Some Welsh TV Broadcasters from the 1970's - what happened to them?

mr williamsmr williams Posts: 1,744
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edited 02/09/23 - 10:19 in Broadcasting #1
I've spent nearly all my life living just one side or the other of the West/Wales divide and have nearly always been able to get both regions programmes.

I was reminiscing with some of my Welsh mates at the weekend and three names came up of people who are probably no longer still with us, but does anybody know what happened to them?

Alan Taylor (or was it Alun Taylor?) who presented both quiz and kids programmes on TWW and HTV for many years. Very popular, and I remember my shopworker mother coming home all excited to tell us that a new local store would be opened by Bob Monkhouse because Taylor wanted too much money!! Last remember him on TV about 1975.

John Darren, who read the local news on BBC Wales from the mid-60's - early 80's when he was suddenly replaced by much younger presenters (that's nothing new then!) and the third

Idwal Robling, BBC Wales football commentator who went to the 1970 World Cup having won the Sportsnight "find a commentator" competition. Covered Welsh football on BBC TV until about 1985/86 and I last saw him at Somerton Park working for a local news organisation in about 1987.

Three big fish in a small pond in their day - anybody got any more info, please?
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  • ftvftv Posts: 31,668
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    Alan Taylor retired to Spain and died there in 1997 according to Wikipedia
  • AkilduffAkilduff Posts: 4,048
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    I remember some big Welsh TV shows in my youth that if I recall were shown at 6:30 nightly...
    So You Think You Know
    Invasion
    Sportfolio
    plus others...

    All axed after Neighbours got moved to the evening in 1988, but what happened to all those presenters....
  • SystemSystem Posts: 2,096,970
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    and the doyen of them all, the late great Wynford Vaughan Thomas
  • realwalesrealwales Posts: 3,110
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    Idwal Robling left BBC Wales in the mid-1980s. He got his break in a competition to find a new commentator on Match Of The Day. The guy who finished second, Gerry Harrison, seemed to get a better deal- he spent many years afterwards with ITV and is now the big boss at TransWorld.
  • wirelessonewirelessone Posts: 168
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    ahhhrrr,

    this brings back memories of being on holiday in Butlins Pwllheli in the 1970's.

    I was about 8 and from the part of Liverpool where you could not actually receive HTV (Gateacre village), just Granada.

    On the 2nd day of the holiday (no tv's in yer rooms in them days) I went to discover the TV lounges one afternoon.

    I popped in to the BBC1 room, programmes in Welsh.

    Popped into BBC2 room, Testcard.

    Popped into the ITV room, programmes in Welsh!

    imagine in this day and age being somewhere in Britain where there was no tv programmes on in English!

    Fair play to the Beeb & HTV, I forgot about telly for a week (My dad told me that even Coronation Street was dubbed into Welsh and I believed him! and had a hell of a good time around the camp.

    Ahhr the good old days! Alan Taylor & his monacle! and who could forget Paint Along With Nancy!
  • JELLIES0JELLIES0 Posts: 6,709
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    Alan Taylor (or was it Alun Taylor?) who presented both quiz and kids programmes on TWW and HTV for many years. Very popular, and I remember my shopworker mother coming home all excited to tell us that a new local store would be opened by Bob Monkhouse because Taylor wanted too much money!! Last remember him on TV about 1975.

    Yes he did Mr and Mrs in Wales also his children's programme Tinker and Taylor.
  • mr williamsmr williams Posts: 1,744
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    People in the HTV area could never understand why Derek Batey was always associated with "Mr & Mrs" when Alan Taylor had done the programme for donkey's years. IIRC Batey (or the production company he ran) actually held the UK rights to the programme and stopped HTV doing any more episodes as he had negotiated a network contract and wanted to present it himself.

    Tinker and Taylor was a blatant Saturday morning rip-off of Sooty, as the puppet always ended up covering Taylor in water or custard pies, or attacking him with xylophone hammers.

    I've just remembered another one - Vincent Kane - did radio news for many years before transferring to TV. What happened to him?
  • mrbernaymrbernay Posts: 145,819
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    For any nostalgics out there, please feel free to visit my Photobucket site:
    http://s251.photobucket.com/albums/gg295/mrbernay/?albumview=link;
    you will find programme pages from the Radio and ITV mags of the late 60s / early 70s including TWW/HTV's Television weekly - just scroll through.. Please let me know what you think... I could scan hundred of the pages but haven't the time. More will get done, but very slowly!!!
  • realwalesrealwales Posts: 3,110
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    People in the HTV area could never understand why Derek Batey was always associated with "Mr & Mrs" when Alan Taylor had done the programme for donkey's years. IIRC Batey (or the production company he ran) actually held the UK rights to the programme and stopped HTV doing any more episodes as he had negotiated a network contract and wanted to present it himself.

    Tinker and Taylor was a blatant Saturday morning rip-off of Sooty, as the puppet always ended up covering Taylor in water or custard pies, or attacking him with xylophone hammers.

    I've just remembered another one - Vincent Kane - did radio news for many years before transferring to TV. What happened to him?

    I saw Vincent Kane earlier this year- he's fine. He retired from Wales Today about ten years ago (maybe even longer) and gradually reduced his radio commitments from then on. BBC Wales gradually phased him out after that- there were a few TV specials but he doesn't work for them at all now.

    He was heavily involved with Cardiff University and might still be for all I know.

    He still looks exactly the same........
  • rhodrhod Posts: 3,995
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    John Darren, who read the local news on BBC Wales from the mid-60's - early 80's when he was suddenly replaced by much younger presenters (that's nothing new then!) and the third

    Darren popped up a few years later presenting the morning show when Touch AM launched (he did a pretty good job, as I recall).

    Not sure if he's still alive - he was knocking on a bit..
  • Over By Yer!Over By Yer! Posts: 2,206
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    The good old days of Harlech Television. I can still hear the start-up test card music now!
    I also was an avid viewer of "Tinker and Taylor" I also remember Alan Taylor presenting another kids TV programme around 1973 called "Orbit" which was based in a spaceship and featured a little alien puppet named "Chester"
    Other programmes I remember were "It's Time For Me" which was a 10 minute story reading programme which featured a lot of the Harlech Television presenters including Alan Taylor,Liz Carse,June Barry and Endaf Emlyn amongst others.
    Around 1970 there was also a "Blue Peter" style programme called "Very,Very Varied" presented by Liz Carse and none other than Peter Tomlinson.
    Where did it all go?
  • mrbernaymrbernay Posts: 145,819
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    The good old days of Harlech Television. I can still hear the start-up test card music now!
    I also was an avid viewer of "Tinker and Taylor" I also remember Alan Taylor presenting another kids TV programme around 1973 called "Orbit" which was based in a spaceship and featured a little alien puppet named "Chester"
    Other programmes I remember were "It's Time For Me" which was a 10 minute story reading programme which featured a lot of the Harlech Television presenters including Alan Taylor,Liz Carse,June Barry and Endaf Emlyn amongst others.
    Around 1970 there was also a "Blue Peter" style programme called "Very,Very Varied" presented by Liz Carse and none other than Peter Tomlinson.
    Where did it all go?

    More good memories...: Liz Carse married Martyn Lewis who went on to be ITN's Northern reporter before joining ITN in London. Liz (daughter of Duncan Carse - a director of Anglia TV and creator of "Survival") was struck down with a debilitating neurological disease, aand I don't know if she is still alive.They were customers in my parents' shop and really nice, down-to-earth people...
    Have you tried this site, OBY:
    http://www.hhg.org.uk/
  • TRSTRS Posts: 985
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    People in the HTV area could never understand why Derek Batey was always associated with "Mr & Mrs" when Alan Taylor had done the programme for donkey's years. IIRC Batey (or the production company he ran) actually held the UK rights to the programme and stopped HTV doing any more episodes as he had negotiated a network contract and wanted to present it himself.

    When I was a kid in the late seventies, Thames showed both versions of Mr & Mrs at various times. Always struck me as odd, having the same show made by two different companies. Can't remember, but did the HTV (Taylor) version have a different theme tune?
  • mrbernaymrbernay Posts: 145,819
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    TRS wrote: »
    When I was a kid in the late seventies, Thames showed both versions of Mr & Mrs at various times. Always struck me as odd, having the same show made by two different companies. Can't remember, but did the HTV (Taylor) version have a different theme tune?

    Yes, it was "Getting to Know You, Getting to Know All About You"...
  • TRSTRS Posts: 985
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    mrbernay wrote: »
    Yes, it was "Getting to Know You, Getting to Know All About You"...

    Thanks. Always preferred the Taylor version, not that I can admit to being a regular avid viewer mind :D
  • Over By Yer!Over By Yer! Posts: 2,206
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    mrbernay wrote: »
    More good memories...: Liz Carse married Martyn Lewis who went on to be ITN's Northern reporter before joining ITN in London. Liz (daughter of Duncan Carse - a director of Anglia TV and creator of "Survival") was struck down with a debilitating neurological disease, aand I don't know if she is still alive.They were customers in my parents' shop and really nice, down-to-earth people...
    Have you tried this site, OBY:
    http://www.hhg.org.uk/

    Thanks mrbernay. An excellent website.
    Sorry to hear the news about Liz Carse. If I remember rightly she was also Alan Taylor's assistant on "Mr and Mrs"

    Oh the memories!!.... http://www.farcical.freeuk.com/hhg/real/ha_start.ra
  • mrbernaymrbernay Posts: 145,819
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    TRS wrote: »
    Thanks. Always preferred the Taylor version, not that I can admit to being a regular avid viewer mind :D

    Of course, Teledu Cymru did a Welsh version "Sion a Sian" (sorry, no accents...)
  • Over By Yer!Over By Yer! Posts: 2,206
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    mrbernay wrote: »
    Of course, Teledu Cymru did a Welsh version "Sion a Sian"

    They did indeed. It was also on HTV Cymru.
    I live not far from the old Culverhouse Cross HTV studios and the Wenvoe masts. It is sad to see the old building in a mostly unused state nowadays.
  • Harris TweedHarris Tweed Posts: 1,613
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    realwales wrote: »
    The guy who finished second, Gerry Harrison..., seemed to get a better deal- he spent many years afterwards with ITV.

    There's a name from the past! I remember him on the other side of the UK as the main commentator on Angrier.

    I remember great excitement at Cambridge United one day when he strolled along the touchline (as it meant they'd be the main match). Ungrateful bastards all shouted "One Jimmy Hill.. there's only one Jimmy Hill" ;)
  • mrbernaymrbernay Posts: 145,819
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    They did indeed. It was also on HTV Cymru.
    I live not far from the old Culverhouse Cross HTV studios and the Wenvoe masts. It is sad to see the old building in a mostly unused state nowadays.

    Custom built studios - state of the art, for HTV and the future S4C - after they moved out of Pontcanna....
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 7,734
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    mrbernay wrote: »
    For any nostalgics out there, please feel free to visit my Photobucket site:
    http://s251.photobucket.com/albums/gg295/mrbernay/?albumview=link;
    you will find programme pages from the Radio and ITV mags of the late 60s / early 70s including TWW/HTV's Television weekly - just scroll through.. Please let me know what you think... I could scan hundred of the pages but haven't the time. More will get done, but very slowly!!!

    That is so cool! :)

    I love sites like that. The 1970 World Cup preview Radio Times was fascinating, especially as the typeface and the format of the mag would seem to have changed little over the next 16 years - I kept the Radio Times 1986 WC special which is still in my mum's loft, and it doesn't look too different. :eek:

    Please post more, mrbernay!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 493
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    People in the HTV area could never understand why Derek Batey was always associated with "Mr & Mrs" when Alan Taylor had done the programme for donkey's years. IIRC Batey (or the production company he ran) actually held the UK rights to the programme and stopped HTV doing any more episodes as he had negotiated a network contract and wanted to present it himself.

    Tinker and Taylor was a blatant Saturday morning rip-off of Sooty, as the puppet always ended up covering Taylor in water or custard pies, or attacking him with xylophone hammers.

    I've just remembered another one - Vincent Kane - did radio news for many years before transferring to TV. What happened to him?

    Vincent Kane has some dealings with the Welsh Assembly from time to time, particualrly in promoting business sectors. I know this as I work there and my boss and his good self meet up a few times in the year in my office, I thought he looked vaguely familiar when he walked past my desk! :-)

    He hadnt changed much in appearance as to when I used to see him on TV.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 217
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    What ever happened to Michael Lloyd Williams. I remember him on Report Wales and the early years of Wales at 6 ( I think he was on the first bulletin) but he seemed to disappear from newsreading soon after, as the only newscasters I can recall from Wales at 6 in the mid 80's are Alan Rustad, Sylvia Horn and Liz Lloyd Griffiths.

    IIRC I think he also did Farming Wales.

    Going back to Report Wales in the 70's, I can only seem to recall Michael Lloyd Williams presenting. I know it was only a one presenter programme, but surely there were others apart from MLW. If there were, can anyone remember them, cause for the life of me I can't.

    I also remember the Y Dydd programme with Vaughan Williams (or was it Hughes or Jones. My memory's fading but I do recall that he had dark hair and a moustache), Elinor Jones and Tweli Griffiths.

    Are there any video clips of Report Wales and Y Dydd on the net as I can't seem to find any apart from stills. It would be good to see some
  • I love EllieI love Ellie Posts: 8,009
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    Arfon Haines Davies rocks!
  • AkilduffAkilduff Posts: 4,048
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    Arfon Haines Davies rocks!


    As Max Boyce once said.....

    "Arfon Haines Davies - a man so posh, he gargles with Perrier water...."

    Also, can anyone remember a beer ad from the mid-80s where a bloke is clawing through the desert, until he sees a sign "You are now leaving England"

    Would love to see that again!
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