Norman Collins (centre) Controller, ±«Óãtv Television and Philip Dorte, Head of Television Outside Broadcasts and Films, chatting to one of the television cameramen (possibly Steven Wade) at the Empire Pool, Wembley, at the 1948 Olympic Games.
With the ±«Óãtv Television Service barely up and running, following its wartime closure, covering the London 1948 Olympic Games posed a major challenge to the ±«Óãtv. Radio was still king, and televised events could not be seen outside the immediate London area. Producers, camera operators, and others recall how they coped with a tiny budget and pre-war equipment.
William Cave, Work Experience
William Cave was on Work Experience between University and National Service
Given almost free reign to try out any aspect of television he wanted, William was seconded to the London 1948 Olympic Games coverage when he was just 21. He was even allowed to operate the cameras!
Steven Wade, Camera Operator
Steven Wade was a Camera Operator. He recalls how new everyone was to working in television.
Duncan Anderson, Camera Operator
Duncan Anderson was a Camera Operator at the 1948 Olympics. In this archive clip, Duncan demonstrates some of the quirks of the pre-war cameras on which the London 1948 Olympic Games were televised.
Alan Chivers, Producer
Alan Chivers, Producer at the 1948 Olympics, recalls how TV coverage was surprisingly sophisticated, despite the lack of resources following the war, but it was not without its tense moments.
Seymour Joly de Lotbiniere, Head of Outside Broadcasts
Thought to be the only person in ±«Óãtv history to have had the same role on three separate occasions in one career, Seymour Joly de Lotbiniere (known as 'Lobby') was Head of ±«Óãtv Outside Broadcasts (OBs) from 1935 until the mid-1950s. A large part of his career coincided with post-war austerity, under ±«Óãtv Director-General Sir William Hayley who was tasked with keeping ±«Óãtv staff numbers down.
Working with Norman Collins, Controller, ±«Óãtv Television Service, De Lotbiniere pulled off a feat of television production by staging the radio and television OB for the London 1948 Olympic Games. He had already established the art of sports commentary during his pre-war years, so was well placed to craft what was, for 1948, the most ambitious OB yet. De Lotbiniere was interviewed for the ±«Óãtv Oral History Collection in 1975, by John Lane.
The ±«Óãtv and the 1948 Olympic Games
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The Birth of TV: London 1948 Olympics
The '100 Voices that Made the ±«Óãtv' project unearth unique oral histories from the team who made the biggest outside broadcast ever attempted. -
Broadcasting the 1948 Games
How the coverage looked, sounded and how it was promoted by the ±«Óãtv in 1948. -
Staging the 1948 Olympic Games
Senior television engineer Norman Green recalls the preparation for the biggest outside broadcast yet attempted -
Working on the London 1948 Olympic Games
Producers, camera operators, and others recall how they coped with a tiny budget and pre-war equipment.