of libel – who would print it!

I well remember the Opening Night in Birmingham — a joint ABC/ATV effort — inaugural ceremony by the Lord Mayor and civic dignitaries from the Town Hall, followed by a variety show from the Alpha Studio, the ITN News and back to the Town Hall for cabaret. V.I.P.s from the City of Birmingham, V.I.P.s from the original contractors, V.I.P.s from the ITA — the place just swarmed with V.I.P.s.

Joe Loss and his Orchestra supplied the music at the Town Hall and Joe was very upset to find only three cardioid microphones covering the whole band. I told him that we had brand new sound equipment in commercial television which enabled far better coverage by each mike plus a brilliant Sound Balancer and the effect was just great! What I could not tell him was that we only had three mikes and these we had borrowed!

Came the cabaret and, with the announcement in progress introducing Boyer and Revell, a lady and gentleman walked on to the ‘floor show’ area and sat on two chairs already positioned for the artistes.

“Get ’em out quick,” I cried to Bill Ward of ATV. “Not me,” says Bill – “that’s Sir Philip and Lady Warter”. [Chairman of the Associated British Picture Corporation and ABC TV — Ed] “I don’t … care who they are,” said I. However, with controlled tact and diplomacy and with due apologies, too, most readily accepted by the Chairman and his Lady, the situation was retrieved.

That’s television for you – but not how to win friends and influence the right people!

Since those days of “do it yourself” techniques, so much has changed and one must remember, too, that the Independent Television Companies really had to struggle in this early period to make ends meet. This statement may seem to offer ribald laughter and ruderies from some of the younger members of the industry – I can just hear them saying “but look at them now”. Please remember, though, that had it not been for the ability of Company Directors and all the original “old hands” to “tighten the belt”. Independent Television could well have gone into liquidation and people would not be enjoying a thriving industry with the high rates of pay which exist today.

Well, Alpha slowly — but very slowly — progressed from an OB unit de-gutted into a wooden hut (make-shift control room) supplying the one and only studio, into a two-studio operation. This was achieved under the personal management of Bernard Greenhead and the Alpha staff, bedecked in suitable attire, pouring concrete in every conceivable direction. At this time, it was impossible to hire either gumboots or wheelbarrows anywhere in the City of Birmingham – Greenhead had the lot! But it says much for the effort that was expended because Studio 2, which they built by hand, is still in daily use.

BEFORE … Formerly Aston’s Theatre Royal, then the Astoria Cinema, Aston Road North’s landmark was to become the Television Theatre before being renamed (AFTER) … Alpha Television Studios – as seen in this night-time shot taken shortly after completion.

 

The next phase was planning and building the five-storey building as we know it today plus ancillary control rooms, canteen, etc. This took two-and-a-half years to complete and was absolute chaos. We neither cancelled a programme nor came off the air once.

Demolition work, builders’ rubble, pile-driving, a different route around the studios every day – anything to confuse the staff just happened. The Sound Department had a ball of a time – so much so that they rigged up a klaxon alarm system which sounded off two minutes before “airtime” when the workmen stopped hammering, pile-driving, pneumatic drilling, etc. and supped solidly from tea cans until the second blast off which signalled the end of transmission and the renewal of this devastating noise. The Same Day Cleaning Company across the road must have made a fortune!

This may all sound amusing, but progressing in this manner, with so many operational difficulties, produced an astonishing esprit de corps among the lads and lassies of Alpha. They also had to get used to operating and working with two entirely different companies, ATV from Monday to Friday and ABC at weekends. Although straightforward enough on paper, this produced difficulties and it is to the credit of everybody concerned in the three companies that the system worked so well over thirteen years.

Every type of production – drama, light entertainment, religion, education, documentary – you name it – we’ve done it! Needless to say, some productions in the drama field and light entertainment shows such as Val Parnell’s Startime were so cramped in the very limited studio areas that they were soon moved elsewhere – but at least we tried. The original World of Sport type of programme [entitled “Let’s Go”] came from Alpha every Saturday afternoon, having spent most of Friday night turning Studio 1 into a glorified “in vision” control room and linking studio, then converting back to a normal studio for the Sunday productions.

We surely must hold the record for long-running shows – Thank Your Lucky Stars every Sunday for over five years. Lunch Box every weekday for eight years. Crossroads, a five-episodes-a-week serial, recently reduced to four a week, has been running nearly three-and-a-half years and has notched up 900 episodes.

And what about people? Well, Alpha has turned out some pretty smart runners from its stable. What about Bernard Greenhead, Eric Parry and Howard Steele for a start? I think it is true to say that every television company in the country has at least one ex-member of Alpha and most have done very well for themselves. There is a lot more of this potential, and I hope some of them will get the opportunities to make the higher grades in the years to come.

As you read this, the new licence period will be commencing and Alpha will suddenly be absorbed into ATV Network Ltd’s new and exciting operation in the Midlands. In a way, it is sad that Alpha’s identity will vanish but progress is progress and in years to come it will only be remembered by ex-Alpha men and women who will recall “what television used to be like in my young days”.

I know that everyone here in Birmingham would want me to wish you all tremendous success under the new Thames Television banner and, for myself, I wish the Alpha staff every success under their new ATV banner.

Ah, me – things will never be the same ….