65th Birthday of Ulster Television.
Today’s celebrations are overshadowed with news that one of the regular visitors to Ulster Television, Candy Devine, died yesterday. Her husband and manager Don McLeod forbad her smoking habit so she’s nip into the makeup department and share a cigarette with Sheila Dundee! She was the life and soul of any party and everyone loved her. There have been many tributes this morning and I will reflect these in an obituary in Saturday’s Irish News.
I can hardly believe that it was 65 years ago this afternoon that Ulster Television bounced out of Havelock House an into the homes of Belfast. What a lead up to that Hallowee’n day, I’d been there for three week and watched as the old handkerchief factory was converted into television studios. The workman were still there that day but the hammering and sawing and cement mixers ceased long enough for transmission at four p.m It was heady stuff for a teenager who’d been asked to leave school – the best thing my headmaster ever did – and was a junior clerk over the moon with excitement. Launch day saw flowers being delivered by the van load, the canteen busy keeping everyone supplied with coffee and tea, front of camera celebrities pimping and preening in the makeup rooms and I’ve no doubt management in the board room sipping more than coffee and tea. Guests began arriving, the great and the good, stuffed shirt politicians, self important businessmen, colourful celebrities and Laurence Olivier striding the corridors. For me the most glamorous was the man who started Ulster Television on the road to success, William McQuitty know by all as Bill.
His film A Night To Remember was the best film ever made about the ill fated journey of the Titanic – not just my opinion – and it was a labour of love as, as a six year old be watched the launch of the ship in May 1911. He said: “Every ship in the lough sounded its siren, the noise drowning the roar of the piles of restraining anchors as they were dragged along the ground. Slowly gathering speed, the Titanic moved smoothly down the ways, and a minute later was plunging into the water and raising a huge wave. I felt a great lump in my throat and an enormous pride in being an Ulsterman.” He was known also for his photographs of Tutankhamun in his book The Last Journey telling the amazing story of the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun by Howard Carter – recognised as the richest find in the whole history of archaeology. And Bill McQuitty was there recording history. Sadly we didn’t know all of this when he came round the offices after board meetings, he liked to give the girls a kiss so when the word went out ‘Mr. McQuitty is on the way’, we all fled to the toilets! Why of why didn’t someone in authority introduce us to this remarkable man and arrange for him to talk to us about his life and achievements. He was special but only many years later did I know just how special. Oh to have talked to him.
I was a lowly typist recording the feature films coming into the film library and then a production assistant working in the studio on a huge variety of programmes. When I married ‘within the company’ I had to leave as husbands and wives were not permitted to work together! However, a few years after presenting in BBC radio and working in the theatre, someone saw something in me that suggested producing and presenting my own programme. What a challenge, I had to be asked three times and only on the third time did I say yes and Ask Anne was born. What a delight to source stories and bring them to the public and this together with the early days of Ulster Television eventually became my book of those times – Standby Studio. The stories came thick and fast as I sat at my laptop looking back and thank goodness for a visual memory.
The Ask Anne team – Me with Barbara Stewart (standing) and Irene Ruff (in those days Lough)
During my time producing and presenting ASK ANNE there were many laughs of delight and howls of panic! One of the things I loved most was going downstairs the week before the Monday transmission to talk to Andy Johnston and Colin Parker to sort out the set according to the running order. It might be a large table for Olive Clegg from the University of Ulster to cut out dress patterns or an audience to discuss cruelty to animals – that one I remember because a group from Animal Rights activists arrived with all the paraphernalia for trapping foxes and dogs, great chains and clamps and they rattled them to show how cruel people can be. Agreed but they were very brutal in the speech, they were proud of super glueing the locks on Jaffa Furs so no one could get in or out.
During set and light I took the audience to the canteen, about 30 members of the public in all – the Rights group sat by themselves. I went to their table to see if they were happy enough; I was loudly set upon for appearing in a white fur coat in one of the promos during the week. “We saw you on television walking down Great Victoria Street advertising this programme and you should be well ashamed of yourself for wearing a white fur coat, you are a hypocrite.” Well you can image I was a bit scundered ! I was however, delighted to tell them my white fur coat was just a white wool coat and no animal was slaughtered in the making of it and I was proud to wear it. Reminds me of the day I was talking to a girl from some women’s organisation. She was very feminist as was the friend who came with her. Obviously they didn’t rate me much and had a very aggressive attitude. But all was nothing until during the rehearsal I said their phones would be ‘manned’ for an hour after the programme. Well. The friend came hurtling across the studio floor and shouted at me that the phones would not be manned. I said I thought that was the arrangement we’d come to. “The phones will be answered for an hour after your programme – they certainly will not be manned.” I did as I was told.
Ernie Strathee sports editor and Belfast Telegraph sports editor Malcolm Brodie in studio one.
But the Christmas story that comes to mind involved a set which was wonderful with tree and garlands in one corner, a table set for dinner but most of the space taken up with a kitchen set, working oven and counter to demonstrate carving the beast.
We got underway and all was great until the chef in question went to the oven to take out the turkey, which was precooked but steamy coming out of the over, and it looked awful. “It’s too pale,” he was almost in tears. “We can’t use this, it looks under cooked and that would be dangerous.”
Stop recording. Consider what to do. Time was running out. Although the programme was recorded as live we had to stop as the poor man was in bits. Flash of genius – take the turkey to makeup and consult Connie Larmour. Being the quick thinking girl that she was, she went to her box of tricks and took out a Revlon Toasted Beige foundation and a brush. She started on the turkey and by the time she finished it looked succulent and good enough to eat. Back into the oven for those few seconds for the chef to open the door and take out a perfectly cooked bird to the oos and aas of the guests in the studio.
When I first worked in Ulster Television we received complimentary balcony seats for the London Palladium and, with my parents, we took advantage of this on a number of occasions. The fabulous Bruce Forsyth was mesmerising, funny, visual, his whirlwind television appearances which began at the Palladium through quiz shows right up to Strictly Come Dancing, it’s fair to say he made the impact of a fizzing, frenetic meteor hitting earth night after night. Little did I know I’d have a connection with him in years to come.
Back in the 60’s he appeared on ‘Roundabout”, UTV’s teatime programme. He took over and the studio was chaos. I was timing the show, had to be finished to the second to join Network for the news, he was clowning round on a three wheeled caption base, singing and laughing but the dear man obviously had an eye on the floor manager who was counting out the programme and at just the last second he stopped, smiled at his audience at home and waved goodnight. To say I was in a state of collapse is an understatement!
But my abiding memory came a few years ago when I was researching my book about the early days of Ulster Television. I wrote to Bruce asking for a telephone interview. Nothing. I’d given up when one day the phone rang. “Anne. Bruce Forsyth.” He omitted adding OBE awarded in 1998 for his outstanding work in the world of entertainment, the knighthood was yet to come.
“Darling, I’ve just found your letter, am I in time for your book?” The reply was obvious. “For you Bruce, I’ll hold the press.” I asked if he remembered causing mayhem in Studio One, “I remember a scooter I think, was it a scooter?” I told him a roller caption on wheels. We got on well and he gave me his home number and his mobile if I wanted to talk again.
As it turned out I did.
Once married to a girl from Derriaghy, when I phoned it was his fairly new wife Wilnelia who answered, “Bruce darling, it’s Anne in Belfast.”
I’d remembered that Belfastman Paddy Hopkirk had once appeared on the Palladium show.
“Hopkirk. Paddy Hopkirk.” Thinks. “Mini Cooper S? Won the Monte Carlo Rally?” Spot on – 44 years later.
With his red Mini Cooper S, Paddy had joined Bruce on the revolving stage. “Only time we ever had a car on the show. Marvellous,” was the compere’s memory.
Later Paddy explained that Bruce was in front of the curtains when the noise of a car racing filled the theatre then the squeal of brakes. “Who’s that?” “Paddy Hopkirk,” replies his gag man. “Why didn’t you stop him?” “I tried to,” and the gag man turns round to reveal tyre marks right across his back as if he’s been run over.
“Then I drive onto the stage and do the interview, imagine, me on the revolving stage with Bruce, my hero Tommy Cooper and the Tiller girls.”
And Bruce remembered too! “You see,” he said, “the mind is a marvellous thing, it’s an encyclopaedia but you need memory jogs don’t you?”
The last thing he said was how much he’d enjoyed our conversation and looked forward to getting a copy of the book which he did. He added, “Thanks for the memories.” Thank you Bruce Forsyth for the laughter and fun and so many memories, you are much missed.
Indeed thank you everyone one who made Ulster Television what it was and gave me the extraordinary memories from turning down dinner with Carpetbaggers author Harold Robins who apparently gave each of his wives a million pounds each, to being shut in Tom Jones dressing room complimenting him on his new record Green Green Grass of Home whilst getting his contract signed. I wished him well with the record and he said – “Thanks love, I will enjoy it because I think it’s a one off.” How wrong can you be Tom.