Bernie Quayle Wonderful World of the  Wireless A Career in Radio

In June 1967, I was still working as a croupier in the Palace Casino and spent a lot of my spare time producing Super 8mm home movies.  I'd just completed a 30 minute documentary of the 1967 Diamond Jubilee TT  and had sought the help of an old friend Peter Kneale, one of the best sources of information on the TT. 
If you'd like to see part 2 of the TT video, click >

Peter also offered to lend me some of Manx Radio's albums to use on the soundtrack of my trip around Africa.  I jumped at the opportunity and started adding music and commentary to my film.  Ray Joyce was Manx Radio's General Manager at the time and when he saw the work I'd produced in my living room at home, he asked why I hadn't applied for the announcer's job they'd been advertising. (I didn't know they were looking)  He made an appointment for Laurie Quayle (no relation) to interview me - and Bingo, one month later, I started work as a trainee announcer for Britain's first commercial radio station. Pictured below, yours truly on-air in 1967 

Paul Burnett joined the station in February 1967 but in October, was  offered a job on Radio Luxembourg.  He asked if I would film him in the studios, so here is the result: click I don't have too many air-checks of my time at Manx Radio in the sixties,  but here is a breakfast show recording - quality is not too good.  The music has been 'condensed' - it lasts 10 minutes, click There's also a recording of me doing the Happy Anniversary feature which was broadcast every Friday morning in the late 60s.  Perhaps you or someone you know gets a mention:

The main studio equipment comprised of twin turntables, one Spotmaster cart player which was used initially for playing jingles.   The commercials, on 2 inch reels. were still being played off two Ferrograph tape decks, this meant carefully threading the tapes  and starting the player manually.  As you can imagine, presenting a show in those days was labour intensive - thank God for today's technology. Being a presenter on Manx Radio in the sixties meant producing all kinds of features, interviews, specialist music  shows as well as presenting regular daily programmes.  Our broadcast day was from 7.00 am to 7.00 pm and this was followed by  an hour of sponsored religious programmes - a lucrative source of income.  In fact the very first words I uttered on air were:  "Its time now for the World Tomorrow with Garner Ted Armstrong."  Next page