111-415: Arthur Bowden Askey , CBE OBE (6 June 1900 – 16 November 1982) was an English comedian and actor. Askey was known for his short stature (5' 2", 1.58 m) and distinctive horn-rimmed glasses, and his playful humour incorporating improvisation and catchphrases including "Hello playmates!", "I thank you" (pronounced "Ay-thang-yaw") and "Before your very eyes". Askey achieved prominence in
222-421: A 243-line all-electronic interlaced system since 1933. In the 405 system the scanning lines were broadcast in two complementary fields, 50 times per second, creating 25 frames per second. The actual image was 376 lines high and interlaced, with additional unused lines making the frame up to 405 lines to give the slow circuitry time to prepare for the next frame; in modern terms it would be described as "376i" . At
333-503: A 625-line camera pointing at a 405-line monitor. This preserves the original 50-field interlaced format, but with some geometrical distortions owing to the curvature of the CRT monitors used at the time. 405-line programming may be recorded and played on an unmodified VHS or Betamax video recorder, as long as the input to the recorder is baseband rather than RF . Thus, various modern video recordings of 405-line programming also exist. Betamax
444-601: A Gentleman (1942); Miss London Ltd. (1943); Bees in Paradise (1944); The Love Match (1955) and Make Mine a Million (1959). His last film was Rosie Dixon – Night Nurse (1978), starring Debbie Ash. In the early 1930s, Askey appeared on an early form of BBC television— the spinning disc invented by John Logie Baird that scanned vertically and had only thirty lines. Askey had to be heavily made up for his face to be recognisable at such low resolution. When television became electronic, with 405 horizontal lines , Askey
555-404: A broad riband or sash, passing from the right shoulder to the left hip. Knights Commander and male Commanders wear the badge from a ribbon around the neck; male Officers and Members wear the badge from a ribbon on the left chest; female recipients other than Dames Grand Cross (unless in military uniform) normally wear it from a bow on the left shoulder. An oval eight-pointed star is worn, pinned to
666-449: A circlet bearing the motto of the Order; the reverse bears George V's Royal and Imperial Cypher. (Prior to 1937 Britannia was shown within the circlet.) The size of the badges varies according to rank: the higher classes have slightly larger badges. The badges of Knights and Dames Grand Cross, Knights and Dames Commander, and Commanders are enamelled, with pale blue crosses, crimson circlets and
777-466: A citizen of a Commonwealth realm can convert their appointment from honorary to substantive, and they then enjoy all privileges of membership of the order, including use of the title of Sir and Dame for the senior two ranks of the Order. (An example of the latter is Irish broadcaster Terry Wogan , who was appointed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order in 2005, and on successful application for British citizenship, held alongside his Irish citizenship,
888-443: A gold central medallion. Officers' badges are plain silver-gilt, while those of Members are plain silver. From 1917 until 1937, the badge of the order was suspended on a purple ribbon, with a red central stripe being added for the military division in 1918. Since 1937, the ribbon has been rose-pink with pearl-grey edges (with the addition of a pearl-grey central stripe for the military division). Knights and Dames Grand Cross wear it on
999-579: A million or more individually controllable elements, rather than using a single magnetically deflected beam, so there is no requirement to generate the scanning signal. The absence of equalizing pulses to facilitate interlace was defended at the start of the BBC service on the grounds that it only caused a lack of interlace with field synchronizing separators of the integrator type, and that there were, even at that time, numerous other circuits which gave completely accurate interlace without equalizing pulses. The question
1110-452: A rotating color wheel , reduced the number of scan lines from 525 to 405, and increased the field rate from 60 to 144, but had an effective frame rate of only 24 frames per second. In 1934, the British government set up a committee (the "Television Committee") to advise on the future of TV broadcasting. The committee recommended that a "high definition" service (defined by them as being
1221-451: A series of electronic divider circuits to produce the other. Each division is by an odd integer. Therefore, there has to be a straightforward mathematical relationship between the line and field frequencies, the latter being derived by dividing down from the former. The technology constraints of the 1930s meant that this division process could only be done using small integers, preferably no greater than 7, for good stability. The number of lines
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#17330845691131332-578: A song he intended to record, "It's Really Nice to See You Mr Hess" (after Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess fled to Scotland), was banned by the War Office . A collection of Askey's wartime recordings appear on the CD album Band Waggon/Big Hearted Arthur Goes To War . Private Eye magazine in the 1970s regularly made the comment that he and the Queen Mother had "never been seen in the same room together", referring to
1443-481: A system of 240 lines or more) should be run and established by the BBC. The recommendation was accepted and tenders were sought from industry. Two tenders were received: one from the Baird company offering a 240-line mechanical system , and the other from EMI offering a 405-line all-electronic one. The Television Committee advised that they were unable to choose between the two systems and that both tenders should be accepted,
1554-482: A variety show, but had been unsuccessful until Askey and his partner, Richard Murdoch , took on a larger role in the writing. During the Second World War Askey starred in several Gainsborough Pictures comedy films, including Band Waggon (1940), based on the radio show; Charley's (Big-Hearted) Aunt (1940); The Ghost Train (1941); I Thank You (1941); Back-Room Boy (1942); King Arthur Was
1665-557: Is System A in the CCIR assignment of broadcast systems. The audio uses amplitude modulation rather than the frequency modulation in use on modern analogue systems. In addition, the system was broadcast in an aspect ratio of 5:4 until 3 April 1950, when it changed to the more common 4:3 format. All System A transmitters used vestigial sideband transmission, with the single exception of Alexandra Palace in London, which closed down in 1957 when it
1776-512: Is an image of Britannia surrounded by the motto, with the words "For Meritorious Service" at the bottom; on the reverse is George V's Imperial and Royal Cypher, with the words "Instituted by King George V" at the bottom. The name of the recipient is engraved on the rim. This medal is nicknamed "the Gong", and comes in both full-sized and miniature versions – the latter for formal white-tie and semi-formal black-tie occasions. A lapel pin for everyday wear
1887-931: Is not a member of the College of Arms , as are many other heraldic officers; and the Lady Usher of the Purple Rod does not – unlike the Order of the Garter equivalent, the Lady Usher of the Black Rod – perform any duties related to the House of Lords . Since the Second World War, several Commonwealth realms have established their own national system of honours and awards and have created their own unique orders, decorations and medals. A number, though, continue to make recommendations for appointments to
1998-584: The British Empire Medal , and the following year its recipients were granted the right to use the postnominal letters BEM. During the war, the BEM came to be used to recognise acts of bravery which did not merit the award of a George Cross or George Medal , a use which continued until the introduction of the Queen's Gallantry Medal in 1974. The designs of insignia of the order and medal were altered in 1937, prior to
2109-499: The Caribbean . The BBC lost its monopoly of the British television market in 1954, and the following year the commercial network ITV , comprising a consortium of regional companies, was launched. During the late 1950s and early-to-mid 1960s, some experimental colour broadcasts were made in the UK with the 405-line system using NTSC colour encoding (this encoding was a 1953 enhancement of
2220-573: The Empire Gallantry Medal , were given permission to use the postnominal letters EGM (and at the same time to add a laurel branch emblem to the ribbon of the medal); however, in 1940, awards of the EGM ceased and all holders of the medal were instructed to exchange it for a new and more prestigious gallantry award: the George Cross . In 1941, the medal of the order 'for meritorious service' was renamed
2331-541: The Order of Canada . On the other hand, the Australian Honours System unilaterally created in 1975 did not achieve bi-partisan support until 1992, which was when Australian federal and state governments agreed to cease Australian recommendations for British honours; the last Australian recommended Order of the British Empire appointments were in the 1989 Queen's Birthday Honours . New Zealand continued to use
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#17330845691132442-721: The Rediffusion Television cable service in Hong Kong . 405-line was approved as System A in the CCIR assignment of broadcast systems . Sometimes called the Marconi-EMI system , it was developed in 1934 by the EMI Research Team led by Isaac Shoenberg . The figure of 405 lines had been chosen following discussions over Sunday lunch at the home of Alan Blumlein . The system used interlacing ; EMI had been experimenting with
2553-444: The coronation of King George VI , 'in commemoration of the reign of King George V and Queen Mary, during which the Order was founded'. The figure of Britannia at the centre of the badge of the order was replaced with an image of the crowned heads of the late King and Queen Mary, and the words 'Instituted by King George V' were added to the reverse of the medal. The colour of the riband was also changed: twenty years earlier, prior to
2664-407: The ionosphere . A few minutes of programming were recorded on 16mm movie film . This is now considered to be the only surviving example of pre-war live British television. The images recorded included two of the original three BBC announcers, Jasmine Bligh and (in a brief shot) Elizabeth Cowell , an excerpt from an unknown period costume drama, and the BBC's station identification transmitted at
2775-493: The line output transformer . This is a common artifact in sets that use a cathode ray tube . While all CRT-based television systems produce such a noise, the higher number of lines per second in later standards produces frequencies (PAL's 15,625 Hz and NTSC's 15,734 Hz) that are at the upper end of the audible spectrum, which not all people are able to hear . Modern sets using plasma, LCD or OLED display technology are completely free of this effect as they are composed of
2886-552: The 1930s in the BBC 's first radio comedy series Band Waggon and subsequently starred in several Gainsborough Pictures comedy films during the Second World War including Charley's (Big-Hearted) Aunt (1940) and The Ghost Train (1941). His novelty recordings for His Master's Voice include "The Bee Song" (1938), a lasting part of his act. From the 1950s, Askey was a prominent television presence and made regular appearances on
2997-460: The 1970s, such as being a panellist on the ITV talent show New Faces , where his usually sympathetic comments would offset the harsher judgments of fellow judges Tony Hatch and Mickie Most . He also appeared on the comedy panel game Jokers Wild . He made many TV appearances in variety, including BBC TV's long running show, The Good Old Days . His final professional engagement was The Green Tie on
3108-464: The 21st century quotas were introduced to ensure consistent representation among recipients across nine categories of eligibility: with the largest proportion of awards being reserved for community, voluntary and local service. Non-military awards of the British Empire Medal resumed in 2012, starting with 293 BEMs awarded for Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee . In 2017 the centenary of
3219-461: The BBC's long-running music hall programme The Good Old Days . Askey was made an OBE in 1969 and a CBE in 1981; he continued to appear frequently on television, radio and the stage until his death in 1982. Askey was born at 29 Moses Street, Dingle, Liverpool , the eldest child and only son of Betsy (née Bowden), originally from Knutsford , Cheshire, and Samuel Askey, company secretary of Sugar Products of Liverpool. Six months after his birth,
3330-788: The British Empire . Rather than using this chapel, the Order now holds its great services upstairs in the nave of the cathedral. In addition to the Chapel of the Order of the British Empire, St Paul's Cathedral also houses the Chapel of the Order of St Michael and St George . Religious services for the whole Order are held every four years; new Knights and Dames Grand Cross are installed at these services. Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander prefix Sir , and Dames Grand Cross and Dames Commander prefix Dame , to their forenames. Wives of Knights may prefix Lady to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Knights or spouses of Dames. Such forms are not used by peers and princes, except when
3441-443: The British Empire for Gallantry. Any individual made a member of the order for gallantry after 14 January 1958 wears an emblem of two crossed silver oak leaves on the same ribbon as the badge, with a miniature version on the ribbon bar when worn alone. When the ribbon only is worn the emblem is worn in miniature. It could not be awarded posthumously , and was replaced in 1974 with the Queen's Gallantry Medal (QGM). If recipients of
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3552-501: The Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) had developed over the past decade. This system was a field-sequential colour system which electronically transmitted a 405-line monochrome picture. Colour was provided mechanically by means of a synchronized rotating transparent Red-Green-Blue disk, which was placed in front of the receiver screen. Regular broadcast channels were used to transmit the 405-line system signals, but
3663-581: The Headgate Theatre in Colchester on the 31 March 1924. After working as a clerk for Liverpool Corporation 's Education Department, he was in a touring concert party , the music halls and was in the stage company of Powis Pinder on the Isle of Wight in the early 1930s before he rose to stardom in 1938 through his role in the first regular radio comedy series, Band Waggon on the BBC . Band Waggon began as
3774-460: The Little Yellow Dog , which was recorded 1982, and broadcast by Channel 4 in 1983. In the late 1940s, Askey participated in a BBC radio show called How Do You Do in which listeners could write into the BBC asking for him to come and broadcast a show from their homes, twelve shows were broadcast with Arthur, his daughter Anthea and special guests, as well as a surprise guest each week which
3885-800: The Military Division of the order from the UK and across the Empire. Recommendations for all appointments to the Order of the British Empire were originally made on the nomination of the King's United Kingdom ministers (recommendations for overseas awards were made by the Foreign Office , the Colonial Office , the India Office and the Dominions Office ); but in the early 1940s the system was changed to enable
3996-633: The NTSC 525-line monochrome standard for commercial broadcasting in 1941, subsequent efforts were made to upgrade the standard so that it could also accommodate a " compatible " colour broadcasting system. Eventually these efforts would prove successful, but because repeated attempts had consistently produced unsatisfactory results, in 1950 the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) officially approved for commercial broadcast an alternate 405-line broadcasting system which
4107-436: The Order of the British Empire for Gallantry received promotion within the order, whether for gallantry or otherwise, they continued to wear also the insignia of the lower grade with the oak leaves; however, they used only the post-nominal letters of the higher grade. When the order was founded in 1917, badges, ribands and stars were appointed for wear by recipients. In 1929 mantles, hats and collars were added for recipients of
4218-513: The Order of the British Empire. In 2024 appointments to the order were made by the governments of: Most members of the order are citizens of the United Kingdom or Commonwealth realms that use the UK system of honours and awards. In addition, honorary awards may be made to citizens of nations where the monarch is not head of state ; these permit use of post-nominal letters, but not the title of Sir or Dame . Honorary appointees who later become
4329-404: The Order, however, are not assigned any special precedence. As a general rule, only wives and children of male recipients are afforded privileges. Knights and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to be granted heraldic supporters . They may, furthermore, encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a circle bearing the motto) and the collar; the former is shown either outside or on top of
4440-486: The UK continue to make appointments to the order. Honorary awards may be made to citizens of other nations of which the order's sovereign is not the head of state. The five classes of appointment to the Order are, from highest grade to lowest grade: The senior two ranks of Knight or Dame Grand Cross and Knight or Dame Commander entitle their members to use the titles Sir for men and Dame for women before their forenames, except with honorary awards. King George V founded
4551-460: The United Kingdom; those who would formerly have met the criteria for the medal were instead made eligible for the MBE. In 2004, a report entitled A Matter of Honour: Reforming Our Honours System by a Commons select committee recommended phasing out the Order of the British Empire, as its title was "now considered to be unacceptable, being thought to embody values that are no longer shared by many of
Arthur Askey - Misplaced Pages Continue
4662-617: The amputation of both legs. He died in London's St Thomas's Hospital on 16 November 1982 and was cremated at Putney Vale Crematorium . Arthur Askey is among other famous names in the Dirk Wears White Sox version of "Friends" by Adam and the Ants . Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry , rewarding contributions to
4773-403: The arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service . It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient either a knight if male or a dame if female. There is also the related British Empire Medal , whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of,
4884-518: The average value of the transmitted signal; however, due to the positively modulated carrier, peak power represented peak white – not guaranteed to be present. Thus for a completely black picture, the AGC circuit would increase the RF gain to restore the average carrier amplitude. The result was a screen that was not black but mid-grey. In fact, the total light output of early TV sets was practically constant regardless of
4995-451: The award of medal of the order to Lizzie Robinson, a munitions worker. The order had been established primarily as a civilian award; in August 1918, however, not long after its foundation, a number of awards were made to serving naval and military personnel. Four months later, a 'Military Division' was added to the order, to which serving personnel would in future be appointed. The classes were
5106-579: The beginning and end of the day's programmes . The BBC temporarily ceased transmissions on 1 September 1939, the day of the German invasion of Poland , for the outbreak of World War II was imminent. After the BBC Television Service recommenced in 1946, distant reception reports were received from various parts of the world, including Italy , South Africa , India , the Middle East , North America and
5217-706: The beginning by a widespread lack of acceptance, and the ultimate setback came at the end of the year when the U.S. government temporarily banned the manufacture of colour televisions, ostensibly to conserve resources during the Korean War . In 1953, the FCC rescinded its approval of the CBS 405-line colour system. In its place it approved a newly improved and now satisfactory second NTSC 525-line standard which had been developed by RCA. It provided for colour broadcasting yet remained compatible with existing 525-line monochrome sets. 405-line
5328-468: The cathedral. That year, Commonwealth awards made up 40% of all OBEs and MBEs awarded (and 35% of all living recipients of the higher awards). Gradually that proportion reduced as independent states within the Commonwealth established their own systems of honours . The last Canadian recommendation for the Order of the British Empire was an MBE for gallantry gazetted in 1966, a year before the creation of
5439-402: The centre for awards in the military division). From time to time the order was expanded: there was an increase in the maximum permitted number of recipients in 1933, and a further increase in 1937. During the Second World War, as had been the case during and after World War I, the number of military awards was greatly increased; between 1939 and 1946 there were more than 33,000 appointments to
5550-418: The circlet. In 1929, to bring the order into line with the other orders of chivalry, members of the first class of the order (GBE) were provided with mantles, hats and collars. Only Knights/Dames Grand Cross wear these elaborate vestments; the hat is now rarely, if ever, worn. Use of the mantle is limited to important occasions (such as quadrennial services and coronations ). The mantle is always worn with
5661-488: The civil division were to be divided equally between UK and overseas awards. With regard to the Medal of the Order (but not the order itself), a distinction was made in 1922 between awards 'for gallantry' and awards 'for meritorious service' (each being appropriately inscribed, and the former having laurel leaves decorating the clasp, the latter oak leaves). In 1933 holders of the medal 'for gallantry', which had come to be known as
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#17330845691135772-444: The collar. Although the mantle was introduced in 1929, very few mantles would have been produced prior to the 1937 design changes, as there were few occasions for wearing them in the intervening years. On certain days designated by the sovereign, known as " collar days ", members attending formal events may wear the order's collar over their military uniform, formal day dress, evening wear or robes of office. Collars are returned upon
5883-479: The country's population". The committee further suggested changing the name of the award to the Order of British Excellence, and changing the rank of Commander to Companion (as the former was said to have a "militaristic ring"), as well as advocating for the abolition of knighthoods and damehoods; the government, however, was not of the opinion that a case for change had been made, and the aforementioned suggestions and recommendations were not, therefore, pursued. In
5994-403: The death of their owners, but other insignia may be retained. The six office-holders of the order wear pearl-grey mantles lined with rose-pink, having on the right side a purple shield charged with the roundel from the badge. Each of these office-holders wears a unique badge of office, suspended from a gold chain worn around the neck. The British Empire Medal is made of silver. On the obverse
6105-399: The different ITV regional channels and BBC1 switched over to broadcasting on the 625-line as well as the 405-line, a process which once completed meant that only 625-lines were necessary to receive all channels, with dual standard receivers no longer necessary. In November 1969, BBC1 and ITV started broadcasting in 625-line PAL colour on UHF. Their programming was now entirely produced using
6216-607: The distinction between ranks in military operational gallantry awards will cease'. The reforms affected the order at various levels: for example the automatic award each year of a GBE to the Lord Mayor of London ceased; the OBE replaced the Imperial Service Order as an award for civil servants and the number of MBEs awarded each year was significantly increased. As part of these reforms the British Empire Medal stopped being awarded by
6327-551: The east and north of the country. This was because many people in these areas already had 405-line sets for receiving UK broadcasts from Wales or Northern Ireland . Telefís Éireann's primary standard was 625-line; it began using this in the summer of 1962, more than two years before the UK had any 625-line channels. The last 405-line relays, in County Donegal , were turned off in 1982; the main transmitters had been shut down in 1978 to free up frequencies for RTÉ 2 , and after then
6438-573: The fact that they were about the same age and height and suggesting that the Queen Mother was Askey in drag . Askey was appointed OBE in 1969 and advanced to CBE in 1981. Askey was married to Elizabeth May Swash in 1925 until her death in 1974; he was the father of actress Anthea Askey (1933–1999). Askey carried on working on his comedy career until just before he was hospitalised in July 1982, owing to poor circulation, which resulted in gangrene and
6549-634: The family moved to 90 Rosslyn Street, Liverpool. It was here that a sister, Irene Dorothy, was born. Askey was educated at St. Michael's Council School (1905–11) and the Liverpool Institute for Boys (1911–16). Askey served in the Royal Welch Fusiliers in the First World War and performed in army entertainments. This would prove an excellent training ground for his career in show business, his first professional appearance coming on stage at
6660-556: The first British colony and the first predominantly Chinese city to have television. The service of 405-line system ended in 1973, replaced by 625-line PAL system free-to-air broadcast. For a brief time in 1939 there were experimental 405-line transmissions from stations in Montrouge in France and Eindhoven in the Netherlands , Czechoslovakia and Switzerland . After the U.S. adopted
6771-515: The former was to be responsible for recording all proceedings connected with the order, issuing warrants under the seal of the order and making arrangements for investitures, while the latter (at that time the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury ) was responsible for collecting and tabulating the names of those who were to receive an award. The office of Dean was added in 1957. The King of Arms
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#17330845691136882-401: The governments of overseas dominions to make their own nominations; Canada and South Africa began doing so in 1942, followed by Australia, New Zealand and other Commonwealth realms. In May 1957, forty years after the foundation of the order, it was announced that St Paul's Cathedral was to serve as the church of the order, and in 1960 a chapel was dedicated for its use within the crypt of
6993-450: The highest class of the order (GBE). The designs of all these items underwent major changes in 1937. The badge is worn by all members of the order; the size, colour and design depends on the class of award. The badge for all classes is in the form of a cross patonce (having the arms growing broader and floriated toward the end) with a medallion in the centre, the obverse of which bears a crowned image of George V and Queen Mary within
7104-647: The honours system, calling it "a preposterous charade". The order has attracted some criticism for its naming having connection with the idea of the now-extinct British Empire . Benjamin Zephaniah , a British poet of Jamaican and Barbadian descent, publicly rejected appointment as an Officer in 2003 because, he asserted, it reminded him of "thousands of years of brutality". He also said that "it reminds me of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalised". 405-line television system The 405-line monochrome analogue television broadcasting system
7215-422: The ignition systems of vehicles. Such interference manifested itself as a loud popping on sound and large bright spots on the picture, which viewers found much more noticeable than the dark spots encountered when such interference is encountered on a signal using negative video modulation. With positive modulation, interference could easily be of similar amplitude to the sync pulses (which were represented by 0–30% of
7326-446: The insignia to Buckingham Palace and by ceasing to make reference to their honour, but they still hold the honour unless and until annulled by the monarch. In 2003, The Sunday Times published a list of the people who had rejected the Order of the British Empire, including David Bowie , John Cleese , Nigella Lawson , Elgar Howarth , L. S. Lowry , George Melly , and J. G. Ballard . In addition, Ballard voiced his opposition to
7437-624: The junior post-nominal letters. The British sovereign is the sovereign of the order and appoints all other officers of the order (by convention, on the advice of the governments of the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth realms ). The second-most senior officer is the Grand Master (a 'Prince of the Blood Royal, or other exalted personage' appointed by the sovereign, who, by virtue of their appointment, becomes 'the First or Principal Knight Grand Cross of
7548-519: The latter. Knights and Dames Commander and Commanders may display the circlet, but not the collar, surrounding their arms. The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet. See List of current honorary knights and dames of the Order of the British Empire Only the monarch can annul an honour. The Honours Forfeiture Committee considers cases and makes recommendations for forfeiture. An individual can renounce their honour by returning
7659-463: The left breast, by Knights and Dames Grand Cross; Knights and Dames Commander wear a smaller star composed of 'four equal points and four lesser'. The star is not worn by the more junior classes. Prior to 1937 each star had in the centre a gold medallion with a figure of Britannia, surrounded by a crimson circlet inscribed with the motto of the order ('For God and the Empire'); since 1937 the effigies of King George V and Queen Mary have been shown within
7770-456: The long switchover period was the difficulty in matching the coverage level of the new UHF 625-line service with the very high level of geographic coverage achieved with the 405-line VHF service. The last 405-line transmissions were seen on 4 January 1985 in Scotland ; they had been officially shut down one day earlier in the rest of the UK (although they were actually switched off at various points
7881-439: The millions of existing NTSC 525-line television receivers could only correctly process the audio portion of these transmissions, so unless these sets were modified they would only display a jumbled picture. CBS aired a variety show special entitled Premiere on 25 June 1951 to officially launch commercial 405-line colour broadcasting, but just four months later CBS ended its colour broadcasts. CBS's efforts were hindered from
7992-469: The names of the former are written out in their fullest forms. Male clergy of the Church of England or the Church of Scotland do not use the title Sir (unless they were knighted before being ordained) as they do not receive the accolade (they are not dubbed "knight" with a sword), although they do append the post-nominal letters ; dames do not receive the accolade, and therefore female clergy are free to use
8103-536: The narrow vision bandwidth — AM signals (at VHF low band frequencies) are less affected by noise as bandwidth is reduced — meant that 405-line signals could be received well even under marginal conditions. Therefore, it was possible to cover virtually all of the UK with a relatively small number of transmitting stations . The use of AM (rather than FM) for sound and the use of positive (rather than negative) video modulation made 405-line signals very prone to audible and visible impulse interference, such as that generated by
8214-500: The new 625-line standard, and thus the 405-line broadcasts served only as a rebroadcast in monochrome for people who did not have the newer receivers and who could only receive BBC1 and ITV. This situation continued up to 3–4 January 1985, with 405-line VHF broadcasts only being able to pick up BBC1 and ITV regionals, and in monochrome only, while 625-line UHF broadcasts could also broadcast BBC2 and Channel 4/S4C in addition to BBC1 and ITV, and in either colour or monochrome. One reason for
8325-492: The next day). This left only the UHF PAL system in operation in the UK. The frequencies used by the 405-line system were initially left empty, but were later sold off; they are now used for other purposes, including DAB and trunked PMR commercial two-way radio systems. Ireland's use of the 405-line system began in 1961, with the launch of Telefís Éireann , but only extended to two main transmitters and their five relays, serving
8436-399: The numbers restricted to the order as full members do. Although the Order of the British Empire has by far the highest number of members of the British orders of chivalry, with more than 100,000 living members worldwide, there are fewer appointments to knighthoods than in other orders. From time to time, individuals may be promoted to a higher grade within the Order, thereby ceasing usage of
8547-605: The order alongside its own honours until the establishment of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 1996. Other Commonwealth realms have continued to use the Order of the British Empire alongside their own honours. In 1993 the Prime Minister, John Major , instituted a reform of the honours system with the aim 'that exceptional service or achievement will be more widely recognised; that greater importance will be given to voluntary service; that automatic honours will end; that
8658-512: The order to fill gaps in the British honours system : In particular, George V wished to create an order to honour the many thousands of individuals from across the Empire who had served in a variety of non-combat roles during the First World War . From its foundation the order consisted of five classes (GBE, KBE/DBE, CBE, OBE and MBE) and was open to both women and men; provision was also made for conferring honorary awards on foreign recipients. At
8769-409: The order was celebrated with a service at St Paul's Cathedral. The order is limited to 300 Knights and Dames Grand Cross, 845 Knights and Dames Commander, and 8,960 Commanders. There are no limits applied to the total number of members of the fourth and fifth classes, but no more than 858 officers and 1,464 members may be appointed per year. Foreign appointees, as honorary members, do not contribute to
8880-410: The order's establishment, Queen Mary had made it known that pink would be her preferred colour for the riband of the proposed new order, but, in the event, purple was chosen. Following her appointment as Grand Master of the order in 1936 a change was duly made and since 9 March 1937 the riband of the order has been 'rose pink edged with pearl grey’ (with the addition of a vertical pearl grey stripe in
8991-402: The order. The order was established on 4 June 1917 by King George V , who created the order to recognise 'such persons, male or female, as may have rendered or shall hereafter render important services to Our Empire'. Equal recognition was to be given for services rendered in the UK and overseas. Today the majority of recipients are UK citizens, though a number of Commonwealth realms outside
9102-458: The original 1941 NTSC monochrome standard, added to the NTSC standard so that it could also provide for colour broadcasting). The subcarrier frequency was 2.6578125 MHz (525/2 times line frequency) with an " I " signal bandwidth of 500 kHz and a " Q " signal bandwidth of 300 kHz. Tests with PAL, SECAM and other NTSC subcarrier frequencies were also attempted. Some of these broadcasts were on UHF (also an experimental technology at
9213-487: The picture content. By the mid-1950s, several manufacturers started to introduce gated-AGC systems to avoid this issue. A delayed pulse was derived from the recovered line-sync signal. This pulse would trigger a gate which would sample the received video signal during the "back porch" which was a guaranteed black-level transmitted between the end of the line-sync pulse and the start of the picture information. The introduction of negative modulation in later systems simplified
9324-405: The picture was probably unwatchable anyway. The later introduction of flywheel sync circuits rendered the picture much more stable, but these could not have alleviated some of the problems with positive modulation. Almost all television systems that succeeded the 405-line system adopted negative modulation for this reason alone. The AGC circuit was problematic. First-generation AGC merely detected
9435-431: The problem because peak carrier power represented sync pulses (which were always guaranteed to be present). A simple peak-detector AGC circuit would detect the amplitude of only the sync pulses, thus measuring the strength of the received signal. The 405-line system produced a noticeable 10,125 Hz whistle in many sets, equal to the number of lines per second. This high-pitched whistle was caused by magnetostriction in
9546-516: The programme with David Attenborough . Askey appeared in the West End musical Follow the Girls . He also made many stage appearances as a pantomime dame . Askey's recording career included "The Bee Song", which was an integral part of his stage and television act for many years, " The Thing-Ummy Bob ", "I'd Like a Banana", and his theme tune, "Big-Hearted Arthur" (which was also his nickname). In 1941
9657-588: The relays had been fed by standards converters from the local 625-line transmitter. For the last five years of RTÉ 's 405-line simulcasting, a simple orthicon converter was used, essentially a 405-line camera pointed at a 625-line monitor, as the more expensive system converters that RTÉ had previously used were now inoperable. The 405-line system was used in the Rediffusion Television cable television service in Hong Kong, established in 1957, making it both
9768-586: The same Order'). The position of Grand Master has been held by the following people: In addition to the sovereign and the grand master , the order has six further officers: At its foundation the order was served by three officers: the King of Arms, the Registrar & Secretary and the Gentleman Usher of the Purple Rod. In 1922 the Prelate was added, and the office of Registrar was separated from that of Secretary:
9879-459: The same as for the Civil Division (as it was now termed), but military awards were distinguished by the addition of a central vertical red stripe to the purple riband of the civil awards. In 1920 appointment as an MBE 'for an act of gallantry' was granted for the first time, to Sydney Frank Blanck Esq, who had rescued an injured man from a burning building containing explosives. In December 1922
9990-556: The same time, alongside the order, the Medal of the Order of the British Empire was instituted, to serve as a lower award granting recipients affiliation but not membership. The first investiture took place at Ibrox Stadium , as part of a royal visit to the Glasgow shipyards, with the appointment of Alexander Ure, 1st Baron Strathclyde as a GBE (in recognition of his role as chairman of the Scottish War Savings Committee) and
10101-402: The screen and thus relatively unnoticeable. The very earliest TV sets used a mains transformer; care had to be taken in design to prevent the transformer's stray magnetic field from disturbing the electron beam in the CRT. An interlaced system requires accurate positioning of scanning lines so the horizontal and vertical timebase must be in a precise ratio. This is done by passing the one through
10212-456: The smoothing (filtering) of power supply circuits in early TV receivers was rather poor, and ripple superimposed on the DC could cause visual interference. However, the main problem was the susceptibility of the electron beam in the CRT being deflected by stray magnetic fields from nearby transformers or motors. If the picture was locked to the mains frequency, this interference would at least be static on
10323-518: The standard for all British TV broadcasts until the 1960s. It soon became apparent that television reception was also possible well outside the original intended service area. In February 1938, engineers at the RCA Research Station, Riverhead, Long Island , New York , in the US, were able to receive the BBC signal 5,000 km (3,100 mi) away, due to the signal being "bounced" back to earth from
10434-455: The standard of the George Medal (even though, as appointments to an order of chivalry, they were listed before it on the Order of Wear . In contrast to awards for meritorious service, which usually appear without a citation, there were often citations for gallantry awards, some detailed and graphic. From 14 January 1958, these awards were designated Commander, Officer or Member of the Order of
10545-416: The statutes of the order were amended; there having been a large number of awards for war work prior to this date, these amended statutes placed the order on more of a peacetime footing. For the first time numbers of appointments were limited, with the stipulation that senior awards in the Civil Division were to outnumber those in the Military Division by a proportion of six to one. Furthermore appointments in
10656-531: The time of its introduction the 405-line system was referred to as "high definition" – which it was, compared to earlier systems, although of lower definition than 625-line and later standards. In the United States, the FCC had briefly approved a 405-line color television standard in October 1950, which was developed by CBS . The CBS system was incompatible with existing black-and-white receivers. It used
10767-612: The time), while others were carried over the regular VHF network outside of normal broadcasting hours. In 1964, the BBC launched its BBC2 service on UHF using only a 625-line system, which older sets could not receive. For several years BBC1 and ITV transmitted using the 405-line and BBC2 with the 625-line standard; the only way to receive them all was to use a complex "dual-standard" 405- and 625-line, VHF and UHF, receiver. The introduction of colour on BBC2 in 1967 necessitated an even more complex dual-standard set to receive all three channels with BBC2 in colour. Over time in 1968 and 1969,
10878-506: The title Dame . Knights and Dames Grand Cross use the post-nominal GBE; Knights Commander, KBE; Dames Commander, DBE; Commanders, CBE; Officers, OBE; and Members, MBE. The post-nominal for the British Empire Medal is BEM. Members of all classes of the order are assigned positions in the order of precedence . Wives of male members of all classes also feature on the order of precedence, as do sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander; relatives of Ladies of
10989-412: The transmitter output). The early time-base circuits were less able to discriminate between the signals and the picture would break up. By contrast, in negative modulation sync, pulses represent peak transmitter output (70–100% output). As a result, impulse interference would cause visual dark spots before it was large enough to affect the synchronisation of the picture. If the interference was large enough,
11100-572: The two systems to be run together for an experimental period. Broadcasting of the resulting BBC Television Service from its Alexandra Palace site began in November 1936 , at first time-sharing broadcasts with the 240-line Baird system; however, in January 1937, after three months of trials, the Baird system was abandoned in favour of exclusive broadcasting with the 405-line Marconi-EMI system on VHF . This became
11211-549: Was a regular performer in variety shows . When television returned after the second World War, his first TV series was Before Your Very Eyes! (1952), named after his catchphrase. On 3 May 1956, Askey presented Meet The People , a launch night programme for Granada Television . In 1957 writers Sid Colin and Talbot Rothwell revived the Band Waggon format for Living It Up , a series that reunited Askey and Murdoch after 18 years. He continued to appear frequently on television in
11322-402: Was first announced at the end of December 2006, and is available to recipients of all levels of the order, as well as to holders of the British Empire Medal . The pin design is not unique to any level. The pin features the badge of the order, enclosed in a circle of ribbon of its colours of pink and grey. Lapel pins must be purchased separately by a member of the order. The creation of such a pin
11433-469: Was made a substantive member and subsequently styled as Sir Terry Wogan). Although initially intended to recognise meritorious service, the order began to also be awarded for gallantry. There were an increased number of cases in the Second World War for service personnel and civilians including the merchant navy, police, emergency services and civil defence, mostly MBEs but with a small number of OBEs and CBEs. Such awards were for gallantry that did not reach
11544-592: Was odd because of 2:1 interlace. The 405-line system used a vertical frequency of 50 Hz (standard AC mains supply frequency in Britain) and a horizontal one of 10,125 Hz ( 50 × 405 ÷ 2 or, using the frame rate, 25 x 405), with 405 being derived from (3 × 3 × 3 × 3 × 5). A few 405-line videotapes still survive. However, the majority of surviving 405-line programmes are in the form of black and white film telerecordings , usually with optical soundtracks. Occasionally video re-recording would be employed instead, with
11655-562: Was raised again from time to time, but a series of tests, conducted during 1952 in cooperation with the British Radio Equipment Manufacturers' Association, confirmed that there was no general need for equalizing pulses. On some larger TV screen sizes, the scanned lines were not fat enough to give 100% coverage of the CRT. The result was a lined picture with darkness between each horizontal scanned line, reducing picture brightness and contrast. Larger screen sets often used
11766-566: Was recommended in Sir Hayden Phillips ' review of the honours system in 2004. The Chapel of the Order of the British Empire is in St Paul's Cathedral . It occupies the far eastern end of the cathedral crypt and was dedicated in 1960. The only heraldic banners normally on display in the chapel are those of the Sovereign of the Order of the British Empire and of the Grand Master of the Order of
11877-553: Was replaced by Crystal Palace . Since the mid-1930s it has been standard practice to use a field frequency equal to the AC mains electric supply frequency (or a submultiple thereof), 50 Hz in most countries, (60 Hz in the Americas ) because studio lighting generally uses an alternating current supply to the lamps and if these were not synchronized with the field frequency, an unwelcome strobe effect could appear on TV pictures. Secondly,
11988-502: Was revealed some time throughout the programme. The theme of each show was worked around the occupation of the family from where it was broadcast. This was broadcast on the Light Programme . Only one of the shows was recorded onto acetate discs, which are now held at The British Library. During the 1950s and 1960s, he appeared in many sitcoms , including Love and Kisses , Arthur's Treasured Volumes and The Arthur Askey Show . He
12099-551: Was sometimes preferred for this, as the dropout compensator could be switched off on certain models for use with PCM digital audio decoders. When used with vestigial sideband filtering, the total bandwidth of a 405-line TV channel is 5 MHz, significantly less than the 8 MHz required by the 625-line System I , which replaced it in Britain. Systems in other countries used anything between six and fourteen megahertz of bandwidth per channel. The use of VHF frequencies combined with
12210-581: Was the first fully electronic television system to be used in regular broadcasting. The number of television lines influences the image resolution , or quality of the picture. It was introduced with the BBC Television Service in 1936, suspended for the duration of World War II , and remained in operation in the UK until 1985. It was also used between 1961 and 1982 in Ireland , as well as from 1957 to 1973 for
12321-513: Was the subject of This Is Your Life on two occasions, in December 1959 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews , and in December 1974, when Andrews, dressed as Humpty Dumpty , surprised him on a television show while discussing the art of pantomime . Askey made four appearances on the BBC Radio series Desert Island Discs in 1942, 1955, 1968 and 1980. He shares the record for most appearances on
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