MR HACK No. 105

Time again for updating ... So, enjoy. We have argued and commented and asked about this one, so we thought it a good idea to do a little searching and, thanks to our good friend Derek Black we were able to trace an almost mint-condition copy of the Belfast Telegraph's Style Book - originally created by the late Fred Gamble (pictured below) and later modified by the late Des McMullan. To celebrate the resurrection of this fabled publication we have
created an album appropriately called BT Style Book and there you can find and read when you enlarge the picture the 23 pages that subs were once instructed to read and learn and write and edit text in style before it appeared in the paper ... 

Comments

[Derek Black]

Well done John, you have left them speechless!

[JC]

Yes, thanks Derek ... maybe they are all taking time out to write their memoirs.

[Chris Ryder]

Have I stumbled into a private meeting of the Continuity Belfast Telegraph?

[Blogmaster]

Newspapers are being analysed and criticised and preyed upon by various elements with warnings of strictures and legal restraints and even journalists being licensed to do their daily job ... The Leveson Inquiry recently had appearing before it a gathering of editors the like of which has not been seen in one room at the same time. Anyway, I thought this article from today's i newspaper was worth sharing ... others may disagree. In the paper the headline read: Here's why our Press is the way it is. The headline is different online, but the article is the same. Here is the link:

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/joan-smith/joan-smith-press-freedom-and-decent-values-can-go-together-2370158.html

[JC]

Amusing story in today's Daily Telegraph. A stone monument that has stood for 4,000 years was knocked over by a driver attempting to do a three point turn. The 6ft Bedd Morris stone was removed yesterday by the Pembrokeshire National Park Authority. "We have moved it for now to a secret location because we felt there was a real chance it could have been stolen," said a spokesman. Don't they know it has been standing in the same spot for 4,000 years (and not stolen in that time).
PS ... it was named after a bandit called Morris who robbed people travelling in the West Wales hills.

[Chairman]

Great pics of the BT style book and old Freddie Gamble. Anybody know what year Fred Gamble was born? I wrote a feature about him on his 80th birthday but can't find it in my files. It might help if I knew the year. There was stuff in it about his newspaper career apart from John Pepper. Those of you who remember Fred will recall that he had quite a mournful voice to go with his mournful face. Even when he was being cheerful his face looked like he'd just heard some really tragic news. And it was our own President, Graham McKenzie, who perfectly described Fred (his then news editor) as the kind of man who could wish you Merry Christmas and make it sound like a complaint.

[Derek Black]

I can remember buying his stock of Rio 6 cigars when the doc told him to stop smoking. Fred regularly had his hols in Paguera, a quiet little resort in Majorca and came back with a real ebony tan. He and Alan Watson snr were lunch buddies and returned smoking large cigars in the lift. When I was on the subs desk and Freddie was Production Editor, he was reputed to have received the news that the Country edition was running late with the dry comment "oh well, I will just have to throw myself in front of the Portadown train again!" Hope I have remembered that correctly.

[Blogmaster]

BOOK LAUNCH ...
GUESTS WELCOME

Me again ... Sorry ... Good news about the publication of a book by the Press Association's main man in Ireland, Deric Henderson ... it's called Let This Be Our Secret... "The shocking true story of a killer dentist, his mistress, how they murdered their spouses - and how they almost got away with it ..." Right, that's the story so far. It's available soon and certainly at a knock down price on amazon.co.uk (use the link around here) but what I wanted to tell you is that copyboy readers (particularly friends of Deric) are welcome to the launch party next Thursday at the Reform Club in Belfast. That invitation comes directly from the author to your Blogmaster who has been asked to spread the word. The event requires proper dress (for the gentlemen, anyway) ... shirt, tie, jacket, presumably trousers and shoes with socks on. It starts at 7pm. Hope to see you there ...

[Chairman]

I am aware that the political elite in all political parties are supposed to be the biggest brains ever to come out of university. Captain of the debating team and all that. But apparently the course on elementary common sense appears to have been flunked by all. A cabinet minister tearing up offical papers and dumping them in a bin in the park. A defence minister and friend apparently oblivious of the risk of being talked about when they cling to each other like limpets, neither daring to trust the other out of their sight. And that crazy person who told medics he planned to murder his mother and kill himself, whose privacy was more important than informing his mother to watch her back. Is it me? Or has the street smarts of the average ten year old somehow bypassed those who govern or seek to govern us? Even Monty Python couldn't dream up sketches as surreal as this weeks news.

[Smyth]

But wasn't it always thus. Think of Profumo and whatshername; Bill Clinton and Monica, etc. There's a great line in the new George Clooney movie, about a presidential candidate. It goes something like: ``You can lie to the country, take them into an illegal war, torture suspects and no one cares -- but f*** an intern and you're really screwed.''

[Smyth]

For the record (and we all know how important accuracy is) I'm now told the quote is more like this: ``Don't you know that you can lie and cheat, start a war , you can throw innocent people into prison, you can wreck a thriving economy, you can burn the country to the ground, but the one thing you cannot do is f*** an intern.''

[Ian Sanderson]

Christine Keeler... and then there was her sidekick Mandy Rice-Davies.
Those were the days, my friend... we thought they'd never end...

[Blogmaster]

Ah yes ... that was Mary Hopkins. Let's not forget her ...

[JC]

With interest rates so low, it is amazing what people are looking to invest in ... We read that one of John Lennon's teeth is up for auction:

One of John Lennon's teeth is expected to sell for $16,000 at an auction in England on November 5th. The late Beatle gave the tooth to his housekeeper, Dot Jarlett, at his Kenwood mansion in Surrey, England in the late Sixties. He had originally told her to dispose of the tooth, but upon learning that her daughter was a Beatles fan, told her to give it her as a souvenir. Jarlett has previously sold other items connected to Lennon, such as the jacket worn by the songwriter in photographs in the sleeve of Rubber Soul.
Maybe some of the copyboys have parts of their anatomy worth auctioning ... Keep it clean, please. Ladies present.

[The Beezer]

It's Mary HOPKIN, actually

[Chris Ryder]

I'd like to sell an arm and a leg if I had them available but they've already been exploited at unfair prices by unscrupulous people in the past.

[chairman]

Can't sell your soul at the moment. They are a glut on the market from politicians, bankers and contestants on XFactor wanting more than five minutes of fame. The devil can't take any more because he hasn't enough space in hell for all the sellers. Worth remembering how times have changed. If Christine Keeler and Mandy Rice Davis were starting out now they'd be hosting their own television shows. The frontiers of sin have been pushed back somewhat in the last 50 years. Is there any frontier left?

[Holy Joe]

I propose The Best Chairman We Ever Had to be Moderator of The General Assembly. (We are not sure that Methodists are allowed to head the General Assembly - Blogmaster)

[Blogmaster]

It was quite a night ... nothing has been seen like it at a book launch for more than 15 years. The top floor at the Reform Club in Belfast was packed with television, radio and newspaper hacks from most generations to celebrate the launch of Deric Henderson's book, "Let This Be Our Secret" - the 'shocking true story of a killer dentist, his mistress, how they murdered their spouses and how they almost got away from it'.

Indeed, the publsher gillmacmillan told the gathering that if he had received a crime novel with this story line he would not have published it because it was so unbelievable.

Deric, the Press Association's main man in Ireland for many years now, used his skills as a writer and investigator to put the whole ghastly tale into book form and it can be expected to top the local book charts and further afield too.

There were too many well known faces present last night to start naming naming, so we have put together an album with pictures for you to enjoy looking at. The new album is called Book Launch.

[Blogmaster]

We discover that NewsLetter editor Darwin Templeton is departing and joining UTV as Head of News. No replacement has been announced. Darwin may be required to work three months notice.

[Chairman]

Find set of pics in Book Launch. Well did. It is always nice to see old faces again. All like the before picture in a botox advt. A bit like the old geezer I see in my hall mirror from time to time. If he's still around tomorrow I may start charging him rent. Hope Deric's book sells a million. He deserves it.

[Kevin]

At the risk of suggesting Blogmaster's newsflash is a little elderly, Darwin's departure was reported in the Irish News a month ago. An advertisement for his successor then appeared in the News Letter, and the closing date for applications has passed. Darwn starts his next job next month.

[Blogmaster]

Apologies ... I have been out of the country for a while and no one had told me the news ... when I heard it, I thought it was, well ... news. Thanks for keeping us right, Kevin ...

[Cal McCrystal]

I have just learned that Cathal O'Shannon, the prominent and brilliantly accomplished journalist has died in Dublin. A distant cousin of mine, he recently had been ill. He had suffered double blows with the death of his talented actress sister Finnoula and, later, of his English wife who had for many years contributed to one of Ireland's Sunday papers. Cathal gained almost unique acclaim as a newspaper man and television journalist.

[Blogmaster]

OBITUARY
From the Irish Times

Cathal O’Shannon

The death has been announced of veteran broadcaster and journalist Cathal O’Shannon.

The 83-year-old broadcaster with the distinctive voice was known for series such as Thou Shalt Not Kill, Hidden History and the award-winning Spanish civil war documentary Even the Olives are Bleeding.

He began his journalism career at The Irish Times, where he worked for legendary editor RM Smyllie, a friend of his father’s. He cecame a foreign correspondent, joining Irish troops on their expedition to the Congo.

He then moved to work for the newspaper in London, where he met his wife Patsy Dyke.

He moved to RTÉ magazine programme Broadsheet in the early 1960s before moving to the BBC Tonight programme in 1964.

He returned to RTÉ to work on Newsbeat in the late 1960s, and in 1972 conducted a legendary interview with world boxing champion Muhammad Ali.

Born in Marino in Dublin, in 1928, O'Shannon went to school in Marino and then to Colaiste Mhuire. From there he joined Britain's Royal Air Force. He and a school friend, Fred O'Donovan, later chairman of the RTE Authority and of the Concert Hall, lied about their ages and were recruited in Belfast.

They were first sent to Long Kesh. O’Shannon was then sent to the Far East, having trained as a gunner, but missed taking part in the second World War, following the Japanese surrender after Hiroshima. He spent two years in Burma and Malaya. His first dabblings in journalism were for an RAF paper.

He became one of the most colourful figures in Irish journalism, although he abandoned it for 15 years to work in public relations for Alcan in Co Limerick.

O'Shannon said at an event in Dublin last year, where he was made a lifetime member of the Irish Film Television Academy, that the highlight of his career was interviewing Ali, who was a “vital and immensely warm” individual.

[ruthie]

Does anyone know if Rory Suchet who is news reader on Russia Today is related to the two Suchet brothers, John and Poirrot ?

[Smyth]

There are three suchet brothers, John rory and Hercule Poirot.

[Smyth]

Re. Obit above. Can anyone tell me what this sentence means `` . . . but missed taking part in the Second World War following the Japanese defeat at Hiroshima.''

[Michael]

"O’Shannon was then sent to the Far East, having trained as a [RAF] gunner, but missed taking part in the second World War, following the Japanese surrender after Hiroshima. He spent two years in Burma and Malaya."

The Master means that he missed operational service. As the Normandy invasion progressed thousands of RAF personnel were posted to the Far East and the Japanese campaign, which came to a sudden end. These and other Servicemen became the forgotten army and showed their displeasure at the polling booths with a Labour landslide.

The source? My father, who was posted to India in 1944. As a little lad I and my mother joined him in 1945, leaving on partition in 1947. I still have happy memories of that time.

[chairman]

I was nine, going on ten, when the Japanese surrendered. And despite never being near any of the Far Eastern theatres of war, was in fact almost the last casuality of WWII. The folk living around Portrush harbour on that August night were awakened by loud explosions caused by fireworks from a couple of Royal Navy motor launches tied up at the quay. Naturally everybody leapt out of bed and ran down to the Dock Head to see the excitment. Pajamas were something of a luxury to working class kids in 1945, so I borrowed an old jacket of me Da's to wear. It came down to my ankles. However one rocket went off course and exploded just behind me, sending sparks flying up around my nether regions. I leaped so high that half the town saw my bare, and slightly scorched bum. They say old Mrs. O'Neill laughed so much at the sight that she wet herself. We were a simple folk in those days and easily amused. A little footnote to history that Max Hastings neglected to mention in his latest tome on World War Two.

[ruthie]

Russia Today giving big coverage on this Polonium inquest. Amazing yer man was a spy too for England.
Loved the piece in the Daily Mail today on the wee ticket who was a hot grade spy in Parliament.
Well written piece. I met one once who pretended she couldn't speak good English and worked as a hairdresser.
When she was as full as a shuck, she was the most well versed person I have ever heard on Putin and the Polonium story.
And her English was no longer pigeon, but perfect and polished.
Can't remember how to spell Polonium.

.

[Chris Ryder]

Urge Copyboys to attend postHackgate debate at Europa Tuesday at 7.30pm. Tickets £7.50 at door. Chair Noel Thompson BBC. Speakers. Chris Bryant MP ' the scourge of Murdoch'. Paul Tweed libel lawyer. Bob Satchwell Society of Editors. Suzanne Breen. A Queen's Festival event. sure to be an interesting discussion about media regulation or not.

[Cal McCrystal]

I'm really sorry I can't get to the Europa for the debate. I hope it turns out to be revealing and even inspiring. On another subject, it cannot be true (Can it?) that seven dwarfs are competing to fill Snow White's shoes at An Uachtaran.

[Chris Ryder]

Not far off it Cal. Frontrunner Gallagher is steeped in appalling Fianna Fail pedigree. After two such visionary and capable Presidents Ireland seems doomed to have a backslapping caricature of a poor man's Haughey. And if he loses the septuagenarian second runner O'Higgins is not much better.

[Blogmaster]

Sorry, boys ... I kept being told we don't do politics around here. I will be getting into bother ...

[Chris Ryder]

I stand reprimanded Mr Blogmaster but m'learned friend referred to the seven dwarfs and I could not deter myself from enlightening him. Back to basics from now on.

[A.McQ.]

Sorry to disagree with you Herr Blogmeister, but......Chris Ryder's post was not politics but an explanation or even an observation to enlighten those of us In Another Place. The coverage in the weekend papers over here focussed predictably on one candidate about whom acres and acres of newsprint have been occupied over the years. Chris's point summed it all up in a nutshell for those of us who don't do politics or know any long words.

[ruthie]

To avoid the subject of politics.
Even though discussions would be seriously interesting.
Do any Copyboys know how to properly inject pigs ?

[Chris Ryder]

Thank you Alastair.

Disappointed by poor turn out at Europa debate on press regulation issue last night. Very enlightening discussion on a topical matter which is of great relevance to all in our calling.

[Blogmaster]

We can't let the day pass without mentioning today's the first birthday of i with their 54-page edition of the wonderfully concise paper which continues to prove that not all newspapers are dying and with a bit of imagination there is still room for printed news.

[A.McQ.]

We heard you the first time! (Sorry ... we are trying to find out why the doubling is happening - Blogmaster).

[Chris Ryder]

The amount of traffic on these pages has recently decreased by a significant amount. Is dementia taking its toll on Copyboys or are their opinions and recollections being drowned in aspic. There seems to be no shortage of topical issues and I know that the river of reminiscences never runs dry. What is going on? I think we should be told.

[Blogmaster]

Indeed, no shortage of topical issues but sometimes people just like to come and look and read and delve into the archives and study the albums and not say a word ... they, however, leave an imprint in the viewing figures and the viewing figures are quite pleasing to the eye ... more than 73 visitors today and three days ago it was 179 ...

[Derek Black]

Told you so. It was the sobering sight of that old red style book. No-one is daring to speak. The pendants have been silenced. What are we going to do. (Not talk about trains Chris)

What about a book on who is next editor of NL? Or how local journalism has been debased by the advertisers?

[Blogmaster]

It seems that fewer people are talking balderdash these days, if you believe the headline in yesterday's Daily Telegraph. It's apparently all down to the popularity of texting and abrevg words. Among the words out of favour now are bally, laggard, rambunctious, felicitations and spiffing ... not that I have seen any of those particular words used around here. All these comes from research for a new book called Planet Word which tells story of language from the earliest grunts to Twitter and beyond. Incidentally, the Oxford Dictionary of English defines balderdash as "senseless talk or writing: nonsense". Lol is the newest abbreviation for laugh out loud and soz means sorry. Cheers still means cheers, I believe.

[Chris Ryder]

Oh good. Some people still out their even if they are only browsers. Time was most journalists were boozers.

[JC]

I will be this afternoon at the Hewitt ... meeting two Belfast Telegraph stalwarts to try and find out how things are progressing with sales of the paper (on a good day) around 45,000, I believe ... more later, perhaps.

[Graham McKenzie (President)]

Chris Ryder says: "The amount of traffic on these pages has decreased by a significant amount."

I say: True. I haven't contributed for more than two months. Why? Discussion of current events in the world of journalism seemed to me to be discouraged as 'negative' Emphasis was put on memory lane. Other contributors have fallen away. Things aren't so lively.

I had to remind some people the twin aims of the site as enunciated on the title piece above:

1)"This is where you can express your views about journalism today" or

2)"Or look back to typewriter days"
But that did not seem to be the consensus

Chris is perfectly correct when he says: "There seems to be no shortage of topical issues [to discuss] What is going on? I think we should be told."

[Chris Ryder]

Talking about the BT style book as he has been, has obviously scarred DB's vocabulary. Not to be pedantic myself, I am sure there are no silenced pendants.

[Derek Black]

Spoken like a true pedant, Chris. Sorry about the fluffy fingers - too sober at this time of day!

[ruthie]

Could Chris give us a review of the postHackgate debate at Europa. Was so sorry to have missed it.
Maybe time all out of work journos went to Invest NI including graphic designers, advertising sellers the lot.
Unite and open a new free newspaper, govt backing and employ a team of out of work admin and ad sellers.
Get the show back on the road.
The food industry and farming industries are scooping all the grants.

[Michael]

Found an ancient relic today, a Subs Own pencil which may date from BT days 40 yrs ago. These were soft 2B, great for subbing typed copy, and issued by the Major who depending on his lunchtime intake might require production of a worn stump before issuing a replacement.

I wonder how many kids using ctl-c and ctl-v realise that copy and paste was a literal operation? Every sub had a pot of Gloy paste which was topped up by copyboy from Davy Adams's sticky demijohn.

I don't recall scissors, we used to tear the copypaper par by par. For delicate operations one might borrow the Major's curved knife which he said came from his Burma service days. I used to imagine another use for his knife ... but then the Major and I never got on.

[Chris Ryder]

I hear of tears in the press box at the Cardy trial. If so totally unprofessional. Raises question as to how this generation of 'emotional' journos would have coped with the repeated tragedies of the troubles. This not to minimise awfulness of Cardy murder but not our role to emote.

[JC]

Unprofessional for journos to cry tears ... hmmmmmmm ... I used to do that when I saw my salary slip ...

[Chris Ryder]

No lavish exes on BT.

[JC]

No, sorry Chris ... some of us were too busy producing newspapers to accept invitations to venture outside for such lavish pursuits ... (maybe occasionally ...).

[Chairman]

I accept our President's reprimand that the blog occasionally veres away from shoptalk to other things. When reporters met in McGlade's or Slevin's or the Duke's back in the old days there was a lot of shoptalk. But not exclusively. We talked of cabbages and kings and aspects of our lives beyond newspapers.

For many years, every New Year's Eve, the neighbours in our street in Lambeg, held a party at a different home. Although the cast rarely changed the one certain guest at every party was a very nice man who used to be in the wholesale grocery business. And no matter what the subject of a conversation was, he somehow managed to steer it on to his career in the wholesale trade.

It got to be a bit of a joke and small wagers were sometimes made to see how long it took him to steer the conversation his way. A nice man, but somehow not the one you want to be stuck in a corner with all evening.

Newspapers and the media are part of all our lives on Copyboys. But it is not all we are. Every newspaperman I ever met was a compilation of many of his life experiences.

Where our President and my good friend Graham McKenzie and I occasionally differ is about whether the blog should be a conversation among colleagues that sometimes veers into the world beyond the media or simply be a permanent critique of the state of journalism today.

I don't think anyone who had anything to say about today's Press has ever been discouraged from saying it. But neither Graham nor I are in the censorship business. I feel Copyboys should write about whatever they choose.

Shoptalk can be interesting but so can other things. Both the President and I (and I suspect the Blogmaster) have our occasional differences but essentially we all wish to see the blog continue to provide a sounding board for old hacks and keep up with what we are doing as well as lamenting the state of the media.

However if anyone out there is looking for a chairman's job, I fear mine may be up for grabs.

[Chris Ryder]

Well said, Mr Chairman. My strictures have only been intended to try and revive the attention of the Copyboys who seem to have dozed off and are failing to give us their once more frequent ruminations on the state of our trade and it's history especially at this interesting time. Will respond to Ruthie bout debate soon.

[Graham McKenzie (President)]

The Chairman misses my point. I have been scolded in the past (not by him) for being critical of what's going on in journalism today.

We're going through the biggest revolution in our trade/profession in our lifetime. When I write about it, some people seem to see this as negativity. It's not meant to be.

But many recent events in the business over the past 2-3 years have, unfortunately had a dire negative effect. There's much to discuss for anybody who really cares about journalism. Of course, I like to reminisce, as we all do -- but there is a limit to our memories.

There is, however, seemingly no limit to the upheavals that are going on in the newspaper and broadcasting industry. When there is positive news, I'll be hailing that. I hope that day will come. Let's not get sensitive about honest, vigorous debate.

I've worked in 9 different jobs in 5 different locations in 4 different cities. Among them, the Belfast Telegraph and the Daily Express. For these two I had a special affection. But I don't get upset when anybody criticises those once-great newspapers, and the state into which thy have fallen. It' legitimate debate.

As Chris says: "There seems to be no shortage of topical issue. What's going on. I think we should be told" I, for one would like to continue to talk shop.

[Chris Ryder]

Oh come on boys. Have a glass and ramble. Like in the good old days.