Employees of the BBC: Our Doctor Who archivists

[LanceM]

Such as the find of a missing episode of Doctor Who goes. In early 2004 a former BBC employee returned a missing episode of Doctor Who. He grabbed it out of an old room that was being cleaned out. Since he obviously was not the only one cleaning and possibly pinching an episode or two, isn't it possible that some other former employees might have an episode or two that they have been saving. I believe that the BBC holds records of the employees that were involved in cleaning out the archives. If the BBC does indeed have thier names, of the people or organization who cleared the archives and transported the archives from one location to the other. It might reason that some more people saved episodes too! I belive that the BBC should go over its personel records from the day and contact likely persons who might have what we are all searching the planet for? Just an small episode recovery idea, does anyone have any ideas, or someone who the BBC is familiar with like Neil, who could propose this idea to the BBC for me?

Thanks,Lance.

[Richard Bignell]

LanceM said:

In early 2004 a former BBC employee returned a missing episode of Doctor Who. He grabbed it out of an old room that was being cleaned out. Since he obviously was not the only one cleaning and possibly pinching an episode or two...

He *was* the one doing the cleaning, Lance. That's the job he'd been entrusted to do.

I believe that the BBC holds records of the employees that were involved in cleaning out the archives.

What makes you think that?

Richard

[LanceM]

I just could say that is a hunch. I mean most real legitimate businesses have to keep employee records! So if others kept records then the BBC might have some too.

[Stephen Neve]

AH! its that Mr Bignell again, you post something and he picks it to threads, is there anything he dosen't know. Anyway hope you get to read this before he picks it to shreds. Well Lance I suppose its remotely possible that ex employees may have episodes. The trouble is they are all getting on a bit a now and may not remember if they took anything. I said a few years ago that I thought there were not anymore episodes in this country, Doctor Who is so big, it was hard to accept that anyone had an episode still and diden't know it was missing, with the treasure hunt campaign going strong, you would have to have been living on the moon not to know. But then DOA turned up and and I was proved wrong, which was a nice surprise, since this recovery it may be possible that there is an episode still lurking in this country, TP 4 and Masterplan 4 are probally somewhere as well. In the next twenty years I think a flood of lost programmes will start coming back in droves as EX employees pass away and stuff they have had for years finds it way back. Mr Bignell seems to think that Francis Watson taking DMP2 was a one off fluke, and anyone else who has ever worked for the beeb has never done the same. Well I don't Lance, if it happened once, it may have happened again. The day will come when there will be 107 episodes of Doctor Who missing, untill then we have to be patience and keep our minds open to all posibilities.

Regards

[andrewainsworth]

I agree with you Steve. Anything is possible. I always believe in keeping an open mind and remaining positive.

Hopefully the missing episodes will go under the three figure number, now that would be great.

[Douglas]

Guest-Stephen said:

AH! its that Mr Bignell again, you post something and he picks it to threads, is there anything he dosen't know. Anyway hope you get to read this before he picks it to shreds. Well Lance I suppose its remotely possible that ex employees may have episodes.

What a strange person you seem to be. Lance does tend to ask questions and raise points which have been discussed to death over the years and ocasionally makes statements which clearly he has no basis for ('I believe that the BBC holds records of the employees that were involved in cleaning out the archives.'), but that's perfectly harmless compared to your constant, deranged belief that anyone who points out that some things are just, well, not plausible is somehow in the wrong. Richard Bignall is respected in the Who fan community for his knowledge fo the show - something, I expect, which you have yet to achieve.

As for your apparent belief that people in the their 70s can't remember whether they illicitly pinched a bulky film can from their employers offices thrity years ago...I take it you're about 16 years old, hence the unflattering suggestion that anyone over 65 must be senile.

There is no reason to believe that the BBC ever kept records of staff told to clean out some rooms even at the time, never mind those records surviving until now. Why on Earth would they do so? When you get a job you might well find out that people ask you to do all sorts of things at work without *any* paperwork at all!

[Lance M]

No $%^& ! Man some of you people on here stil have alot to learn about manners. Didnt your parents teach you anything about behaving like an adult? Or could Douglas still be thinking at grade school level? Granted I do not know alot about the paperwork and legal documents that the BBC may or may not have held. At least I have enough sense to not critisize a fan for what he belives, and hoped that people like Douglas might grow out of thier pampers and overinflated ego to see that not all people think alike. This is just for fun man, and if you cant accept that then you have no business being here.

[Lance M]

And Douglass please dont take offense at what I said earlier it just semed that what you wrote was a little cruel for any member to be told. Could you please try to keep your anger bottled up, at least while you are visiting here. No hard feelings, and any other comments that you might have would be fantastic.

Thanks

[Geeef]

Hee hee. That was like the "No Offence" woman from the Fast Show. Fantastic stuff. Well done.

[LanceM]

Thanks Geef I thought so too!

[Douglas]

Guest-Lance said:

And Douglass please dont take offense at what I said earlier it just semed that what you wrote was a little cruel for any member to be told. Could you please try to keep your anger bottled up, at least while you are visiting here. No hard feelings, and any other comments that you might have would be fantastic.

Thanks

Eh, sorry - what anger? I'm not angry at all, merely pointing out that whilst you tend to ask the same kind of questions over and over again, that seems to be simply because you don't have a lot of knowledge about the subject at hand. When someone points that one of your many points has been discussed and dismissed one hundred times previously, you appear to take that fact on board for a day or two at least. That you keep asking the same daft (and very ungramatical) questions is a bit annoying, but nothing worse.

Steven however is rude and comes across as profoundly ignorant and deluded. He seems to believe that if he writes yet another very long, very badly written post and packs it with statements which are (a) wrong, (b) ill-researched and/or (c) just plain nonsense, whilst at the same time making gratuitous and childish swipes at respected Who researchers then that in some validates his ignorance.

It doesn't, it merely makes this board look at times like it is populated by idiots.

I've certainly take no offence - I just wish that Steven and youself would actually do some very basic research online and even think about what you are suggesting prior to making utterly pointless posts on this board.

It's not a lot to ask, surely?

[William Martin]

what's "grade school"?

[Lance M]

Thanks for the update Douglass, and I am again sorry if I was at all rude or unknowledgable about some of my previous statements ( And if there was bad grammer, I also am sorry for that). It is hard to do research online sinse there arenot alot of sites that show the sort of indepth information that is needed to make some of these archival questions, and threads online? And to answer the previous question Grade School is all grades from Kindergarten to 8Th grade. Well any links that you might have Douglass would be great, please e-mail me at [e-mail]

[Rob Mammone]

LanceM said:

I just could say that is a hunch. I mean most real legitimate businesses have to keep employee records! So if others kept records then the BBC might have some too.

But do most businesses keep logs of the hour by hour, daily activities of their staff? I know mine doesn't, and I work for the second largest company in Australia (very small cog, mind). What you're suggesting is that the BBC have kept written records detailing every activity it staff engaged in, right down to the the micro level of cleaning out a storage area. It's just not feasible.
And frankly, if my old employee from 30 years ago rang me up hassling about what could be construed to have been illegal activity, I'd tell them to frak off.

[Lance M]

You are probably right on how an former employee response, and also about the BBC keeping those sort of detailed records. As I have stated several times now that the BBC in all likelyhood did not keep those records, and even if such info did exist it probably would be sitting in a rubbish tip by now. So it was just a hunch, which probably is not correct, happy? I just thought that it would be cool if I posted a few threads that were out there to stimulate some new theories on episode recovery, and might even jog a few memories of the true archivists who frequent the site. Basically, that it what I was trying to accomplish here and also on the Rubbish Tip thread. Now, maybe people will see the purpose behind these sort of discussions. Any new logical and collected responses would be appreciated.

Thanks,Lance.