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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1973: A spate of flying saucer sightings in Warminster had brought out groups of UFO watchers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnMSC...
2 weeks ago | [YT] | 731
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BBC Archive
Tim Curry, best known for playing the outlandish Frank-N-Furter in film musical The Rocky Horror Picture Show, has died at the age of 80.
In 1975, he spoke to the BBC on the set of the movie adaptation of the cult stage musical, along with writer Richard O'Brien and director Jim Sharman.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yZcJ...
3 weeks ago | [YT] | 3,639
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1978: In Corofin, County Clare, inventor and resident engineering genius James Tierney was showing off his home-built submarine – the only one in Ireland.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2p5W...
3 weeks ago | [YT] | 663
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1981: BBC cameras went to meet the toughest Tug-of-War team in the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rxo3J...
1 month ago | [YT] | 453
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1973: Metal worker John Stewart was preparing a Norton motorcycle for his first ever TT race.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncKdY...
1 month ago | [YT] | 641
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1971: The women of Highbury, North London, home of Arsenal Football Club, gave their thoughts on the new football season.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4Cr9...
1 month ago | [YT] | 282
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1937: An early sort of ‘sizzle’ or ’taster’ reel for BBC television productions was shown to TV manufacturers, to demonstrate the types of programmes broadcast in the first six months of transmission. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZxMF...
Image 1: The Bavera Trio demonstrating dancing on roller-skates.
Image 2: Artist John Piper reviews the work of Gainsborough, Picasso and Henry Moore.
Image 3: Dr Charlotte Wolff conducting an analysis of Jasmine Bligh's palms.
1 month ago | [YT] | 861
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1987: Barbara Cartland, the queen of romantic fiction, went head-to-head with younger upstart Jackie Collins during a lively interview on Wogan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtXml...
2 months ago | [YT] | 405
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BBC Archive
#OnThisDay 1973: Fyfe Robertson was instructed in the art of high-speed driving, at the Brands Hatch circuit. Not bad for someone who hadn’t technically passed his driving test. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDSNa...
2 months ago | [YT] | 497
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BBC Archive
The BBC is gearing up for its last live recordings from Maida Vale Studios. The former skating rink was bought by the BBC in 1933 to accommodate the BBC Symphony Orchestra, but sold in 2023 . It went on to house the Radiophonic Workshop and hosted endless legendary music sessions, including The Beatles, Bing Crosby, Nirvana and Adele.
After more than 90 years, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and BBC Singers take to the stage for BBC Radio 3’s In Tune - listen on BBC Sounds.
Image 1: BBC Symphony Orchestra - loading the instruments at Maida Vale. 1935.
Image 2: Studio 1, Maida Vale. 1937.
Image 3: Composer Igor Stravinsky rehearsing with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the BBC studios, Maida Vale. 1958.
Image 4: Malcolm Clarke, of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, programming a large voltage controlled Electronic Music Synthesiser called ‘The Delaware’. 1974.
Image 5: Unloading musical instruments and equipment from a BBC Symphony Orchestra truck in the street outside BBC Maida Vale Studios. 1996.
Image 6: Sound effects for a radio drama fight scene being recorded at the BBC Maida Vale studios. 2001.
Image 7: Amy Winehouse performing on Radio 1's ‘Live Lounge’ at the BBCs Maida Vale studios. 2007
Image 8: Elbow in session at Maida Vale Studios for the Jo Whiley show on BBC Radio 2. 2022.
Image 9: Band stickers and signatures in the BBC Maida Vale goods lift. 2025.
Image 10: Studio 3, Maida Vale. It’s distinctive green square acoustic panels and full-length curtains helped to reduce sound reverberation. 2025
To find out more about the history of these iconic studios, visit canvas-story.bbcrewind.co.uk/maidavalelegacy/
This post has been edited for accuracy.
2 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 686
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