MEMORIES OF A HYPNOTIST

The article by Rachael Blayney brought back such a flood of memories. Rachael and I were on the same shift - the Team 2 or Team B at dear old Ally Pally! The two shifts took it in turn to put out the day's television, which was short in comparison to present broadcasting. But it went out "live", no pre-recording - so if we made mistakes they were there for all to see. We would rehearse during the morning and afternoon and the show went out live in the evening. There was a wonderful sense of camaraderie in the television studios at that time, we all enjoyed the work and I think would have done it whether we were paid or not. All the women who were engaged, either to vision mix, put in background music or whatever, had served in the BBC's Engineering Division in broadcasting radio networks throughout the war, stationed as far apart as Aberdeen or London or Cardiff. My first posting was to Aberdeen, but after about a year I got a transfer to London and worked mainly in the Maida Vale Studios, then, for a short spell at Broadcasting House.

After VE day, it was decided to begin the television service, which had, of necessity (wavelengths included) to be disbanded, while the BBC engineers got on with winning the war. So when applications were asked for from interested parties in radio to transfer to television, it was almost like applying for an unknown commodity. I was one of 300 who applied and at my interview had to confess that I had never seen television and had only the vaguest idea what it was all about. In those days television had been for the London area only. But I was lucky and my application was accepted. I think 16 of us were chosen, if my memory serves me right and 8 allocated to each shift. I was on Team 2. We worked alternate days from 9am until close-down, which was flexible but usually about 10.30-11pm.

A bus would bring us to Alexandra Palace in the morning and return us to central London at night - few of us had cars then. One week you worked Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The next week you worked Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. So we had alternate weekends off. The atmosphere at Alexandra Palace was fantastic. Engineers back from service in the forces, all eager to get back to normal work. There was a wonderful feeling of participating in a new and exciting medium and we all enjoyed it.

I think the most amusing memory I have of those early pioneering days was the experiment that was made with a hypnotist. Before such a programme could be broadcast it was necessary to see how people would react. The experiment was held in Studio B at Alexandra Palace and as many people as possible were gathered into the Studio. We sat in a huge ring, cameras in attendance, I think sound was left to the big boom microphone, mainly , and of course the picture adjusted in RACKS as always.

The hypnotist had a session with all of us sitting there and to our amazement quite a number went under. It was amusing to look round and see who did go under. A number of differing people did succumb. I remember that Rachael and I did not and we had a great time surveying those who were. Two I remember in particular. One was a cameraman. On being restored to his normal self - his comment - "There, I told you it would have no effect on me!" It took us some time to assure him that he had! The other was one of the electricians who worked on the banks of lights. He was watching the experiment on a monitoring screen near RACKS and went out cold. He was about the last person any of us expected - such a prosaic, down-to-earth Londoner! We had a great deal of fun and amusement out of the episode and ribbed our unfortunate colleagues endlessly. Of course, at that time the benefits of hypnosis were unknown or merely in their infancy and it was treated by most people as a bit of a stunt. It was a stunt, however, that was too dangerous to broadcast. The picture of some old dear somewhere being hypnotised via the television screen and no-one at hand to bring her round forced the abandonment of the idea. It remains a lively memory with me, probably because it concerned only staff and because we were such a close-knit band.

I enjoyed the vision mixing I did then. My best mixing, was, I think the ballet when Swan Lake was performed in Studio A and because I enjoy ballet so much I know I got the mixing absolutely perfect. The Mixer can contribute so much to the finished programme. Another joyous occasion was the very first television performance of the Wind In The Willows. It was superb. I could go on for ever....

I enclose a snap of myself at the vision mixing desk in Studio B with Molly Brownless (Nee Heritage, then Frood), at grams. It was taken towards the end of 1949 when I left to be married. Molly now lives in Australia. It does not show the huge 'pot meters' that we used then.

I was Isobel Strachan in those days - from Edinburgh.

Isobel Harland (nee Strachan)