Warren Brown on Wide Open Road ABC tv

[Marc van Aalderen]

Originally Posted by Richard Farrant

Marc,

You will have to tell me the secret, because I am still getting the copyright statement

Even programmes the BBC have sold to ABC are blocked !

Ok Richard, but promiss me you will not be telling to everyone

http://www.abc.net.au/tv/wideopenroad/episodes/

And just click "play"...

It is really an interesting program. I watched it all in one view.

Cheers,

[Richard Farrant]

Originally Posted by Marc van Aalderen

Ok Richard, but promiss me you will not be telling to everyone

http://www.abc.net.au/tv/wideopenroad/episodes/

And just click "play"...

It is really an interesting program. I watched it all in one view.

Cheers,

Hi Marc,

Thank you and it now works for me, just watched first 10 mins so far, a great programme from what I have seen so far.

I know Warren and he travelled to Normandy with me in the QL in 2004, hence my interest.

regards, Richard

[Richard Coutts-Smith]

Found this program equally annoying and interesting.
The Birtles story was terrific, should be part of Aussie legend, but I had never heard of him

The lazy repeat film use in diiferent historical periods, or just wrong footage.
The narrator's script was the worst part, the repeated use of "Revhead'', "Petrolhead" and even a "Knucklehead", (Thought that was Yank slang) all read in a very Occa accent, makes me think the primary market is not Australia.

I do hope some of the other greats like Phil Irving get a mention.

Enough interesting material to get me back next week, but there may be some cringing involved.

Warren Brown "Revhead and Author" appears to be heading of on another adventure...
Rich.

[warren brown]

Hi everyone, thanks for your interest! Actually, my input came about after the whole show had been finished. If you have a look, everyone else interviewed is beautifully backlit in marvellous surroundings - and I'm actually in a whopping close-up because I was interviewed on the producer's front veranda! What happened was, they had had serious problems with the first episode, finding people - other than curators or historians - who could talk about very early motoring in Australia, particularly about Frank Birtles and make him interesting and relevant to a contemporary audience. I've been writing his biography for Hachette Publishing over the past eight months and even though various people were throwing my name at them, they were reticent to make any contact. "He's that guy from Top Gear... etc etc". Eventually I received a phone call from the producer who was very apologetic for not having contacted me earlier, but would I be prepared to talk about Birtles? ...my name kept coming up from various museums and libraries they'd been to ... and so he came over with the finished episode on his laptop. Then when he saw the Bean 14 in the shed ready to go - he nearly had heart seizure! He was framing it up for camera angles and poring all over it... So one morning, I took the Bean over to North Head National Park and we filmed it and then conducted the interview at his house. The car hasa brand new SU on the engine which had recently been rebuilt by a racing engine-works - the brief was to increase horsepower somewhat, but not at the expense of reliability. On the day it kept fouling up at the plugs - it turned out they'd - wait for it - honed down the carby needle - fine when the thing was hot, but stop-start filming at dawn in winter wasn't a go. I had to pull the plugs out on the way to the producer's house and brush them clean them en route - hence my manky, black fingernails during the interview.
The episode I saw beforehand was virtually as it is now - I wasn't necessarily convinced of the recreations - Birtles was three-stone wringing wet and built like a jockey - and they had a front-row-forward for the Wallabies playing him - and there were photographic innacuracies I pointed out, Model A Fords in a Model T section, no pictures of Birtles Brush car etc, but there wasn't really anything they could do by then - it was all 'in the can' as they say. My section was pasted in. However, I think it's great - so many people where I work really enjoyed it , "never heard of Birtles...amazing".
Paul the producer is a terrific bloke who wants to tell a story - and I think he's told it very well. It's about getting the feel for it...and I think you'll like the other episodes...

[Keith Webb]

Thanks for the insight, Warren. I was wondering why they framed you so tightly - it was out of step with the rest of the interviews.
The recreations did look like they were cobbled together in a bit of a hurry, but for the general audience do help with the storytelling.
Your Bean is a fabulous looking vehicle.

[Howard]

As I said earlier, I thought the show was entertaining and a story worthy of being told. Some of the mistakes you have pointed out struck me too, as I hinted on above. It is a shame when the facts are brushed over though because there is every chance that, in 50 years time, when someone is researching this type of thing, they might just use this documentary for a reference.
Anyhow, Warren, Your passion and enthusiasm was very obvious in the interview. Are you involved in future episodes?

[Richard Farrant]

Originally Posted by warren brown

...... no pictures of Birtles Brush car etc, but there wasn't really anything they could do by then - it was all 'in the can' as they say. ..

For those interested in the Birtles story and Warren's mention of the Brush, attached is a photo of the actual 1910 Brush Runabout that Birtles drove from Perth to Sydney. I came across it at a local rally in England about two years ago and knowing Warren was interested, sent him this photo. Apparantly the car was found on a sheep station owned by the Birtles family in the Eighties. Present owner bought it in France in 2008.

[Richard Farrant]

Just watched Episode 2 ...... and there is some military vehicle content. Some film of Len Beadell forging his way through the outback to make the Gunbarrel highway and other tracks, for the rocket testing in the 50's. They were using some Army Commer Q4 4x4 trucks and one is shown well alight, seems it was the ration truck. It still lays out in the bush, burnt out and looking like it happened yesterday, has a fence around it with a plaque !!!

[Keith Webb]

Len Beadell was quite a character, one of a number of interesting outback people from that era. There was also Reg Sprigg, founder of Arkaroola who did a lot of survey work in the desert, who didn't rate a mention possibly because the researchers couldn't find any film footage (although there is some).

Some great archival footage including a number of old TV commercials I remember from the 60s.

Is it just me, or does anyone else find the gratuitous use of celebrities a little off-putting? One or two maybe, but I felt there were too many. At least it made the interviews with 'real' people stand out. I thought Jack Nasser was excellent, particularly his admiration and appreciation for the early Holden he owned, given he became the boss of Ford.

[Richard Farrant]

Originally Posted by Keith Webb

Len Beadell was quite a character, one of a number of interesting outback people from that era.

Hi Keith,
I was given a recording of one of Len's afterdinner speeches regarding his work, especially liked the part about about the airstrip he built near Marlinga.

The programme was very good, especially like the Jack Brabham part, last saw him about 11 years ago racing at Goodwood .......... and crashing out.