BBC Toronto

[Nicholas Fitzpatrick]

Finally picked up a copy of Wiped.

I've always wondered what became of BBC's office in Toronto.

I was surprised to read in Wiped that BBC in Toronto didn't hold a lot of their own material, but instead kept them at Thunder-North.

Wiped certainly notes that they were queried as to what 2" video they held in the early 1980s. I assume that someone has queried them as the off-chance they still hold anything, 2" or otherwise ...

Amusingly I pass by their office every day on the streetcar heading to work, often changing cars right across the street!

Sigh, I hate to think I'm starting another of these silly speculative threads, that I've been reading with amusement for years without commenting on ... but I guess I am.

[dennywilson]

Feb 19, 2012 23:33:37 GMT Nicholas Fitzpatrick said:

Finally picked up a copy of Wiped.

I've always wondered what became of BBC's office in Toronto.

I was surprised to read in Wiped that BBC in Toronto didn't hold a lot of their own material, but instead kept them at Thunder-North.

Wiped certainly notes that they were queried as to what 2" video they held in the early 1980s. I assume that someone has queried them as the off-chance they still hold anything, 2" or otherwise ...

Amusingly I pass by their office every day on the streetcar heading to work, often changing cars right across the street!

Sigh, I hate to think I'm starting another of these silly speculative threads, that I've been reading with amusement for years without commenting on ... but I guess I am.

I read that they sent copies to the F&TL on most of the titles they were missing, but originals on others after the sales period ended.

I wonder if the originals on the material they received as copies ever made it back the the U.K.

The one thing I noticed is that INFERNO was actually located and was part of the first U.S. reissue of Pertwee episodes/first release of Seasons 10-11 BEFORE it was returned to the F&TL!

[Richard Develyn]

It really comes down to whether you know somebody there or not.

(Assuming that there is *actually* a possibility of something being there).

I would imagine that a foreign TV station will respond, generally, professionally if they get a professional request (i.e. by the BBC), just like any reputable business.

Well, some will go further than others, but it's very unlikely (again, IMVHO), that a foreign TV station is going to start a major search of its archives in response to such a request.

I mean, what's in it for them, after all.

Most, I would imagine, would check through their records and then maybe keep a look out in the future.

The only way you're going to achieve more is if you know somebody who works there. If you don't but you live nearby, well, look out for it. A personal contact can take this sort of investigation one stage further.

Richard

[John Wall]

If their holdings have been digitised/catalogued - as those in many first world countries have - I wouldn't entertain much hope that there's anything there.

[Nicholas Fitzpatrick]

Of course, I'd assume that any contacts would come direct from BBC ... sadly the only people I ever see outside the building, look like they live at the shelter across the road.

[John F Brayshaw]

I think since the BBC put the word out long ago this seems like a redundant issue. I still think there are eps out there but this would have been checked eons ago. Singapore? Hong Kong but they are China now. Private collections seem like the best bet.

[Nicholas Fitzpatrick]

Quite probably checked years ago. But it would be ironic if colour tapes from Mind of Evil were still sitting around ... or had sat around into the 1990s. Or if all those 1960s Z Cars episodes that used to air on independent stations in Canada were still floating around somewhere ...

Thought it was worth at least asking the question to make sure it had been checked. But I guess I should have expected the avalanche of obvious comments from the peanut gallery before anyone who'd actually be in the know would respond ...

[John F Brayshaw]

I think independents if they aired eps would be a better bet. History has shown the eps can show up anywhere. Here in Philadelphia they aired eps on WPHL an indepedent in 1972 but unfortunately whatever they could have had were Pertwees and the station has changed hands too many times to even expect anything would have been kept.

[J King]

Would the BBC in Canada have anything of that period? CBC and TVO were the broadcasters of the show at the time, so if there were anything leftover would it not have been with them?

[Nicholas Fitzpatrick]

CBC, TVO, and CKVU don't hold anything. That's been well documented for years. They returned all their material to BBC in Toronto - which hasn't existed for decades. But the company BBC used for storage of material still exists.

[J King]

I figured they would have been some of the earliest and easiest records to be checked. I'm curious though; When the Hartnell's were screened on CBC did they have a different set of prints for each affiliate?

[Nicholas Fitzpatrick]

Feb 21, 2012 22:56:49 GMT J King said:

I figured they would have been some of the earliest and easiest records to be checked. I'm curious though; When the Hartnell's were screened on CBC did they have a different set of prints for each affiliate?

CBC's contemporary records have been inaccessible in a storage facility for years. I think they hope if they ignore them long enough, the building might burn down.

In Canada, each episode was aired simultaneously from coast-to-coast, delayed only in each time zone, using the same techniques they used to delay any "live" broadcast such as the news.

This would have been done using one film-print and the coast-to-coast microwave network that was over a decade old by then.

There's never been any evidence that any station in the 1960s in Canada aired anything other then the 26 episode network feed. So the single film print of each episode would never have left Toronto. Some other British shows of that era, however, are a different story. Z Cars seems to have been aired all over the schedule by various independent and CBC affiliates.

This morning on the way to the office, there was an unusual lack of streetcars, so I ended up walking the last couple of kilometres, right past the film storage company. I resisted the urge to stop and peer in through their blinds ...

[dennywilson]

Feb 22, 2012 5:14:13 GMT Nicholas Fitzpatrick said:

Feb 21, 2012 22:56:49 GMT J King said:

I figured they would have been some of the earliest and easiest records to be checked. I'm curious though; When the Hartnell's were screened on CBC did they have a different set of prints for each affiliate?

CBC's contemporary records have been inaccessible in a storage facility for years. I think they hope if they ignore them long enough, the building might burn down.

In Canada, each episode was aired simultaneously from coast-to-coast, delayed only in each time zone, using the same techniques they used to delay any "live" broadcast such as the news.

This would have been done using one film-print and the coast-to-coast microwave network that was over a decade old by then.

There's never been any evidence that any station in the 1960s in Canada aired anything other then the 26 episode network feed. So the single film print of each episode would never have left Toronto. Some other British shows of that era, however, are a different story. Z Cars seems to have been aired all over the schedule by various independent and CBC affiliates.

This morning on the way to the office, there was an unusual lack of streetcars, so I ended up walking the last couple of kilometres, right past the film storage company. I resisted the urge to stop and peer in through their blinds ...

The CBC cataloged their holdings several years ago - NO Doctor Who episodes were found.

[Nicholas Fitzpatrick]

Feb 22, 2012 7:02:25 GMT dennywilson said:

The CBC cataloged their holdings several years ago - NO Doctor Who episodes were found.

Yes, I think we all know this. We've been discussing it here for years.

I'm not sure why you are pointing this out, and what relevance it has to the discussion.

[George D]

next time you go past, knock on the door and say, "hi im nicholas" let me know if they kick you out or are friendly back