(Photo on right kindly sent by Jim Glendinning
of 'Have A Go' at Hurley, Warwks, 1956?)
During the years 1946 to 1967, a travelling quiz
series with Wilfred Pickles as its host, travelled the length and breadth of
Great Britain. In fact over 400,000 miles were travelled over its lifetime and
when the show finished there were still invitations from more than 1,500 venues.
The BBC, in it’s infinite wisdom in 1967, felt the programme had "run out
of steam", and it finished even though it was still very popular. It was
one of the most popular radio shows ever and regularly attracted audiences of
over 20 million each week.
The public liked the programme and warmed to it
as a celebration of ordinary folk, who were encouraged to tell heart-warming
stories and share their experiences. Wilfred’s wife, Mabel, gave out the prize
money, and the programme was introduced "with Mabel at the table".
Violet Carson, (Ena Sharples, of Coronation Street fame), played the piano on the
show. Barney Colehan, was its producer and after Mabel retired, he was known for
the famous saying " Give ‘em the money Barney!" The prize money
started at 2/6d, then 5/-d, 10/6d and the big win was £1/1/0d (a guinea). In
those days all the programmes were broadcast live from each venue but mishaps
were few!.
On Wednesday October 14th 1959, Have-A-Go visited
Tintagel and at 7.30pm on that evening the programme was broadcast live from
King Arthur’s Hall. Before the programme began Mabel asked the audience to
sing ‘ Happy Birthday To You’ to Wilfred Pickles as it was his birthday on
that very day. Local people appearing on the show were William Boney, Alan
Menhennick, Gwen Edwards, Tommy Knight and Mary Symons. I chatted to Mary
Bartlett (Symons), a few years ago, and she told me what a wonderful evening it
was. Wilfred Pickles was a charming host and put the contestants at ease before
and during the programme. She said to him to him before the broadcast ‘I am
very nervous’ and he replied ‘Not as much as I am!". I had hoped to
have a longer talk with Mary but she has sadly died but I do know how pleased she would be to see at
last I have written an article about the long forgotten programme. She told me
the question that she failed on was a musical one played by Violet Carson and
whilst she knew the answer, on the night she gave the wrong one, "The Lady
of Shallot".
The audience consisted of about 100 local people and there has been a long
standing view that a recording of the programme was made. Gwen Edwards, another
of the contestants said she answered the first question correctly, "Which
Is the Highest, Brown Willy or Roughtor" , "Brown Willy", she
replied and won 2/6d!. Gwen said she failed on the next question so didn’t go
on to win the large prize, in those far off times, of one guinea!. At that time
you had to make your own way to the studio and Gwen travelled from Seaview Farm,
Trewarmett, by car and walked back home afterwards!. Producer Barney Colehan
first called on Gwen at home to ask her to take part in the show and he caught
her plucking chickens!. When Wilfred and his wife Mabel called on the Friday
before the broadcast, she was again caught plucking chicken’s, feathers
everywhere!.
The whole team stayed at the Wharncliffe Hotel, Tintagel, and Tommy Knight,
who was the head chef at that time, told me that Wilfred was an awkward customer
who liked his whiskey, and that he baked him a 4’ long Cornish Pasty. At the
end of the broadcast in King Arthur’s Hall, Tommy walked up to the stage
carrying the large pasty and stumbled badly on the stairs. However, willing
hands saved him, and the pasty, from utter disaster. Later the pasty was taken
to the East Cornwall Hospital, Bodmin to be eaten by the patients. Wilfred was
also presented with a ‘Fireside Companion’ in the shape of a Knight of the
Round Table by Mrs Harry Bray, the wife of the then Chairman of the Camelford
District Council.
Wilfred Pickles and his team made a visit to the local Tintagel Primary
School and conducted a ‘Have Go’ with the schoolchildren, with cash
prizes!. Les Baker, acted as a chauffeur for the whole team taking them where or
where they wanted to go. I didn’t ask him if they gave a good tip at the end
of the engagement, because whilst the visit was much enjoyed the BBC were
apparently very tight with their money!.
During my conversation with Gwen Edwards, I thought I would ask her about the
whereabouts of the recording which has been mentioned so many times since 1959.
She immediately said she knew who made the recording and she was told at the
time that she could go and hear it but never did. Ronnie Youlton was the man
with the cumbersome reel to reel recorders of those days and my investigation
stopped at Mrs Margaret Youlton, Ron’s widow. She kindly made the tape
available to me and this has now been copied to the modern DVD. So at
last Gwen heard that recording from the 50s, the days when Tintagel
"Had a Go".
