1963: That Was The Year That Was

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BBC Radio 4 Extra

BBC Radio 2

BBC Radio 2 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced Light Programme.

1963: That Was The Year That Was: Episode 1

Episode 1

BBC Radio 4 Extra - 1963: That Was The Year That Was, Episode 1

Michael Grade celebrates 1963 with special guests at London's Riverside Studios.

4 Extra Debut. Michael Grade celebrates 1963 at London’s Riverside Studios. With Barry Norman, Annie Nightingale and Tony Blackburn. From 2013.

Michael Grade celebrates 1963 with special guests Barry Norman, Barry Cryer, Annie Nightingale, Gillian Reynolds and Tony Blackburn. 

The first of two programmes recalling the music, culture, social upheavals and news stories of the year and playing some great music and archive.

Guests discuss the year that signalled the birth of modern Britain, phone boxes, timing your trip to the cinema correctly, the great long winter with no sport, a distinct lack of central heating and fashion in the shape of Beatles jackets and hysteria brewing about the band in its infancy.

1963 was the year of The Profumo Scandal, the murder of President Kennedy, the Beatles first number 1, The Great Train Robbery, the Beeching report on the UK's railways, Martin Luther King's 'I Have A Dream' speech, the start of the National Theatre, and the first episode of Dr Who.

It was also the year that David Frost became a national icon, presenting the hugely groundbreaking BBC TV series That Was The Week That Was.

Sir David was to have presented the series, but a few weeks before recording he died of a heart attack. As a consequence, these shows have become something of a tribute to him and will feature extracts of TW3 and discussion of its impact on British life.

From London's Riverside Studios with an audience.   
 
One of the most memorable features of TW3 was its sig tune, performed by Millicent Martin. "THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS: 1963" features a reworked version of the wonderful tune, performed by The Segue Sisters. Ron Grainer, the composer, is sadly overlooked and his other works include the themes for Dr Who, The Prisoner and Steptoe and Son.

Producer:  David Morley.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in November 2013.

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