An answer from the Zambian archives

[Bobby Clark (synthpopalooza)]

Well, looks like there is finally progress being made on the Zambian archives, recently mentioned as being in a sad state of decay. Here's a link to an interesting thread on Ian Levine's forum:

ianlevine.forumco.com/topic~TOPIC_ID~2438.asp

Looks like we may get some progress on this after all. Fingers crossed.

[LanceM]

That is Indeed excellent news. I hope that he receives a reply back from the Zambian Information Service sometime soon. Here is hoping this leads to some missing material resurfacing. The chances would be good, since they have a rather large record of missing episodes they purchased. It is also possible that these prints were bicycled to other nations, or were filed and forgotten about. Anything really could happen, I guess we just have to wait and see what happens next.

Lance.

[madman]

What's going on there then? I am not registered on that other forum - should I be? My time is a bit limited and I'm only online at work. (LUDDITE!)
Stu

[Dave Penrice]

Main posts are
"I've read the many "Africa" posts with great interest, particularly the info about ZNBC in Lusaka having a lot of uncatalogued archive material.
I work as a journalist for BBC World Service Radio, so we have regular contacts with the Zambian media.
Yesterday I took the liberty of emailing the Head of ZNBC TV archives, Imanga Imakando, very politely, explaining exactly who I was and what I wanted, with a full list of missing episodes.
It was a very friendly email, of course.

He's just replied:

"Dear Mr Norris,

Sorry for the delay to respond to your e-mail. This was because the system was down. However, I managed to contact my colleagues in another institution upon realising that this request is not reaching us (ZNBC) for the first time. The search for "Dr Who" is still going on. I will be in a position to update you as soon as I receive feedback from the Zambia News and Information Services (ZANIS).

You're assured of my total devotion to your request.

Kind regards.

Imanga."

(email ends)

I spoke to him briefly beforehand on the phone just to get his email address (as the one on the web is wrong) and he sounded very friendly and positive...likes the BBC etc, wants to help...so I'm going to try to keep in touch with him on an informal basis, maybe emailing him once in a while to see how things are going. But I'm not going to hassle him. Obviously if I get anywhere I'll let you know right away.

There are lots guys in Africa like Imanga who are big fans of BBC World Service Radio (Africa is by far our biggest audience), so I'm vaguely hoping that that connection might benefit our search in some way. For that reason, I don't think everyone should start bombarding this guy with emails, as he'll just get annoyed. I'm even unsure about whether I've done the right thing by approaching him, as obviously the last thing I want to do is screw things up! But it was just too tempting...and he seems like a nice guy!

I have of course made it very clear to him that I'm a BBC journalist, not an archivist, and that I don't represent BBC archives or any other branch of the BBC in any way, or any commercial organisations associated with it. I thought it was important to make my exact status clear from the start.

I still think we're unlikely to get anywhere, given the appalling state of the Zambian archives, but it's worth a try, even if only to rule it out.
Fingers crossed...
Thoughtfox"

Then

"Many thanks for the kind messages above. As Imanga was so friendly, I asked him to fill me in on the general state of play in the Lusaka archives.
Here's what I wrote to him:

Rob Norris <[e-mail]> wrote:
Dear Imanga,
Many thanks for your kind reply. It's very good to know that you and you colleagues are working so hard to find such precious material. Please be assured that we all greatly appreciate your efforts. I understand that there is a large amount of material to be examined in your archives, and that, inevitably, the quality of some of it has deteriorated over the years.
However, missing episodes of "Dr Who" (and other classic series from the 1960s and 70s) have turned up all over the world, often in the most unlikely places! We haven't found one for several years though, and many people are beginning to think that we will never find any more.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that something may, miraculously, have survived in Lusaka. Even a fragment of a missing episode would be of enormous interest. If you do manage to find anything, I can honestly say that millions of fans around the world would be forever in your debt.
Please let me know of any progress that you make, however small. It would be interesting just to know a little more about how the examination of the ZNBC archives is going in general terms, and the sort of difficulties you are facing. Do you have adequate staff and adequate funding? Do you have the equipment you need?
Many thanks again, and best wishes
Robert Norris,
Senior Broadcast Journalist,
BBC World Service Radio.


And here's what he replied yesterday:

Dear Robert,

The concerns you've raised are very critical to us as Archivists/Librarians. The materials in question have not been used for decades due to lack of appropriate equipment. We are currently vigorously trying to source funds for purchase or hire of required playback/dubbing facilities to enable us migrate the materials from old formats to the current.

The required equipment however is not only too expensive but it is also not available on the world market, or so we've been made to believe. I'm personally very worried about the state of information recorded on these formats, considering that their lifespan may have expired years back and the fact that the rooms in which these materials are stored are too hot, moist and dusty - they are simply not ideal for the purpose of preservation of audio-visual materials. Besides, even if we came across some of these precious materials (including indegenous recordings), we still won't be able access their contents.

Staffing is another serious challenge. All the archives are not manned as a result. All staff restricted to the Library. The concept of recruiting Archivists is still very alien in most institutions here...

Thanks for your thoughtfulness and concern.


Faithfully,

Imanga

(email ends)

All of which doesn't actually sound very positive to me. But it does demonstrate the urgent need to check out the ZNBC archives asap, and to find some way to help them to do so. The equpiment he seeks must be available somewhere in the world...
Best wishes
Thoughtfox
PS Hi Death to the Darleks and you're quite right to raise the issue "Forgive me for asking - do any of us know Thoughtfox 'off board'?" I don't know any of you guys, apart from reading your posts. Please feel free to contact me via the forum if you need to, or at my BBC email address.
I'll post any more info here asap of course."

And we have later been told by Richard Bignell

"Can I just repeat once again that this enquiry is going through proper channels at the moment, so people suggesting that individuals contact ZNBC, FIAT or any other body may just end up hampering things and making them more complicated in the long run.

Richard"

So it sounds like its beening looked into currently and advice is to leave it to the experts.

[Rob Moss]

newboy said:

So it sounds like its beening looked into currently and advice is to leave it to the experts.

This is of course sensible advice in any circumstances, but as usual, I suspect the carrier bag-clutching hordes will wade in regardless, and try to justify it by whinging that they haven't heard any official news for at least three hours, so the BBC obviously don't have it as their top priority.

[Peter Elliott]

I think ALL Doctor Who fans should read this article written by a regular contributor to the Missing Episodes forum because in it the pitfalls are outlined graphically about how eager fans admittedly with good intentions of recovering lost material can and have sent collectors of rare material scurrying back to their private archives.

lost-british-television.blogspot.com/2007/03/missing-doctor-who.html

He puts across an excellent case in how situations like this one should be be left to the experts in the know who can negotiate sensibly and discreetly.

[col1963]

That article is written by someone who Steve Roberts once described as Poacher turned Gamekeeper , never mind experts, lets leave it to the professionals, still a good article though.

Col

[B Thomas]

I agree. If you're not in the know - leave it alone...

Personally I found this blog to be well-considered and informative. Some interesting syntax, spelling and lack of proof-reading made for rather tough going when trying to assimilate some information - however, all-in-all, a good read.

I was particularly impressed with the very concilatory tone of the article - I can well-imagine the behaviour of some fans' insisting on "getting involved" has led to despair of those better placed on getting results and I was pleased to see Andy's patient requests for them to "leave well alone".

Too many in the past have ruined the chances of returns by wanting to be the "first" to gain a lost snippet (not that that's likely to happen!). Particularly some of those in the "Dr Who" community. Perhaps a case of ego-boosting and attempting to write oneself into the annals of missing TV history a factor here but no one thanks the "well-intentioned fan" interfering and spoiling negotiations...

[col1963]

I seem to have either been mistaken or got hold of the wrong end of the stick, still on the article though, it is a very good read and i meant no offence to either Steve Roberts or Andy (looks like some groveling emails are called for by yours truly)

Regards

Col

[Peter Elliott]

bevanwthomas said:

Personally I found this blog to be well-considered and informative. Some interesting syntax, spelling and lack of proof-reading made for rather tough going when trying to assimilate some information - however, all-in-all, a good read.

I was particularly impressed with the very concilatory tone of the article - I can well-imagine the behaviour of some fans' insisting on "getting involved" has led to despair of those better placed on getting results and I was pleased to see Andy's patient requests for them to "leave well alone".

Indeed. Thats why I pointed this blog out - I read it a couple of weeks ago and found it very interesting in how it shows how eager well intentioned fans can hamper recoveries. Its shocking and sad that some go to such collectors fairs instantly asking for lost Doctor Who episodes upfront. That creates a knock on effect whereby film collectors learn how "desperate" many are for Who episodes that they withold them or begin asking ludicrous prices and yet all the while thanks to the blinkers, other lost shows pass them by.

So, I found it informative and insightful since it offers a lesson into what can and has happened with lost shows. Discretion and tact is obviously vital!

Anyway - lets hope the Zambian archive may produce some interesting finds. All we can do is wait and see and be patient. If they have anything then we will know sooner or later.

[LanceM]

I agree that too many requests for missing Dr.Who will jack prices up, and possibly make a recovery more difficult. That is possibly, in the past it has been proven that the fans can make a difference. People need to know what they should say, and not say regarding missing material hunting, how should we all know what is acceptable or not? It is not like there is a guidebook for negotiating for lost doctor prints for dummies book lying in the store around the corner, doubtful. If you do not want the past repeating itself, make amends by outlining possible courses of action for fans, set up some common tactics, things to know about that could be helpful, that sort of thing. Fans have good intentions, and props for actively searching the market for lost Dr. Who, after all that is why we are all posting here, fans of like mind ( mostly,at times).

I seem to Remember a certain fan by the name of Ian Levine, who rescued the BBC Ent stock of Who prints that were scheduled to be destroyed. There were the Web Of Fear censor finds, made through the Dr.Who New Zealand fan base, as well as the recovery of the Lion in NZ. Wheel In Space 3 was also recovered by long time fan David Stead. An Australian fan rescued the then lost part 2 to The War Machines from a rubbish tip. Damien Shanahan located the censor finds in the Australian Government archive. Fans kept and asked the BBC for film scraps, one of which was from Galaxy 4: Four Hundred Dawns. There were also the fan 8mm TV recordings that were recovered. Fan footage from the Daemons, Smugglers was also recovered. Fans can make a difference in locating these items. You just need to know how to go about it is all. These collectors and officials are a tricky bunch, and the wrong words will send them packing. However I also see that in the great hunt for missing who, many other lost TV series could be looked over. Such as material from ATV, ABC, or Associated Rediffusion, with only Dr Who on the brain, other shows can be overlooked as Andy Henderson pointed out. So yes the experts should handle the intricacies of recoveries, but the fans want to help. The BBC really needs to consider another Treasure Hunt, a little publicity would not hurt.

Lance.

[B Thomas]

I take your point Lance but believe that advice has already been given to fans regarding the film collecting circles: escalate matters (if need be) to the Restoration Team and please leave them to negotiate.

"I seem to Remember a certain fan by the name of Ian Levine, who rescued the BBC Ent stock of Who prints that were scheduled to be destroyed. There were the Web Of Fear censor finds, made through the Dr.Who New Zealand fan base, as well as the recovery of the Lion in NZ. Wheel In Space 3 was also recovered by long time fan David Stead. An Australian fan rescued the then lost part 2 to The War Machines from a rubbish tip. Damien Shanahan located the censor finds in the Australian Government archive."

This is true but in each case the fan in question was well-placed and had the right contacts/protocols in order to facilitate these recoveries.

"Fans kept and asked the BBC for film scraps, one of which was from Galaxy 4: Four Hundred Dawns."

Not strictly true: Jan Vincent Rudski was given this extract in return for his assistance on the "Whose Doctor Who" documentary. It was, in fact, the left over dupe footage used in the making of this programme - IIRC he didn't specifically ask for this...

"There were also the fan 8mm TV recordings that were recovered. Fan footage from the Daemons, Smugglers was also recovered. Fans can make a difference in locating these items."

Good point - however these clips were the private property of said fans and never the original film from the BBC. In addition I do not believe that these extracts were on the collector's circles.

"The BBC really needs to consider another Treasure Hunt, a little publicity would not hurt."

The BBC's Treasure Hunt is an ongoing project.

[Peter Elliott]

Some good points being made in the above two posts.

Whilst many Doctor Who fans probably know to contact the Restoration Team or Ian Levine with Who related material its all the other programmes that get overlooked that some guide and etiquette is required for. Say for example I come into contact with some private collector who has some lost editions of TOTP or any other programmes... who does one contact and how, in order for negotiations to occur? Whilst I do know of some people to contact through this forum, not everybody does so there is some need for some information resource of some kind with tips and advice on how to help.

The only problem is as we are all too well aware of, there are many sad individuals who like to pull hoaxes and waste good peoples time so publishing such a guide would no doubt attract many of these pesky timewasters.

What particularly concerns me about Doctor Who fans is their blinkered view for if it isn't Doctor Who they ignore the fact there may indeed be some ATV, Rediffusion or other BBC material sitting there under their noses which they fail to spot and so its fair to guess some interesting lost material has slipped by as a result.

What I feel is important is that yes, we would like to find more Who material but finding other material whilst searching for Who is just as important and can be very vital and helpful so there needs to be some way to get such fans to remove their blinkers. It may not be a show they have heard of or have interest in, but there are many other people who will be interested.

[B Thomas]

^
Well said that person. In particular, your last paragraph...

[LanceM]

Well put Peter, couldn't of said it better myself. In Andy Henderson's Lost Dr.Who article he quotes a specific instance of hearing a fan ask a film dealer at a convention if he had any old who. Then he walked over he remembers finding two missing episodes from an ATV series. At the same stall the who fan just passed no less, he stated this is not an isolated incident.

I have always agreed that when a final recovery is being made it should be left up to the officials and people who have much experience in dealing with private collectors, and institutions on a professional level. I was just stating that fans ( I say that in a general sense) in both professional and public levels have been known to make a difference in recovering material, this should be taken into consideration. I am hopefull more missing material will resurface as a result of peofessional research and fan research, we should be able to work together to reach this common goal of recovery.

Regarding The Treasure Hunt, nothing has been stated in quite a while about the Treasure Hunt effort. A little publicity on the BBC's part would not be a bad idea. Especially given the hightened interest in the new series starting on Saturday !

Lance.