Category: Student life

Jez report & update: 1982

Amazingly, Jez (more correctly Jezebel) was only featured on STOIC eight times between November 1979 and May 1984. Today’s item from November 1982 is different because it includes part of the time that Jez appeared on the BBC’s Blue Peter programme earlier that year in February. You can read all about that appearance on page 3 of Felix from February 1982. Duncan Batty from RCS Motor Club was outside in the cold talking to STOIC’s Mark Simms (see Felix bottom page 3) about what had been happening to Jez since that time.

The picture at the top is of me with camera, with my colleague Martin Sayers with microphone on 26 June 2008. This was outside the college main entrance during the retirement party for Rector Sir Richard Sykes. Jez was on duty to greet Sir Richard and Lady Sykes and to take them on an unforgettable evening ride.

Colin Grimshaw September 2024

Imperial Opera Rehearsal: 1980

I must admit that I was slightly confused with this STOIC location report from 1980. I had assumed, incorrectly, that this was Op Soc, but it isn’t. I could not find any references in the STOIC card index other than to Op Soc and indeed this video, N52, is listed under Op Soc.

As you will hear in the interview, Imperial Opera is (was?) formed from ex-Imperial students who had been in Op Soc. Mike Prosser (a former STOIC Chairman) spoke with Ian Gledhill during rehearsals that were taking place in the union concert hall.

Colin Grimshaw August 2024

ICU Hustings – Video Promos: 1978

Today’s clip is rather fun because it’s part of a series that were made for candidates to promote themselves in the forthcoming student elections. These were shown leading right up to the day of elections and this particular video was from Lunchbreak on 2 March 1978. This was not a pre-recorded programme but rather it was put out live from both the TV Studio and also from the Great Hall during the actual hustings. We won’t be seeing the hustings today, although we do have them on videotape in the archive. Chris Drage was on presenters duty for this programme and if you listen carefully you’ll hear me on continuity at the very start over the STOIC logo caption.

Colin Grimshaw July 2024

RCSU Mascot Raid: 1978

For the first edition of Lunchbreak in January 1978, James Sinclair had something exciting to talk about with the then recent (late 1977) RCSU raid on QMC’s (Queen Mary College) Leopard mascot (Mary the Leopardess). In the studio he spoke with Pete Maltbeck (President of RCSU) about what had happened. STOIC were also quick off the mark with some location footage of the mascot being removed from the RCSU office to an unknown location. Sadly, once again, this is during a time period of missing copies of Felix (1977-1978) so I can’t get any further information on the outcome of the raid.

Unusually, this was a live edition of the programme and I suspect that this was because term had only just started. One amusing thing is that just after James Sinclair starts talking you can hear the old college bells strike 1pm, the approximate time of the transmission.

Colin Grimshaw June 2024

90 down & more to go!

Well, I’ve now worked my way through 90 videotapes that have been digitised. That’s 90 more occasions where I might find something very interesting or have something of historical significance to Imperial College. As you might well know, I’m doing all of this from home since I retired early, some 13 years ago. It can, at times, be a long process to capture content from even just a single videotape. Sticky-shed, as previously discussed, can make it impossible to play a tape back without heat treatment. But once completed (which can take a full day) a videotape might yield some interesting discoveries. Also, as discussed many times, the archive of STOIC is providing some incredible material with both interviews and also their coverage of college events. A recent discovery being that very short clip of Nobel Prize winner Abdus Salam in the Great Hall. I have also discovered a fascinating interview with previous College Secretary John Smith talking about his time as Governor of the Gilbert Islands. I’ll add this new video to my previous blog about him.

During the final few transfers, I found a very early clip of Pallab Ghosh who was standing for Felix Editor. My previous blog post included his 1981 interview about Wells Soc, but that was shot in black and white. This 1983 interview is in colour and is about him standing for Felix editor (which he became), it includes his election speech during the Hustings. He is now Science Correspondent for BBC News.

Simon Singh was elected as RCS President back in March 1983. He came into the TV Studio along with the rest of the executive and we now have those interviews digitised. He has gone on to be an author of many books and has presented several science TV programmes, so maybe his visits to our TV Studio helped him along that route. He was awarded an MBE in 2003.

 

Colin Grimshaw May 2024

Degrees of Excellence: 1984

Sadly I have very little to say about this recent rediscovery. It’s a film made by the British Council for showing overseas. Clearly it’s a promotion for UK Universities and four places are featured: The University of Edinburgh; The University of Warwick; The Polytechnic (as was) of Brighton and Imperial College. At the time, I had no idea this was being shot and only knew about it when a videotape of the film was deposited with the TV Studio. The only Imperial person I can identify in it is Prof. Brian Hartley (16 April 1926 – 3 May 2021), who was in Biochemistry. He appeared in a video that I previously posted about, when he came into the TV Studio to talk to STOIC about the Interferon Pilot Plant.

Although not credited, I’m sure that the commentary is by actor Keith Barron.

Colin Grimshaw May 2024

DramSoc – Macbeth Interview: 1978

Today we dive back to 1978 for a Lunckbreak programme that featured an interview with DramSoc about their production of Macbeth. Mark Foley was the Lunchbreak presenter and he was talking to Mark Wiszowaty who was taking on the role of Macbeth. I was hoping to find some photos of the production in Felix, but this is the archive period of missing Felix editions between 1977 & 1978.

Colin Grimshaw March 2024

Paul Williams-Drake’s 7 Cartoon: 1980

Starting on 26 January 1979 in edition 506 of Felix the student newspaper, was Drake’s 7. The cartoon strip was the creation of Physics student Paul Williams. The first part in the Drake’s 7 story is seen above. He won a competition for his efforts and also had the entire story reprinted in a stand-alone book available for 30p from the Felix office. He also created materials for the Phoenix magazine at Imperial.

Following his success in the competition he came into the TV Studio and chatted to STOIC’s Paul Johnson.

Colin Grimshaw February 2024

RCS Spanner & Bolt Raid 1976

Today we have an extract from one of the oldest recordings from STOIC’s news programme. On the 15th December 1976 Clive Lewis and James Sinclair were both presenting the Christmas edition of Lunchbreak. Who could want a better news story for Christmas than a mascotry raid. There was a front page splash about it in FELIX the following day, so STOIC seemed to have got the news, and also the interviews, pretty fast. Now, this was shot a few days before Christmas and I think the various constituent college union members should have been kept away from the balloons…as you’ll see! James Sinclair is attempting to hold things together though.

This is very much a deteriorating archive recording so please bear with it because it’s 47 years old and I had a major problem getting the tape to play back.

Colin Grimshaw December 2023