 |
|
|
THE LATEST PROGRAMME |
|
|
|
|
A short collection of programmes to mark the 50th anniversary of the Queen Elizabeth's Coronation in 1953.
|
|
|
|
An image of the Coronation captured from BBC TV's coverage.
|
View a picture gallery of the Coronation from the BBC Archives.
CORONATION PROGRAMMES
The Macguffin, 2.30- 3.30pm, Saturday, 31 May 2003.
It is the night of the Queen's coronation and an elderly script writer , handcuffed to a beautiful young girl, is being dragged through the streets of London, unnoticed by the celebrating crowds. No, its not a remake of The Thirty Nine Steps, but the script writer used to work for Hitchcock and the young lady is playing an elaborate joke on him, except that he is not sure that it is a joke or has she something more sinister in mind for him?.
The MacGuffin was invented by scriptwriter Angus MacPhail to describe the event on which the plot turns and this comedy is a gentle homage to the scriptwriters who worked for Hitchcock and at the Ealing studios in the 40's and 50's. Robert Hamer who also appears as MacPhail's best friend, was the writer and director of one of the greatest Ealing comedies, Kind Hearts and Coronets.
The Archive Hour: Still Room in the Tower, 8- 9pm, Saturday, 31 May 2003.
The story of how the Coronation was brought to the small screen is heavy with anecdote vividly remembered by those who were there, a story rich in intrigue as Prime Minister Winston Churchill fought the Corporation over the Queen's privacy and royal officials worried away about the broadcasters' intrusions.
The heroes of this story are the engineers and producers who battled against terrible odds to flash pictures the entire length of Britain, pushing their technical knowledge to the limits, daring even to bounce pictures to Europe with equipment and techniques which these days appear as antique as the penny farthing cycle.
Some producers, engineers, cameraman and sound mixers who engineered the coverage are still alive. The memories of others are enshrined in sound archive.
This is their story. With the help of the BBC archive, and freshly gathered material from those who were there on the day, this programme provides glimpses behind the scenes, and paints a picture of a youthful television service about to grow into adulthood.
Kings and Queens, 4.30, Sunday 1 June 2003.
To mark the 50th anniversary of the coronation of our reigning queen next day, a performance of and a feature about the classic anthology 'Kings and Queens' by Eleanor and Herbert Farjeon, starring Julian Glover, Isla Blair and Stefan Bednarczyk.
In 'Kings and Queens' there is a brief poetic portrait, sketch or caricature of almost every monarch from William the Conqueror to George VI. On its first publication in 1932 the Spectator described it as a 'grand book. Its verses make history really good fun' and the London Mercury praised it for 'rhymes that are pungent with wit and history'. Ever since it has been treasured by adults and children alike - Noel Coward remarked that it was 'brilliantly done' and John Julius Norwich tells of how his mother gave him a shilling for every poem he learned by heart so he had some grounding in history as well as literature.
 Listen again to Kings and Queens
The Year 1953, 3.45 - 4.00pm, Monday to Friday, 2 - 6 June 2003.
A mystery virus, US and British Troops in a far off land, floods, air pollution and a housing shortage, these were the pre occupations just as much as they are 50 years later.
This June 2nd Marks the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Queen's Coronation - when the news arrived in England that Sir Edmund Hilary and Sherpa Tensing had reached the summit of Mount Everest.
In a five part series The Year 1953, presented by Robert Lacey, looks beyond Royal Events to reveal the concerns and changes that have helped shape the Britain of today.
Abroad, the Cold War was in full swing.Young British national servicemen and US forces were dying in a bitter conflict to bring peace and liberty to a far off land - Korea. Britain's Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill and his American counterpart, Harry Truman, had joined forces in 1950 to counter the growing Communist threat in South East Asia. Pressure was growing to bring our boys home and British troops were also involved as peacekeepers in Suez protecting Britain's access to what was left of its Empire to the East. In Kenya they were fighting the Mau Mau terrorists, trying to protect the white colonists who had enjoyed some of the sweetest and most decadent fruits of the empire.
Listen again to Programme 1.
Listen again to Programme 2.
Listen again to Programme 3
Listen again to Programme 4
Listen again to Programme 5
|
|
|
|
