Television

Al appeared on Television first of all on the 27th March 1958. Things were very different in those days. With ITV being launched on the 22nd September 1955 in the London Area commercial Television was in its infancy. Television Wales and the West (TWW) started broadcasting on the 14th January 1958 so Al appeared a few months after it all started. In those days the way it worked was that Al attended an audition at The Grand Spa Hotel Ballroom, Bristol run by Reginald Williams Entertainments on the 14th December 1957 and was asked to do 7 to 8 minutes at 4.50pm. The TV Producer of “New Aires and Faces” Jeff Inman had requested this entertainments agency to organise the auditions and he would be there to carry out the auditions. Al was successful and was booked to appear on the 13th March at the Pontcann Studios, Cardiff.. On the 28th February 1958 he was sent a letter to say that due to rescheduling he was now to appear on the 27th March 1958. The reason give was that the finals of the “Max Factor” Beauty Contest had now been scheduled for the 9th programme on the 13th March 1958. How times have changed Beauty contests were very popular and very common. Anyway Al was booked for the 27th March and was requested to be there the day before at 4pm for rehearsal and on the day of the broadcast from 10 am until the live transmission. They offered to provide accommodation for the night between. Al was paid £2.2.0d for each of the rehearsals and £8.8.0d for the live show. This was a Total of £10.10.0d

.0d for the performance a Total of £10.10.0d,

A picture taken of the broadcast on a Black and White TV in Al’s home in Wells in Somerset