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Radio Sutch & City - Part 11

Transmitters, Antenna Masts & Bits n Bob's

Page 1 of 2

Issue: 2 Dated: 25th April 2009

Quite wordy but this part of the rolling story includes some interesting historic Radio City documents

Linda Bass & Reg Calvert

Early Radio City Press Picture taken on the Fort

The battery portable was a red Hacker that lasted the duration, the 1st Radio City Sticker design is on side of one of the Ferrographs, seldom both on Fort one usually ashore at the 20a Oxford Street being repaired

The Ferrographs were used to record shows after close down, & later play-out the religious tapes

The Winch aboard Shivering Sands

Initially getting on & off the fort was by leaping to the rusty ladders, scaling the gantry & climbing up through the single man access hatch

Later winching up & down on the 1 ton crane hoist by rope & then on a crude pallet

See Reg Calvert on the ropes & Tony Pine on the pallet & being winched aboard

N.B Red Sands Fort also employed a similar crane hoist system


Audio

Radio City Testing, Record Centre (Office) Ad' and Promo for 1st 5x4 Beatles & Rolling Stones Show

Arnold & Harris Mast Quotation

Plans to erect a 240' mast on Shivering Sands

Arnold & Harris Mast Quotation 2

Some key crew were told it's this months salary or the mast

Shivering Sands Raid

It was Alan Arnold of Arnold-Harris Mast Erectors who accompanied Reg on that fateful visit to Oliver Smedley's Essex home following the raid on Shivering Sands

Above the raiding party, Radio City crew & police aboard the Fort as the stations supply tender Harvester comes alongside, with Paul Elvey reaching from the crane pallet

Arnold & Harris Mast Terms & Conditions

Terms & conditions of the rental

Arnold & Harris Mast Terms & Conditions 2

We had a lean month, the mast went up

Remains of Gun Tower 2

Close up of all the remains of Gun Tower 2 taken in 1965 prior to the Top House being removed by Trinity House

Another picture of the G2 Gun Toppled Tower can be seen in Sutch & City Part 3

Reg Calvert's Mast Agreement

Acceptance of agreement

Patricia removing G2 Top House

Trinity House Vessel 'Patricia' at Shivering Sands in 1966 removes last of the Top House of the G2 Gun Tower toppled by the Ribersborg collision of 1963, not quite sure why as the legs were left

N.B The unwanted remnants were taken & dumped South East of the Red Sands Fort

Patricia completes G4 (2) removal

The Big Mast on top of the Control Tower said to be 240' giving an overall height above sea level of 357'

The size of the antenna gave Tony Pine the notion to name Radio City 'The Tower of Power'

In fact the mast comprised 20 x 10' sections (200') & was sited on top of the Control Tower

The Towers are 117' from sea bed so in reality 317' & allowing for tides 280' above mean sea water level

The former Galley on G1 later a store G2 leg remains

Radio City mechanical & engineers spares on Gun Tower 1 had previously been the galley
G2: Top House removed, stub legs remain viewed from top of Searchlight Tower

It's little known that in 1966 Trinity House conducted a test cutting of the South West leg of the Bofors Tower, it's unclear how deep the cut was made through the leg

The original stress design took into account leg damage & it was said a Tower would stand with just three legs, it's testament that the Towers still standing more or less erect 42 years later

Shivering Sands Searchlight Tower

Sailing through the gap between Control Tower & Searchlight Tower 2008

Super Sunset by Searchlight Tower

The Searchlight Tower is used by PLA (Port of London Authority)

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