Those were the Days by David Corbett For nearly half a century from the dark days of World War II until the last decade of the Twentieth Century, BBC Radio featured programmes of old-time dance music. Those Were the Days with Harry Davidson and His Orchestra was first on the air in 1943, Sydney Thompson followed with Take Your Partners in 1948, and, in 1957, Sidney Bowman was engaged to play in a series soon titled Time for Old Time. When Harry Davidson retired in 1966, he had completed some 2,000 'live' broadcasts. Sidney Davey took on his mantle, and continued until 1976, the year that our final old-time maestro, Bryan Smith, stepped up to the conductor's rostrum with Sequence Time.
This book is the only comprehensive survey of this unique form of radio entertainment. Not only does it describe, in detail, how the music changed but it also charts the development and decline of old-time dancing which is such an important part of our heritage, being the original form of ballroom dancing. Anyone who is interested in light orchestral music or melodies in a more popular vein from the music hall to popular standards, will find here a rich reserve. Those whose passion is for dancing will discover the original old-time dances and the names of the people and dances involved in the old-time revival as well as the interaction between old-time and modern sequence dancing.
Reviews...
Sunday Times 'Those Were the Days' is wonderful - it will give me great pleasure.
PAUL DONOVAN, Radio critic
Daily Telegraph, Sunday Telegraph A real work of broadcasting scholarship as well as being a useful piece of social history.
GILLIAN REYNOLDS, Radio Critic
BILL BEBB, Producer, 'Those Were the Days' 1964 "I arrived home the other day to find a large wrapped paving slab leaning against my door. When I opened the package I couldn't believe the size and detailed contents there were within. What a magnificent undertaking, and I can't tell you how much I've already enjoyed reading about my early days at the BBC, and so many wonderful names from the past. I shall display the book with pride on my book shelves."
PETER ELSDON, Middlesbrough
What a magnus opus and labour of love
MICHAEL COLLIER, Sutton, Surrey I knew that the book would be something special but this has surpassed all my expectations. It really is quite magnificent, and you should be very proud. It has rarely left my side this last couple of days, and I'm afraid it has also kept me from some of those post holiday chores! It has replaced my previous choice as my book to take on a desert island, and that's some achievement!"
Have you ever met anyone who dares to lose in any undertaking? Be careful if you do. Desire for the euphoria and fulfilment associated with winning can be addictive. But must winning be driven by a quest for this sensation? And does having this experience define who a winner is? There’s more to winning than winning; it is possible to win and yet to feel unfulfilled.
After a winner emerges from any competition, people rally round for the winner’s winning tips. They tend to forget the time-tested truth that slow and steady wins the race and someone who seems to be an overnight star may always have been a star, one who dreamed of victory before he won. Most world-renowned talents never had their beds laid for them filled with roses as glamourous media coverage would have us believe. Winners win because they nurture the winner within them.
There is a treasure worth having that is more secure than all the financial centres of this world - the true knowledge of who you are and the strength to believe in yourself. In this wonderful book, everyday occurrences are used to demonstrate the different factors that turn dreams into hope - the hope that you will be the subject of the next winning story for the world to write and talk about.
Michael E. Salako writes from experience that cuts across healthcare services, lecturing and banking. He holds an MBA (Finance) with a British University.
Reviews...
Arlette Meli
I read this book at distressful phase of my life. I was not really motivated go read it as I was feeling really low until the day I started the first page. It became like an obsession, the book was the answer to all my questions and things seemed clearer and achievable. From chapter 4, I really liked it as it becomes more dynamic and interesting. Thanks again Michael for your book.
When you have produced the final draft of your book, it is always advisable to have the text read and checked by a professional editor or proof reader.
You may have friends that are willing and competent to do this and we can advise you on the type of editing that is required.
We can offer four levels of editing as well as proof-reading.
You choose which, if any, are appropriate in your case: 1. Edit of sample pages and short report (£30)
We will edit a few pages to highlight editorial issues so that you can look for similar problems throughout the book.
This will reduce the amount of further copy-editing required when the book is finished. 2. Broad structural editing and criticism (£5 per thousand words)
A structural review is particularly relevant for works of fiction.
The structural reviewer will address the following main areas and produce a short report for the author ” Read More 3. Copy editing (£10 per thousand words)
A copy-editor takes a close look at your text, line by line, with an eye to grammatical errors, repetition, inconsistency and lack of clarity. The copy editor will make changes to the text, with suggestions for rewriting, grammar, and punctuation. When you receive the edited version, you have the final choice about accepting of rejecting the individual changes. 4. Proof Reading (£8 per thousand words)
Proof reading is a line-by-line check that the book is ready for publication. Proof readers will make small corrections for punctuation, grammar and spelling but they will not make significant changes to the text.
A proof reader will identify any significant issues and add comments to the text so that you can make those corrections yourself. 5. Consistency Scan
If you decide your book doesn’t need a full proof reading, we offer an electronic scan to search for common errors and inconsistencies. This looks at issues such as inconsistent spelling and inconsistencies of hyphenation and capitalisation.
We can also identify inconsistencies in the spelling of proper names. 6. Cover text
The quality of the text on the cover is very important as it indicates the quality of the writing in the book.
The title, sub-title and back-cover blurb are all important elements and we can work with you to make sure that these are correct and effective.
Copy Edit
Copy-editors get the raw material into shape for publication i.e they edit the copy.
When they have finished, the designer can lay out or typeset the book and produce a proof.
It is quite normal for the author to make additional changes after a book has been copy-edited.
Working through the material, the copy-editor may identify errors in spelling, punctuation, grammar, style and usage, but also very long sentences and overuse of italic, bold, capitals and exclamation marks.
They should correct or query doubtful facts, weak arguments, plot holes and gaps in numbering.
In fiction, they should also check that characters haven’t changed their name or hair colour, look for sudden changes from first to third person among other things.
The Copy-editor is not a proof reader and should not be expected to find all of the errors in the text particularly if the text is badly written to start with.
This is the job of the proof reader.
The final proof should be checked by a proof reader or an experienced reader friend before going to print.
It is almost inevitable (and acceptable) to miss a few errors which can be corrected in a later edition.
Proof Reading
Proof reading is a line-by-line check that the book is ready for publication.
Proof readers will make small corrections for punctuation, grammar and spelling but they will not make significant changes to the text.
A proof reader will identify any significant issues and add comments to the text so that you can make those corrections yourself.
If you have decided to complete this stage of the process yourself, we will send a detailed check-list to help you.
We ask you to try and ensure that the book is completely ready before we start the layout.
Once the layout has started, we expect that you might want to to make a small number of amendments but
if there are a significant number, we may need to charge for the extra time it takes to change the layout
so best to discuss this with us first.
Structural Review
In fiction, the main areas that a structural editor will address are:
Plot: Does the plot make sense? Is it believable? Is it satisfying or does it leave the reader frustrated? Themes: Are the themes effectively handled? Are there so many that the book lacks focus? Do they interfere with the plot or complement it?
Characterisation: Are your characters well developed and believable? Are they cast in a role that fits their personality? Do they sometimes behave out of character? Point of view/voice: Is the voice consistent or is it sometimes confused? Is the voice authentic? Are you using too many or too few POVs? Pace: Does the plot move forward at an appropriate pace? Should you cut that preface? Should the action happen sooner or should the tension build more slowly? Dialogue: Do your characters sound real when they speak? Is your dialogue cluttered with adverbs and beats? Do you use clunky dialogue to move the plot forward? Flow: Is the narrative interrupted by dead-ends and tangents? Is there so much back story that the main plot is dwarfed? Are there missing plot points that would give the narrative greater integrity?
In non-fiction, the principle is the same, but the specific issues are slightly different:
Thesis: Is your thesis relevant? Is it clearly defined or is it lost among marginal issues? Exposition: Are your arguments clear and cogent? Are they well researched and properly supported? Do they have a clear relationship with your thesis? Content: Are all the necessary topics sufficiently dealt with? Are the chapters weighted correctly? Is there superfluous content? Organisation: Is the information organised logically? Are tables and illustrations used appropriately? How many levels of subheads do you need and how should they be arranged? Tone: Is the tone appropriate for the audience? Do you need to eliminate jargon? Is the text accessible? Pace: Are there passages that are bogged down in detail? Do you spend too long on detail irrelevant to the main thesis? Are there areas that need further exposition lest they be skipped over?
Cover Text
The quality of the text on the cover is very important as it indicates the quality of the writing in the book.
The title, sub-title and back-cover blurb are all important elements and we work with you to make sure that these are as effective as possible.
Consistency check
If you decide your book doesn’t need a full proof reading, we can run an electronic scan to search for common errors and inconsistencies.
This looks at issues such as inconsistent spelling, hyphenation and capitalisation.
It also checks for consistent formatting of numbers and dates as well as undefined abbreviations.
Full Script Edit
The script that you deliver to us will probably constitute what the industry would classify as the ‘Initial Rough Draft’, i.e. a full screenplay written without any other professional input or advice, and probably without a great deal of rewriting. We work through your draft, line by line, scene by scene, and come back to you with a comprehensive set of notes from which you can then work towards the official ‘1st Draft’. Some of our notes will be broad and general, dealing with such areas as the overall shape and structure, pacing, plot and character development; others will be far more specific, with corrections, clarifications and suggested cuts etc. It is of course entirely up to you whether or not to take these suggestions on board, and to what extent.
Subsequent Script Edit
It is very normal and generally beneficial for the script-editing process to go through at least a couple of cycles
i.e. the rewritten draft to be worked through once again by an experienced script practitioner – though this would be entirely at the discretion and behest of the writer.
Ongoing Support
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Publishing is a complex business and we treat every book as a separate project.
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