The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
We talk to the author of a new book that revisits the early years of broadcasting
Gordon Bathgate tells Neil Drysdale about his lifelong fascination with radio as he releases a new book that revisits the early years of broadcasting
Gordon Bathgate can barely recall a time when he wasn’t in thrall to the radio and marvelling at all the different sounds that came out of a magic box in his living room when he was growing up in the north-east of Scotland. A lot of snap, crackle and pop music has come and gone since those early days, but he is still Radio Ga Ga about an invention which is celebrating its centenary in 2020.
And he has written a new book, Radio Broadcasting: A History of the Airwaves, while devoting decades to boosting its profile in many guises.
He was a founding member of Grampian Hospital Radio at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary –a service which does invaluable work, particularly in the current Covid-induced social isolation.
He also presented shows for North East Community Radio at Kintore and is involved in music programmes as far afield as The Netherlands and with Radio Caroline.
Gordon said: “My fascination began at a very early age. I was hypnotised by the big, glowing box which sat in the corner of the lounge.
“I would twiddle the knobs feverishly to hear the strange cacophony of whooshing, cracking, whistling and popping noises from the wireless.
“Luckily for my parents, I soon got tired of the discordant racket and realised that, if I tuned the dial more slowly, I could hear a lot more, so I would tune around until I heard a voice or a piece of music.
“I have been interested in the medium ever since, which helps explain why I have done a bit of everything from hospital radio to rock and Radio Caroline Flashback.
“The book came about because I wanted to know more about the people behind the development of this fabulous invention.”
Gordon has explained, in meticulous detail, how a group of trailblazers from across the globe pieced together the formula for bringing radio to fruition.
Clerk Maxwell, the Scottish physicist, who was subsequently described as a “genius” by no less a figure than Albert Einstein, was instrumental in the process, while Italian Guglielmo Marconi capitalised on the commercial aspect of producing radio sets for mass consumption.
And there were a ragtag band of men who
gathered on a chilly evening in 1922, with a grand ambition, just a couple of years after radio’s potential materialised.
Gordon explained: “It was St Valentine’s Day, but any romantic thoughts had been pushed to the back of their minds. These men were preoccupied with something else – something far more important. As the hands of the timepiece on the wall inched towards 8pm, they scurried around tweaking and adjusting their equipment.
“They were a disparate bunch of engineers brought together by Marconi and they were about to launch Britain’s first regular radio broadcasting service.
“One of the early pioneers was Captain Peter Pendleton Eckersley, who was the reluctant star of the UK’s first station 2MT at Writtle, near Chelmsford.
“He was an engineer and never intended to step in front of the microphone. However, one night, in March 1922, he decided to stay behind and get involved with that evening’s broadcast.
“He had a couple of drinks beforehand for Dutch courage and that relaxed him. He played around, improvised comedy sketches and operatic parodies and played records, often off kilter and at the wrong speed. And Eckersley eventually became the first chief engineer of the BBC.”
Within the next two decades, there was the establishment of the BBC, the creation of talking pictures, increasingly sophisticated programmes and the arrival of the presenters, who gradually morphed into modern disc jockeys.
Yet, as Gordon outlined, it was the intimate
nature of the medium which captivated many listeners – the sense that somebody in the next room was having a conversation with you. The master practitioners of radio, from Alistair Cooke to Terry Wogan, always adhered to that philosophy.
His fascination with his subject runs through the pages. And he has thrived on his own idiosyncratic forays into the radio game.
He added: “Most of my memorable experiences have happened at outside broadcasts. One of them was at Inchmarlo Golf Course at Banchory.
“I was interviewing a dance teacher about the courses she ran and she invited me to join her onstage to help demonstrate a particular dance.
“She handed me a grass skirt and told me to wear it. I ended up doing a belly dance in front of a large crowd with various members of the Emmerdale cast.
“Another memorable moment also involved a couple of Emmerdale actors at the old Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre.
“I have interviewed Chris Chittell, who plays Eric Pollard in the soap, several times and on this occasion he was joined by his wife Lesley Dunlop, who plays Brenda Walker.
“I was placed between them and, while interviewing Lesley, I was aware Chris was up to some mischief but wasn’t really sure what.
“When the interview was over, I got up to thank them and promptly fell over.
“Chris had tied my shoelaces together.”
I ENDED UP DOING A BELLY DANCE IN FRONT OF A LARGE CROWD WITH VARIOUS MEMBERS OF THE EMMERDALE CAST
Radio Broadcasting: A History of the Airwaves, by Gordon Bathgate, is published by Pen & Sword.