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A.T.V. at Aston Cross

Hi Lynda a cousin of mine sang on Lunch Box for about 4/5 shows they had some sort of talent show ,he had a great voice something like Matt Munro
cheers 33bus Tom
 
I remember the ATV studios very well although I never went there. I worked 'up the road' at the BBC studios Gosta Green. We made a programme called 'swizzlewick' which was meant to be a rival to 'Crossroads'. It was about a corrupt local council. Needless to say it failed miserably. One of my memories from Gosta green was working on the 'Rolf Harris Show' and another was carrying very heavy bags of soil into the studio for Percy Throwers gardening show. We would then plant all of the plants in the false flower/vegetable beds and Percy would do the show as if he had done all of the work himself. After the show we would take out the plants and throw them away and bag up all of the soil and carry it out of the studio into the yard where it was kept until the next friday. It was hard work!
 
Oh flip me reallyyouthful, I thought it was all for real now my memories have been shattered:rolleyes:
 
I used to go to St Marys school does anyone have pics of it i used to live in streeton road off rocky lane
 
I knew Percy Thrower when he was Superintendent of Gardens In Shrewsbury and as the owner of his own garden centre. A nicer gentleman you could not wish to meet. Not to proud to serve a customer, or hunt down a certain type of fuschia in his glass houses. A lovely man, even better than his TV persona.
 
Hi Postie
i was asked to drop you a line to see if you had any pictures of Streeton road off Rocky Lane Aston Cross or of St Marys School or Cromwell Street School

Cheers Instruct
 
Sylvia, you are correct, it was Stretton Road. I know that because my Grand- parents lived there for years and years, but for the life of me, I cant recall what number. Maybe Instruct knew them ? Barry.
 
Here's the Astoria after being converted to a the Television Theatre, which must have been a little before the days of ATV.

Which puts paid to my theory that the lorry on the left of the photo was delivering Nolly's weekly supply of fags and boose.

Phil
 

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Hi Lynda
I used to send off regularly for tickets to the shows at the ATV studios. I think I went to see Thank Your Lucky Stars there.

I remember Lunch Box was always on TV when I went home for dinner when at school. I also loved her sister Jean Morton who did the Tinga and Tucka Club with Katy Kookaburra and Willie Wombat. I loved that programme. They have brought Pinky and Perky back recently, maybe Tinga and Tucka will make a comeback!

Does anyone remember the Chipper Club with the Birmingham Evening Mail? I had a membership card and a badge!

Tara for now.lol
 
thanks phil for the picture ofthe astoria
thats where i got knocked down right slap bang in the middle of the building
and i was a hit and run the driver drove off i wnt up in the air and landed by the pawn shop there was a doctor passing and a surgeon whomworked at the general and he operateated on me all night to save me he gave me blood transvusion several times during the saturday night of the accident to try and keep me alive ,the
bone in my right leg was completely shattered and i had to have a plate inserted because the bone was unretreviable so for these years that what i have got
i have yet to look through the archives to finfd out whom the driver was
they eventualy found him 3 months later and because there was no legal aidin those days i could not get the legal aid thats what my mother and father told me
we got sue because we aint got the money
i often wonder if this old scoundril is still alive today [ the driver ]
so now phil thanks for the pic and the memory and i will show my kidsnow and my daughter where i got my accident and the plate i got
best wishes phil astonian ;;
 
Percy Thrower was a lovely helpful and kind man. I also met him at his garden centre. Didn't realize he didn't do his gardening for real though. Didn't it used to come sometimes from his own bungalow garden. What about Clacks Farm soil then! If we get our garden soil to a good tilth we always say 'Good as Clacks Farm' Gosh I am showing up my age here aren't I?
 
Re. The Astoria Aston.
I was a projectionest at the ABC Orient Six Ways in1954/55, when one day an urgent phone call was recieved from the Manager of the ABC Astoria that no operators had turned up for the afternoon show, and could we help out ?. So off I went and when I walked into the Projection room I was met by aroom where nearly everything was covered in soot. It appears that they had had a small fire! anyway I set about in getting a show on the road and in no time I Had a picture on the screen, when the phone rang the manager was on the other end telling me he had sound but no picture. Then it came to me in a flash The Astoria was Rear Projection and I had forgot to open the "TABS" ( Curtains)
 
sorrry I have to bump this cause it is so interesting I have lived in Birmingham all my life and never met no one
 
ATV at Aston Cross later became the BRMB studios...dont know if the building is still there now. As well as Crossroads, it produced the Golden Shot and Tingha & Tucker...bit of useless information my eldest brother put the telephone lines into the Crossroads set so the phones actually worked when he was a youngster at the GPO
 
my claim to fame was Noel picking me up outside the studios on aston cross just on the crossing left of woolies as a 4 year old boy we lived just round the corner in Stretton rd off Rockey lane
:)
 
My hubby worked on Lunchbox in the early days and knew Noel and all the gang. He also worked on Crossroads and then became a special effects operator on the Golden Shot and known as Bernie the Bolt
 
the only person I have seen is Ron Attkinson as he lives in Barnt Green he goes to delli on the green in barnt green for his olives
 
Yes Noel did live in a Penthouse in Birmingham, not sure which one, will have to ask hubby who worked with her for many years.
She also lived in Handsworth with her elderly mother, plus the house in Ross on Wye.
 
yes Barry he worked for ATV from 1959 until he left in 76. He and John Baker were special effects operators and shared the Bernie the Bolt part of the job
 
hi brum baby
if i remember correctly ATV department in tower rd
i cannot just remember what department it was
but two old friends of mine whom worked at the ATV
previously worked at the very old bbc studios
in costa green ,there name was Alan and Sue Taylor
they was both producers for varios programes
many years ago in the early days of ATV moving
to Aston they was working from tower rd
they both lived in selly park next to another friend of
mine , - i shall call him mr BBC ,FOR obviuos reasons
and he his a big noise of the BBC he has got a great
big house postioned in pinewood studios
which i have seen ,Alan And Sue emigrated to the
far east of france back in the ninety,s
for is health problems they keep in touch with dave
and i am in touch with dave by email constanly
it was strange how i met up with the taylors
because i used to see Alan coming out of the
studios when i was akid trying to catch the stars
and get there autographs and later on in my
adult life i met Mr BBC then Alan Came Out
into his garden and he still was wearing the same
dress code many years later on after leaving
ATV and when the conversation started and asked
he said yes i am whom you think i am
he called sue out and she thought it was
remarkable and our freindship developed
next thing we spent a many years knocking back the large brandies
if i turned up and there was no brandy ,
emediately one or the other would nip down the pershore rd and get a couple of bottles from the off licence
before they left the tv they used to do the sunday political show [ as the producers ] which was on every sunday morning i meet with mr BBC every couple of weeks down in selly park when ever he has to come up to brum for meeting
when ever i go there to his house i never know whom or which actor will be staying there temp whilst they are in brum
I will always remember the ATV STUDIOS and knowing it was
the astoria picture house because when i was a kid i was a hit and run victim in my kid days after coming out after watching roy rogers and trigger and my auntie maud smart lived in white house street
by the albion pub worked in the box office at the picture house and smuggled me in
so thats my memories of the ATV , and The astoria picture house
best wishes to you all astonian ;;
 
Thought this bit of nostalgia might be of interest. My husband who worked at ATV thinks it was taken 1962/63. Mike Sarne is next to what looks like Petula Clarke but we are not certain. Hubby is next but one to this woman. Also on the photo, apart from work mates is Heinz, Brian Mathews. If anyone else can identify anyone, we would be happy to hear
 
On Lunchbox, I seem to remember the resident astrologist, Evadne Price and her catch phrase... "Think lucky and you'll BE lucky!"

I didn't realise she was also a well known wrter.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evadne_Price

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Hubby worked at ATV from the early days and was Prop man on Lunchbox, he remembers Evadne Price as a regular on the show. Did not know she was a well known writer
 
hi guys
think lucky and you will ,what aload of codge
i remember her ;
the day she started that catch phrase ,
i thought -yes i try that.
for years i been thinking that
i have had more bad luck than any think even more than most people .
forget thinking lucky --postive thinking is the key word '
have a nice day every body best wishes astonion
 
I agree, if 'think lucky and you will be lucky' works we would all be lottery winners, well at least if we bought a ticket.
 
Thought this bit of nostalgia might be of interest. My husband who worked at ATV thinks it was taken 1962/63. Mike Sarne is next to what looks like Petula Clarke but we are not certain. Hubby is next but one to this woman. Also on the photo, apart from work mates is Heinz, Brian Mathews. If anyone else can identify anyone, we would be happy to hear

And that is me looking over Barys shoulder. Philip Jones is holding the award, next to him with glasses is Alan Freeman an A&R man, a record plugger who often came up to B'ham. Do you have the original of the picture?
 
I've been in and out of the old studio every couple of weeks over the last 12 months delivering doors, partitioning and timber for its conversion to offices. It's now just three or four floors of prestige office space. If you didn't know that there was a studio/theatre there you would never believe it. I guess its a shame that another icon has been lost to progress.
 
On Lunchbox, I seem to remember the resident astrologist, Evadne Price and her catch phrase... "Think lucky and you'll BE lucky!"

I didn't realise she was also a well known wrter.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evadne_Price

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At the time I thought that Evadne Price was brilliant..I used to go from Lozells girls school to the studio with some mates..we would stand outside for hrs.. to try to get the autographs of the cast of Crossroads .. at the time I was 13 ...Nolly Gordon used to just walk past us and ignore us like she was something from Hollywood...The one true Gentleman was the guy who played Hugh Mortimer..every night he would come out and have his picture taken with us ..
 
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