Author: Colin Grimshaw

I’m Colin Grimshaw. Although I took early retirement at the start of 2011 I was asked to continue to run the Video Archive Blog and keep adding material on a regular basis. Now, working from home, I will have more time to recall the background details to the videos you will be seeing. Since the late 1960’s I’ve been recording all sorts of things related to Imperial College. This is in the form of magnetic tape, but more importantly videotape. Although the College Archives holds thousands of pieces of paper in the form of documents, books, journals, manuscripts, etc, its collection of sound and visual recordings (videotape and film) is surpassed by the videotape archive collection...

Pallab Ghosh – Wells Soc Revival: 1981

Who would have thought that this first appearance on TV at Imperial College would lead to a career on the BBC? Yes, it’s Pallab Ghosh now Science Correspondent for BBC News. Pallab studied Physics at Imperial which was probably a good all-rounder for what came next.

But before his BBC career he was the editor of the student newspaper Felix. I do have the videotape of his Felix Editor Hustings Speech from 3 March 1983 (we’ll see that soon). Prior to that though, he was the chairman of the Imperial College HG Wells Society. Back in 1981, he was speaking to STOIC’s Martin Cowen about the revival of the society and what was planned in the coming months, including a potential Loch Ness Monster expedition!

The photo above shows Pallab during a visit to Imperial College in 2014.

Colin Grimshaw May 2020

University Challenge selections: 1981/1984

With the Imperial College team being the current winners of the 2024 University Challenge I thought it would be interesting to go back to both 1981 and 1984 to see how STOIC helped to select the teams for those years.

In 1981 it was achieved in the same way as the TV programme with the participants sitting as they do in the actual programme. This must have proved a challenge itself because in 1984 it was done in the style of Mastermind, but with a green chair rather than black. The first programme was shot in black and white, as the TV Studio had not by then gone into full colour. The photo on the right was during the 1981 recording. Mike Hackett was the presenter in 1981 and Richard Monkhouse in 1984.

Colin Grimshaw – April 2024

IC Big Band: 1978

This video has me very confused! I’m having trouble finding references or information about the IC Big Band in the videotape index other than just this single one. I do know however that this one item was from 21st June 1978 and featured on STOIC’s Lunch Break weekly programme. I can’t even get any clues to the location used. I do however recognise one person in the video as having been involved with STOIC, so I assume that pins it down to the Imperial campus perhaps? On the videotape there is no introduction, just the music session so that doesn’t help me either. More information lost in time and never recorded anywhere.

It appears however that the IC Big Band does still exist today and have their own Website and Facebook page too! Here’s what they say about themselves:

The official big band of Imperial College London, IC Big Band regularly performs top quality jazz in and around the capital. The platinum award-winning band consists of current university students at Imperial College London, and has gained an excellent reputation that grows year on year.

Colin Grimshaw – April 2020

Imperial College Health Centre report: 1980

It’s pure coincidence that back in November I selected this particular video for the April blog. I guess it seems appropriate for today’s current pandemic situation and although being April 1st, sadly, it really is no joke.

Health and Welfare were items that featured on STOIC’s News programmes on a regular basis, starting way back in the early 1970’s in fact. In 1980 the college health centre in Princes Gardens had just been updated and improved. Mike Prosser went along to see the latest developments and to chat with Pat Kilshaw about the services and facilities available to students. We also get to see the sickbay with 5 beds. I also seem to recall that I actually shot this video for them.

This is a lovely record of what college facilities looked like 40 years ago.

Colin Grimshaw April 2020

A London Video in a Day: 2009

Could you realistically shoot a video all around London in one day? Well, ten years ago back in 2009 we did just that with three Imperial students. The idea was to show just what opportunities there were for getting out and about from Imperial College, which is based in the South Kensington area of London.

Using three students, who had helped us by appearing in previous videos, the idea was that they would guide you (the viewer) around some famous locations. Starting at South Kensington we would show the advantages of the London Tube, Buses and even taxis. Clearly this would be a video that required a lot of planning and time-scales were set for being in each location by a certain time. We got all of the permissions that were required, including access to tube stations and platforms. We shot more or less in sequence, but cheated slightly here and there.

Amazingly the day we selected was perfect. Sunny and very warm all day long. Everyone mucked in with helping to carry things around the various locations. We didn’t stay in places for long, just long enough to get what we wanted, which was usually one sentence, then check the recordings and then back on the tube again. Look at the Big Ben sequence and you’ll see what time we were there! And we also had a very cooperative taxi driver who allowed us to film inside his cab, not easy with a big camera I can tell you. I must try and find the out-takes from this shoot.

So, some great locations all shot in a day and with genuine 2009 era Imperial College students being our guides.

Colin Grimshaw March 2020

John Passmore – ICU President: 1980

John Passmore was the ICU President from 1980-81 and elected into that post in March 1980. The front page of Felix announced the election results on its front page of 14 March 1980. STOIC interviewed him in the TV Studio just after the new term had started. From the 8 October 1980, here he is talking to Graeme Shaw.

Not that long after the term had started he was in the news again. He was the victim of a ‘kidnapping’ rag stunt by City University. Once more STOIC was on the case and here’s their report from 13 November 1980, Mike Hackett was the location reporter.

Colin Grimshaw March 2020

Nick Brayshaw – ICU President: 1976

In this blog we have the oldest interviews with an Imperial College Student Union President. Nick Brayshaw had just been elected into the post in March 1976 for the period 1976-1977. STOIC’s news programme was then called Lunch Break and was largely broadcast live from the college TV studio. These particular programmes were only recorded so that we could see what they looked like after the broadcasts. Luckily, for what ever reason, these interviews were copied onto the U-matic format and survive to this day.

Firstly, live coverage from the Great Hall with Nick Brayshaw’s acceptance speech and interview by Mark Caldwell.

Chatting to Nick Brayshaw later that week was Mike Williams. Mike was a former editor of the Imperial College student newspaper FELIX (1974-1975). He did many interviews for STOIC including another one also broadcast live, but this time over the ILEA cable network covering the whole of London. On that occasion in 1977 he interviewed the then film reviewer for the BBC Barry Norman.  I was in touch with him recently and he now resides in the USA and is working at the University of San Francisco.

Colin Grimshaw March 2020

STOIC@50: 1970-2020

Three months after I started this Video Archive Blog I featured STOIC, that was in February 2010. Then, it was a mere 40 years since the Student TV Service had started. But now it’s reached the half century. You can of course read the two blogs about STOIC (One and Two) where you’ll find videos and lots of photos. So I won’t repeat all of those things again. What I will do is to include items that were never featured before and in particular videos discovered in the current digitisation of the STOIC archive.

What better way than to begin with those who started STOIC back in 1970 and continued thereafter. In 1980 it was 10 years since the start of their TV service and the video “Happy Birthday to Us” was made to celebrate and you can see that video in my blog STOIC One (links above). At the anniversary reception, held in the Senior Common Room on 15 February 1980, interviews were recorded with past Chairmen of STOIC including Andy Finney who was really the person who got things off the ground. Asking the questions is Grant Richmond who you will read more from later.

In the blog STOIC One there’s a 1971 tour of the Electrical Engineering Department’s (level 3) TV Studio, but now we have the tour made in June 1974. This is also a great record of the studio itself which is not captured anywhere else. Mark Caldwell, seen in the birthday video, makes the introduction. It was shot in one go with no editing except for one or two stops and starts between sections (stopping and then restarting the video recorder). It also features my former colleague Steve Bell (on camera one) who is in the next video too!

In January 1974, six months before the above video was made, STOIC pre-recorded an opening sequence for the then news programme TOPIC. Like the studio tour video it was shot in one go. But, regardless of the production quality it has some great shots of the (Elec Eng) TV Studio along with STOIC’s very own rotating logo, studio control room and STOIC’s RCA 2 inch quad recorder, all now long gone! Steve Bell is heard at the very start announcing the ‘take number and then seen with headphones on. You can also see a brief glimpse of STOIC’s Sony “rover” camera on a tripod in the studio.

The Electrical Engineering TV Studio as it originally looked when STOIC started in 1970, can be seen in some unique colour film. It shows the original PYE black and white vidicon cameras and studio set-up. I’m seen, blurred in long shot, operating the Ampex One Inch recorder. You can also see the crude video monitors (with me operating the film camera) and the PYE vision mixer.

And finally, some 3 years before STOIC ceased to use what, by then, had become the College TV studio, we have a rediscovered recording, shot behind the scenes. It was recorded in the Control Room on 13 June 1983 during the weekly transmission of Newsbreak. Martin Bolding is on sound and also continuity with Tim Davey on vision mixing.

Earlier I mentioned Grant Richmond who now lives in Cairns, North Queensland, Australia. He had a few comments to make when he looked back at his time studying at Imperial and his involvement with STOIC and its 50 years.

“I would say it is really impressive and reminds me of how much extra-curricular activity there was at Imperial, especially considering such a small on-campus population. My point is how remarkable STOIC was to inform (& entertain?) the student community and I would like to think, staff too. I know technology has changed so anyone with a mobile phone can capture events these days and upload to YouTube, but there is no editorial discipline and it’s probably quite hard to get attention. At least with STOIC they had no choice in the JCR at lunchtime! I am most grateful for the opportunity STOIC gave me to participate and to be able to see the record of some of these activities all these years later.”

A lot more will be found from my first two blogs featuring STOIC and in particular the “Happy Birthday to Us” video, which more or less tells the whole story of how they started, and indeed ran, until leaving the College TV studio in summer 1986. To end, I have recreated the STOIC logo that I designed and added an updated version of the jingle that has never been heard before. It was on the master tape at 15ips, which was a tape speed that we couldn’t run. Now, hopefully, the sound quality will come through at last.

And with the time just after 6:24 STOIC is now closing down……

 

Colin Grimshaw 17 February 2020 – Happy Birthday to Them

Interferon Pilot Plant: 1980

In the February 2019 blog, about Imperial Biotechnology Ltd, I included a Thames Television interview with Dr Trevor Langley. Through the current digitisation of the STOIC archives I now have something home-grown about the pilot plant. In May 1980 Tracy Poole (now Dudley) reported on the current work being undertaken and also interviewed Prof Brian Hartley (16 April 1926 – 3 May 2021), a former Head of Department in Biochemistry.  He was then overseeing the entire project.

The pilot plant was ultimately closed and dismantled in 1994 and was finally refurbished as the Flowers Building.

Colin Grimshaw February 2020

 

Prof Jim Ring – Hunt report 1982

In 1982 the then Home Secretary announced that an independent inquiry under the chairmanship of Lord Hunt was to consider the broadcasting aspects of the possible expansion of cable television in the UK.

It was announced that they had managed to secure the help of Lord Hunt of Tanworth, Sir Maurice Hodgson and Professor James (Jim) Ring to conduct this inquiry. They had a lot to do in a short time, but they had already started work and a copy of the consultative document which they issued on 7 April 1982 had been placed in the Library of the House of Commons. Jim Ring was Professor of Infra-Red astronomy in the Department of Physics and appeared regularly on TV programmes such as the Sky at Night.

I knew Jim Ring well, and had previously recorded an archive interview with him in 1980. On the 21 October 1982 he came into the TV Studio to chat to STOIC’s Lawrence Windley about the committees work and their report.

Colin Grimshaw January 2020