Wilfred Pickles - December 1941

Wilfred Pickles was a Yorkshireman; and proud of it. On the BBC North Regional Programme, then on the Home Service, he was said to be the first newsreader not to speak with Received Pronunciation. It is easy to see how his slightly warmer approach comforted in the dark days of War; and, it was said, was 'a deliberate attempt to make it more difficult for Nazis to impersonate BBC broadcasters'.

Wilfred joined the BBC in November 1941, and is perhaps most fondly remembered for hosting ‘Have a Go’, from 1946 to 1967. He received his OBE in 1950; and died in March 1978.

Here he is on 8th December, 1941 in full flow in one of his BBC News bulletins. Notice too the days before the final 'pip' was elongated.

More on news presentation at http://davidlloyd-radio.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/the-art-of-news-reading.html