Pages & Proofs

The BBC continues to be in the news for all the wrong reasons, but we should remember that this mighty institution has been around for 90 years now. It’s first crackly transmission occurred on 14 November 1922 where the Beeb reported on a train robbery and the fog in London. From the book collecting point [...]

Rejoice Downton Abbey fans – the new series starts on ITV this Sunday at 9pm. Of course, the real Downtown Abbey is Highclere Castle in Hampshire although the beautiful village of Bampton in Oxfordshire is also used for filming. The fictional downtown Abbey is set in Yorkshire. There is a book about historic Highclere – [...]

Memories were flooding back to me as I browsed these long forgotten Blue Peter Annuals ranging from 1965 to 1981. Some of the covers are shocking – what were the BBC thinking? John Noakes and Peter Duncan falling over and getting hurt. Lizzie Dripping (aka Tina Heath) becoming a host. Lesley Judd’s boots and flowing [...]