Time to remember

Available on iplayer until Dec 6th:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00tww3x/Time_to_Remember_Pioneers_of_Aviation/

Then bravo, BBC TV, for going back to the origin – that is, if my recollection of yesterday evening’s programme is correct!

The Hindenburg commentary is aswel known as the footage, I always thought it ironic when he says ‘oh the humanity’, than asks someone to get out of his way!
The audio (for the radio) was obviously a more recent overdub to the footage (as JDKs says), as news film footage wasn’t recorded with sound and was usually played back with music, subtitles, and later a studio type after commentary.

To the best of my recollection, the footage of the Hindenburg disaster was, on the BBC-4 television programme of yesterday evening, broadcast without a commentary or any accompanying sound. But there is the possibility that I was not paying sufficient attention to recollect reliably!

Obviously, not having seen it, I don’t know either! However given that the visuals and the recording are both powerful in their own right, it’s common ~ usual ~ for them to be broadcast together, hence my comment regarding their separate origins and intent. Just a sidelight.

To the best of my recollection, the footage of the Hindenburg disaster was, on the BBC-4 television programme of yesterday evening, broadcast without a commentary or any accompanying sound. But there is the possibility that I was not paying sufficient attention to recollect reliably!

According to Wikipaedia, Herbert Morrison’s commentary (that which was later put with the newsreel footage and to which James refers) was as follows:

“It’s practically standing still now they’ve dropped ropes out of the nose of the ship; and (uh) they’ve been taken ahold of down on the field by a number of men. It’s starting to rain again; it’s… the rain had (uh) slacked up a little bit. The back motors of the ship are just holding it (uh) just enough to keep it from…It’s burst into flames! It’s burst into flames and it’s falling it’s crashing! Watch it; watch it! Get out of the way; Get out of the way! Get this, Charlie; get this, Charlie! It’s fire… and it’s crashing! It’s crashing terrible! Oh, my! Get out of the way, please! It’s burning and bursting into flames and the… and it’s falling on the mooring mast. And all the folks agree that this is terrible; this is the one of the worst catastrophes in the world. [indecipherable] its flames… Crashing, oh! Four- or five-hundred feet into the sky and it… it’s a terrific crash, ladies and gentlemen. It’s smoke, and it’s in flames now; and the frame is crashing to the ground, not quite to the mooring mast. Oh, the humanity! And all the passengers screaming around here. I told you; it—I can’t even talk to people, their friends are out there! Ah! It’s… it… it’s a… ah! I… I can’t talk, ladies and gentlemen. Honest: it’s just laying there, mass of smoking wreckage. Ah! And everybody can hardly breathe and talk and the screaming. 0000000, I… I… I’m sorry. Honest: I… I can hardly breathe. I… I’m going to step inside, where I cannot see it. Charlie, that’s terrible. Ah, ah… I can’t. Listen, folks; I… I’m gonna have to stop for a minute because [indecipherable] I’ve lost my voice. This is the worst thing I’ve ever witnessed”.

It is because I do not think that I have heard or read this before today – either with the newsreel footage or in isolation – I think that it was not included with the footage in the television programme of yesterday evening.

I had no idea that there was film footage of such events as Lindbergh’s arrival or the Hindenburg distaster.

Surprising, as footage of Lindbergh’s arrival at Paris is often shown – it’s not particularly rare, IMHO. (EDIT: Of course most of the Paris footage is pretty iffy, it was night after all! I was probably thinking of his Croydon landing at the end of this selection: http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=81140 )

They knew he was coming, and that’s where newsreels scored; predicted events!

What’s interesting about the notorious Hindenberg film and the famous voice over (“Oh, the humanity”) is that most people assume that they were broadcast together – but they weren’t. A good explanation of the famous recording and the juxtaposition here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Morrison_%28announcer%29

It’s a classic case study of more modern assumptions of later technology and systems being available at the time. (i.e. most of us in the past W.W.II generations would assume the film and audio would have come together and been transmitted live or soon after; not as it actually was.)

Pathe clip: http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=32969

Regards,

Although anyone watching it would have learned that Alcock and Brown flew the Atlantic in a Handley Page bomber.

Yes, I did raise my eyebrows and mutter something into my wine at that point. To which my wife’s retort was: “it’s only a television programme”. Sometimes I can’t help but admire her pithiness!

The programme was listed as one of twelve. But I doubt that all will be about aviation. Does anyone know?

Clearly lack of research is not a new trend amongst documentary makers! An amazing programme, I had no idea that there was film footage of such events as Lindbergh’s arrival or the Hindenburg distaster.

Although anyone watching it would have learned that Alcock and Brown flew the Atlantic in a Handley Page bomber. And there was me thinking that the Vimy was a Vickers design.

Caught it by chance – some excellent footage including a remarkably sprightly biplane airliner landing at Croydon!