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Brian Izzard Chairman MVA |
Another year zooms by …
Last year I noted that it had been a year of political turmoil (or should I say ‘change’) in the UK but this year has been relatively calm apart from Grant Shapps having had five cabinet jobs in a year – hardly time for a welcome pack and a leaving do. At the other end of the scale, Veterans may well remember the famous five-year plans that many of us were subjected to – does anyone remember one that wasn’t completely out of date in six months? Thankfully, inflation seems to be on the way down and interest rates have peaked. However, I wonder how the political landscape will change by the end of 2024!
Sadly, we have ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, but this has also been the year of natural disasters. Earthquakes in Morocco, floods in Europe/Libya and wildfires across many parts of Europe and North America – many inevitably linked to climate change. I was particularly sad to hear of the fires in the Hawaiian island of Maui which I have visited on vacation a couple of times. There is a huge Banyan Tree in Lahaina which was originally planted in 1873 and has a foliage circumference of about 450 metres. It is a very popular tourist attraction and wedding backdrop. I well remember using it as a sunshade and it is not far from the beach where I made my one and only attempt at surfboarding – I did manage to get vertical once for about five seconds. Lahaina’s Front Street provided endless shopping, eating and night life and is steeped in history. Both the street and the tree have been wiped out, but I read that the tree is already showing signs of recovery.
On a recent cruise I was looking forward to visiting Signal Hill in St. Johns Newfoundland where Marconi is reported to have received the first transatlantic wireless signal (the letter ‘S’ in Morse code) in 1901 using an antenna suspended 500 feet by kite. Marconi returned to the site in 1920 to test ‘long-range’ audio transmission and succeeded in reaching the ship SS Victorian over 1200 miles away in the Atlantic. It is surely mind blowing to realise how far we have come in the past 100 years as I sit down to watch a live sporting event on the other side of the world in high-definition colour television. Sadly, the St. John’s port of call was cancelled for ‘operational reasons’ whatever that means – probably the port fees were too high.
However, I did manage to visit the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax Nova Scotia which has a permanent display devoted to the Titanic disaster on April 15, 1912. Perhaps the most poignant artefact was a pair of leather children’s shoes from a 19-month-old British fair-haired toddler, originally referred to as the Unknown Child, Body No. 4. Later DNA testing resulted in the child being positively identified as Sydney Leslie Goodwin with his headstone being upgraded in the nearby Fairview cemetery after a proper funeral.
The Museum also included a radio room where members of the public could try out their Morse skills and it is also a HAM radio station VA1MMA where someone was busy making radio contacts. Of particular interest was a Marconi Canada CSR 5A/CM11A HF Transceiver (pictured) which the staff believed was still in working order.
Radio Room at Halifax Museum
Reunion News ...
Judging by comments from your Committee and Veterans, the 2023 Reunion went well and attendance from Veterans and Associates increased slightly from the previous year. Getting to Pontlands proved to be a challenge since the council decided to resurface the approach road that morning and apparently did not notify the venue or anybody else for that matter. What did we do before SatNavs! Your secretary has apologised for his lack of planning and foresight and has assured me it won’t happen again ….
I felt that the quality of the meal and service provided was very good and we have duly booked Pontlands for our 2024 Reunion which will be held on Saturday 20 April. The usual invitation will be mailed to all our current members in addition to full details being posted on our website. For those of you who have not attended recently, Pontlands Park Hotel is located close to the former Marconi Research Laboratories in Great Baddow.
The theme for the 2024 Reunion will be Radar orientated and I am pleased to welcome Alan Matthews as our President for 2024. Alan started his Marconi career in 1952 as a Student Apprentice which is the same route as I followed albeit some 8 years later.
Our guest speaker will be Dave Lowry who had considerable experience with the S600 Air Defence Radar and saw service in the Falklands.
Our 2024 coaster will also have a Radar theme.
And Finally ...
My predecessor Peter Turrall (and our Patron) continues to be involved in Marconi events and he recently joined one of our regular Management Committee meetings and provided some thoughts about increasing MVA membership levels.
Once again, I must thank Leonardo UK for assistance with our newsletter printing and postage costs. This ongoing support is invaluable and very much appreciated.
I could not fulfil my role without the support of the Management Committee and particularly Colin for all his hard work as Secretary and to Mark for his diligence in keeping our website up to date.
See you all at our next Reunion on 20 April 2024.
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Colin Fletcher Secretary |
It’s never easy to write these articles for a number of reasons, which can be easily identified. Firstly, there is the question of how to start the article in an interesting way, the equivalent of an Alfred Hitchcock ’McGuffin’. Then of course there is writer’s block, a formidable adversary. And finally, not forgetting what the content should be. The last is a difficult one; it must not duplicate aspects of the Chairman’s article, although there will be an inevitable overlap .
I feel it is fair to say that after the disruption caused by events beyond our control, the Annual Reunion has settled down and is almost mechanical to run, just tick the boxes as we go. ‘Almost’ that is the key word (see the article on the 2023 Reunion). Hopefully that is how it appears to the membership outside of the Committee. Mind you there are some tricky items below:
- Venue and Menu – Pontlands is proving a popular venue with decent menu choices;
- President and Guest Speaker – with a diminishing membership this is always a challenge;
- Theme for the Coaster.
The 2023 Coaster celebrated the role of women in the Marconi Company. It can’t be emphasised enough how important their contribution at most levels in the company has been.
- Winifred Sayer, who participated in the first regular entertainment broadcasts prior to the historic Dame Nellie Melba broadcast;
- Elizabeth Beeson the daughter of the landlord of the Cock and Bell, who worked with the Eckersley engineers at Writtle;
- Not forgetting the countless women who worked on the shop floor.
On a final note I wish you all a happy and healthy 2024 and may we meet up once again at the annual Reunion on 20 April 2024 at Pontlands Park.
Coaster Swap
Do you have any missing coasters from past years? Then contact the Secretary for price and availability. We have a healthy stock of coasters for 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023. Would you like a set of 4 or 6 coasters from different years, or perhaps you are looking for gift ideas.
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Mark Watson-Lee |
With the Newsletter I am entirely dependant on what members have submitted to me over the year. At the end of August I had only a few articles, so the secretary sent out a prompting email to all members. We had a good response so by October I had a good collection of articles, in fact I now have more articles that can be fitted into the 2024 Newsletter, so a few will instead be in the 2025 Newsletter.
Thank you to Eric who does the proof reading.
If you have any article suitable for the 2025 Newsletter please email
A few years before Sir Robert Telford retired as Managing Director of GEC-Marconi Limited, he called me to his office and asked if I would take over the responsibility of being the contact for the late Guglielmo Marconi's
daughter Princess Elettra who was living in Rome.
As I was at that time Marconi Communication Systems Director of Publicity, my first meeting with Princess Elettra and her Mother Marchese Maria Cristina the widow of Senor Guglielmo Marconi, was at the lEE (Institute of Electrical Engineers) conference in London when I was a member of the lEE Committee putting together an international meeting lasting a whole week at lEE Headquarters.
I was Chairman of one of the Committees on the first day of the Conference and in the audience was Marchese Marconi and her daughter Princess Elettra. It was not until after the first half of the meeting concluded and during a lunchtime break, I was able to have conversations with the various speakers who I had introduced as Chairman and had come from countries all over the world, that I was able to have conversations with Marconi's widow and daughter.
Following the Conference I arranged for the Marchese to come to Chelmsford where she visited BBC Essex at their new headquarters in London Road and officially opened the Radio Station and also visited a number of other places in the Chelmsford area associated with Marconi Units.
I was able to visit Rome sometime later and to be entertained at the home of Marchese Marconi at a very splendid area of the City. During this visit I was able to gain knowledge of the family and in particular that Marconi's widow the Marchese, was the daughter of the Master General of the Swiss Guard whose duty was to control the members of the Guard and of course guard the Pope. The residence where the Marchese was living was effectively a Palace and now as I write this story the home of the Marchese daughter Princess Elettra.
Princess Elettra no longer has a husband but her son Prince Guglielmo who recently married an Italian lady, is living close by. Mother and son speak excellent English and during my subsequent visits to Rome, I have been taken by them to many places of interest and also to see some of the early equipment designed by the founder of Marconi’s Wireless Telegraph Company Limited, Senor Guglielmo Marconi. In particular my visit to the Italian Post Office Museum in Rome was an outstanding example of the early work of Marconi.
I still maintain contact with Princess Elettra by monthly telephone conversations and all being well, by the time this Newsletter is printed, she will have visited Chelmsford once again and be entertained by Anglia Ruskin University.
Although I will not be with Princess Elettra on this visit, I will be in contact with her and her son who is accompanying her. No doubt she will visit Writtle where I organised the creation and installation of The Marconi Window in the Parish Church opened by Prince Guglielmo in 1992.
Whey hey! The day dawns and the Reunion is back on course and on its usual date after the wobble caused by the pandemic and associated lockdowns.
The 2022 Reunion went well, so now the running of the event seems to be falling nicely in place; it’s a lovely day and won’t be as blistering as July 2022. All set for a great day and looking good Major Tom. Really?
Unfortunately it was not going to be without challenges (you know how that translates in management speech). Firstly, Claire had phoned to say that she was unwell. However she had prepared the raffle tickets and envelopes for the tables and would have them sent in by courier – her partner. (A vote of thanks to Claire for that).
| Secondly, the ‘powers that be’ had omitted to inform Pontlands that roadworks would be taking place that day. Consequently this required some swift decisions from those involved. The first was to ask Pontlands to delay serving by 30 minutes so as to allow members, after experiencing delays, to arrive and settle down before dining. |
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Unbeknownst to the Secretary, his wife was outside directing Reunion traffic through the diversion allowing them to arrive at Pontlands.
Meanwhile back at the Reunion the Management Committee along with the President and Guest Speaker assembled for the annual photograph.
Left to Right: Back Row: Brian Izzard (Chairman), Alan Pamphilon (Guest Speaker), Chris Neale (2023 President), Gillian Drake,
David Frost, David Roscoe, Chris Gardiner, Mark Watson-Lee (Newsletter editor), Barry Powell, Christine Powell (Member),
Seated : Colin Fletcher (Secretary), Peter Turrall (Patron), Eric Peachey (Vice-Chairman), Val Cleare.
As the time for the Reunion Lunch to start draws nearer, the number of attendees is rather low. A quick decision is made and Pontlands are asked if it would be possible to delay the start by 30 minutes. Credit to Pontlands they agreed. However, this was not the end of the matter. Murphy’s Law strikes and before one could say ‘full house’ the numbers in the marquee increased. Another quick word with Pontlands; could the start be brought forward by 15 minutes. No sooner said than done and the Reunion started with only a short delay.
The luncheon commenced with the Top Table being introduced by the MC Veteran David Frost. Brian, our illustrious Chairman, gave his welcoming speech, whilst the first course was being served to all tables barring the Top Table, which was served at the termination of the Chairman’s speech. Brian also requested articles for this Newsletter, which has received an excellent response as can be seen by the size of this edition.
Following the meal coffee is served to a cheerful ensemble as can be seen from a photographic selection of the Veterans and Associates.
And while everyone is in a relaxed mood the …
Speeches
As always the speeches followed the repast. Firstly our President for the year – Veteran Chris Neale proceeded to recount past experiences before introducing our Guest Speaker Alan Pamphilon.
Alan, a Veteran and local historian, gave a short history of the English Electric Valve Company from its roots in the 1930s up to its current incarnation as Teledyne e2v.
Raffle
The Speeches were followed by the excitement of the annual raffle, which if not for Claire Lucas would not have happened. In spite of being unable to attend the Reunion, Claire had prepared the tickets and envelopes for the tables. Along with the regular prizes of hampers, jams, bottles of alcohol also included, for the third year running, matching sets of table mats and coasters for 2023– the table mats were a larger version of the coasters.
Note: Should any Veteran or Associate wish for a set of four or six tablemats for any year, please contact the Secretary for prices and availability.
AGM
The AGM this year was quickly dispatched in the usual speedy fashion as there were no special resolutions. The usual resolutions of accepting the finances and re-electing the Management Committee were passed by the Veterans present.
Thus ended the 2023 Reunion.
Do you want to book a table for colleagues (minimum 8, maximum 10) or sit with someone you know? Please let the Secretary know when completing a booking form for the 2024 Annual Reunion.
2023 Reunion
Some Reunion Photographs below, or click here for all
(photos taken by Graham Chorley)
