Category: News

Now that Marconi and its successors has vacated the New Street site after an occupancy of nearly 100 years the Veterans Association has produced a CD of photographs.

The CD contains four sets of photographs

M1 taken by Veterans Eric Peachey and Barry Powell during a walk around the site in April 2008.  At this time the site was being cleared for the imminent move to Basildon.

M2 taken by Veteran Eric Peachey at the open day on 6 June 2008.  The site had been cleared of work and was to be handed over the the developers at the end of that month.

M3 taken by Mike Plant a friend of the Veterans at the open day on 6 June 2008.

M4 taken by Eldred Owen and Mel McGann at the time of the demolition of Building 46 and the beginning of the contruction of Eastwood House.  The pictures are dated from the early nineties.

There is a total of 498 pictures on the disc and the size is 618MB.

If you would like a copy of this CD it can be obtained from the secretary

Barry Powell
Secretary
The Marconi Veterans Association
22 Juliers Close
Canvey Island
Essex, SS8 7EP

The cost is £6.00 including postage.

Veterans

There are still some places left for the Reunion on 18 April.  If you would like to attend and are not on our mailing list to receive an invitation there is the form attached to this note.

Unfortunately, we do not yet have facilities to receive your credit card payment electronically so it will be necessary to print off the form (spreadsheet) using the link below and mail it to the address shown with a cheque.  Alternatively, if you do not have printing facilities please contact us via this site and we will send you a paper form.

Reunion 2009 Excel spreadsheet

Veterans

As we approach the end of the year, I am looking to the printing of the labels for the mailing of the annual Newsletter.

It seems, therefore, timely for me to ask you all to help me in two areas …..

First, do you know of a Veteran who would like to receive the Newsletter and possibly attend the reunion. It may be that they have moved or not replied to a confirmation request of a few years ago.

The second way you can help is if you know of someone who is not a Veteran but would like to receive the newsletter.  Some of these (those who left with 21 to 24 years service) have now become Veterans by virtue of the recent reductions in service requirement and I would be delighted to hear from them and make sure they are on the mailing list.  With regard to the others, we are pleased to announce that we are compiling a list of those who, whilst not entitled to become Veterans, nevertheless wish to maintain contact with the Association.

We are terming this “Friends of the Marconi Veterans’ Association”. All “Friends” would receive the newsletter and we would do all we can to keep them in touch with ex-colleagues but would not be eligible to attend the reunion.

In all cases, please urge them to contact me as soon as possible

Barry Powell
Secretary
Marconi Veterans’ Association
22 Juliers Close
Canvey Island
Essex
SS8 7EP

01268 696342

Secretary@marconi-veterans.org

We have recently received an E-mail from Geoff Valentine attaching a request for help at the Fort Perch Rock maritime radio display in Liverpool. The full text is attached below.

Message Received: Jun 11 2008, 05:58 PM
From: “Geoff Valentine”
To: Secretary@Marconiveterans.com, “Ken Berry” “www.marconiveterans.org”
Cc: “John Garner” , “John Hudson” “Brian Cotton” “Roger Bentley” “Stan McNally”
Subject: Request

I have recently received the following e-mail from a member of the Radio Officers Association requesting Help at the Fort Perch Rock maritime radio display in Liverpool.  Would be grateful if you could promulgate the information contained on your excellent websites.  The article has been added to the ROA website as of today.

Best Wishes Geoff Valentine

Hon sec Radio Officers Amateur Radio Society

——-Original Message——-

From: John Hudson
Date: 05/06/2008 14:30:49
To: sparksatsea1@btinternet.com
Cc: stan mcnally
Subject: WEBSITE an QSO magazine.

hello Geoff, hope you are fit and well and working not too hard.

Please could you do us a favour please. Would it be possible to put a “stop Press” item on the website and also a copy in the next QSO magazine to ask for some ex R/O’s or ETO’s volunteers for Fort Perch Rock. have put a VOLUNTEERS REQUIRED message on the ships nostalgia forum but as yet no responses.!!  (We are a bit thin on the ground only a few of us doing everything) It went like this:-

Hello all you ex R/O’s and ETO’s.  We are presently looking for some volunteers with 1 or 2 free days a month in the kids’ school holidays or at weekends to come to Fort Perch Rock, New Brighton, Wirral to help show the visitors around the 3 ships radio stations and the brand new Radar and AIS units together with charts on PC that are being installed as we speak and should be completed in the next week or two.

We have got the best view of the River Mersey anywhere around the area!!  Also have the VHF set on Mersey Radio ch12 so we can both see and hear the river traffic.

So if you guys have a bit of free time and want to get out of the house and take some trips down memory lane and add to the education of the general public and not let Marine Radio be forgotten and keep your old grey cells in working order please send me an email.

Also if you would like to visit the Fort to help you make up your mind that can be arranged OK.

Many thanks.

John Hudson. email:-johnmcmw@blueyonder.co.uk

After several months of discussion a date has been announced for Marconi Veterans to have a final look around the New Street site before it is handed over to the developers.

The date is Friday 6 June starting at 1200 hours.  The tour will last about two hours followed by tea, coffee and cake in the canteen. All members of the Marconi Veterans’ Association on our mailing list have been informed but if you have missed the mailing and would like to attend will you please contact:

Kirsty Luxford
SELEX Communications Ltd.
Lambda House
Christopher Martin Road
Basildon

SS14 3EL

Please give her your name and advise if you have any mobility difficulties.
Replies are requested by 2 June.

During his talk to the 2008 reunion on 12 April Robbie Robertson gave a brief outline of the changes that have taken place in the administration of the GEC 1972 Plan.  Of particular interest was the acquisition of the scheme by the Pension Corporation.

Robbie is now a member of the Pensions Consultative Committee (PCC).

Since his talk the government pensions regulator has issued a press release.  This can be read at
http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/mediaCentre/pressReleases/pn08/pn08-08.aspx

The report under Section 89 of the Pensions Act can be read at
http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/pdf/Section89Telent.pdf

Marconi Veterans’ Association regrets to announce the death Charles Rand, MBE our Chairman and President for 2008.

Charles died on 10 April.

The funeral will be held at

St. Andrews Church,
Melbourne Avenue,
Chelmsford CM1 2JB

at 2 pm on Friday 18 April.

Peter Turrall has obtained a copy of a speech made by Marconi in 1935 at the inauguration of the telegram link between the UK and Australia. The original appears to have been on two sides of a 78 rpm disk. These sides have been spliced together and are provided here as an mp3 file. If you wish to hear the recording please click on the link below. This should open the audio player for mp3 files on your computer.

Marconi_35

Sadly, the radio station Chelmsford Calling has had to close after eight weeks of operation.  A short report appeared in the Chelmsford Weekly News on 15 February 2007. 

Now that the New Street site has been sold and the current Selex Communications work on the site due to move to Basildon in 2007 discussions have started in order to try and retain some of memories of 95 years on the New Street site.

The site developers, Messrs Ashwells of Cambridge, have retained a Mr Ian Parkin to put together a proposal to tell the story of Marconi and the Company on the redeveloped site.  To begin this process Mr Parkin has met Sir Robert Telford and on 12 October held an informal meeting with some Marconi Veterans to gain a feeling for what the Marconi Company had achieved and how the employees with long memories of the site reacted to the proposals.

The meeting was held at The Chelmsford Industrial Museum at Sandford Mill.  It was hosted by Dr Geoff Bowles, the Keeper of Science & Industry for the Chelmsford Museum Service.  The following veterans were present:  Ron Bradbrook, Brian Everett, Ewan Fenn, Basil Francis, Chris Gardiner, Jimmy Leadbitter, David Polley, Barry Powell, Raymond Rowe, Peter Turrall.

Ian Parker opened the meeting by describing his brief from the developers which is to incorporate heritage information into the redevelopment project.  Most of the New Street site will be knocked down and the new buildings will be mainly residential and commercial with the site being essentially pedestrianised.

The 1912 Front building, power house, water tower and the semi-detached cottages on the corner of Marconi Road will stay.

It was suggested that the new buildings, footpaths and squares should have names, particularly one called Building 46, and names could also reflect both events in Marconi’s history and the names of significant people.

The main problem area is the 1912 Front Building.  It has been assessed and considered inappropriate for conversion into a five-star hotel.  It might make a three-star establishment but only five would be acceptable on this site.  An alternative would be to use it as a museum but the conversion would be too expensive for what could be achieved.

It was considered that the old power house might make a good museum and archive and form a permanent home for the Marconi Veterans Association.

This discussion programme is on-going and any ideas from Veterans or others will be gratefully received by Ian Parkin.  These can be sent via the contacts page on this web site or direct to the secretary.

Chris Gardiner