In this clip from our podcast series taking a deep dive into Elvis' 1973 satellite concert broadcast, Aloha From Hawaii, our leading contributor, Gary Wells (soulrideblog.com), joins us to discuss some highlights from 1972.

We consider Colonel Parker's hesitancy to play New York, and compare how the fans were showcased in two documentary movies, Elvis That's The Way It Is (1970) and Elvis on Tour (1972). We also take a lighthearted look at Elvis' memorable encounter with the Mayor of Roanoke, VA, Roy Webber.

There doesn’t seem to be a huge amount of available information on Roy Webber himself – it appears that he had two stints as Mayor of Roanoke (1949-1954 and 1968-1975). He also owned a florist, which traded until 2008, and which, unsurprisingly, provided the floral guitar presented to Elvis upon his arrival in Roanoke. Roy Webber passed away in 1975, aged 70.

Find the complete episodes on all the usual podcast places or at our podcast website;

https://dec4podcast.com/

Oliver Crocker ‪is a filmmaker, podcaster, publisher, and leading writer and historian on classic British television. In this clip from a two-part podcast recorded in 2021, we discuss how The Bill evolved throughout the course of its run, and how the skills of the writers and actors created some of the most admired and fondly remembered characters in British television.

Find the complete episodes, along with additional background and links, at our podcast website;

https://dec4podcast.com/2023/01/29/in-conversation-with-author-filmmaker-and-podcaster-oliver-crocker-a-two-part-podcast/

In this clip, we revisit our earlier podcast episode, From Memphis to Vegas: A Vintage Leisure Tour, in which our leading contributor, Gary Wells (soulrideblog.com), takes us on an audio journey to some of the important cultural sites in Memphis and Las Vegas. Here we recall Gary's visit to 1034 Audubon Drive (the Presley family's first home in Memphis), and to Sun Records.

In the complete episode, available on our podcast website and the major platforms, we also visit the Stax Museum, Al Green’s Full Gospel Tabernacle Church, Beale Street, and we explore Elvis Presley’s Graceland in detail, of which Gary says, “It’s a hundred percent worth it, and what you get is the feeling, the experience. Elvis worked, lived, operated here. This is his home. It really does add an intangible and a strong dimension to your pursuit of the man and his world.”

Find the complete episode, with additional local information, background, images and links, at the dedicated page at our podcast website;

https://dec4podcast.com/2023/02/26/gary-wells-from-memphis-to-vegas-a-vintage-leisure-tour/

In this supplement to our episode on the Winter Dance Party tour, headlined by Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and JP Richardson (the Big Bopper), our leading contributor, Gary Wells (soulrideblog.com), joins us to discuss in more detail some of the friendships and professional relationships forged during the tour. We examine the culpability of the promoters taking into account the context of the time, and learn that the Ritchie Valens biopic, La Bamba, might have been a very different movie if not for a notable intervention. We also look at how the tragedy shaped the future of JP Richardson’s family, and share some personal thoughts on the often forgotten fourth occupant of the plane; the young pilot, Roger Peterson.

https://dec4podcast.com/2024/02/23/gary-wells-the-winter-dance-party/

Find the complete episode, including additional background, images and links, at our website:

https://dec4podcast.com/2023/02/26/gary-wells-from-memphis-to-vegas-a-vintage-leisure-tour/

In this clip from our 2021 two-part podcast taking a deep dive into Elvis That’s The Way It Is (MGM 1970), featuring our leading contributor Gary Wells (soulrideblog.com), we look at one of the more interesting editorial decisions taken by two-time Oscar winning director, Denis Sanders (1929-1987).

“What we’re trying to do,” Sanders told Jerry Hopkins for a feature in Rolling Stone, “is capture Elvis the entertainer, from the point of view of the fans, the hotel, the city, the audience.” The director also predicted that, “the film will make a fortune…but it will also change things stylistically.” It would be the first documentary to be shot in Metrocolor and Panavision, and to have a budget exceeding one million dollars.

Find the complete podcasts here, including some additional background, images and links, and suggested further reading and media;

https://dec4podcast.com/2023/01/22/elvis-thats-the-way-it-is-parts-i-and-ii/

Actor and playwright Frank Williams passed away June 26th, 2022, just short of his 91st birthday. He is remembered with enormous fondness by generations of fans as Timothy Farthing, the perpetually exasperated Vicar in the BBC’s Dad’s Army; on television, radio, stage, and in two feature films separated by almost half a century.

This is a clip from our complete tribute episode which was released to coincide with the first anniversary of Frank Williams' passing. His friend, leading television historian, author, podcaster and publisher, Oliver Crocker, joined us to share some personal memories of this incredibly talented, generous and exceedingly kind gentleman.

In this clip we sample some very special audio of Mr Williams himself, reminiscing about the adventures and misadventures of a working actor as a film extra, on live television, and in Dad's Army. This was part of a longer segment on the original episode, courtesy of Oliver's personal archive.

Hear the complete episode here, including some of Oliver's own recollections, our favourite Frank Williams moments, and much more from Mr Williams himself: 

https://dec4podcast.com/2023/06/26/oliver-crocker-remembering-frank-williams/

Very special thanks to Oliver Crocker. Find The Bill Podcast on all the major platforms, along with the acclaimed scripted audio series, Letter From Helvetica, written by and starring Andrew Mackintosh, and also starring Natalie Roles.

In this episode we pay tribute to the last of Dad’s Army’s ‘Magnificent Seven’, Ian Lavender (Private Pike), who passed away on February 2nd, 2024, aged 77.

Leading UK television historian, publisher, author and podcaster, Oliver Crocker, joins us to share his thoughts on this very talented gentleman, and to recall his own memorable experience working with Ian Lavender on a segment for ITV’s This Morning.

Although Private Pike remains his most enduring and universally beloved creation, we also take a wider look at Ian Lavender’s remarkable career beyond Dad’s Army, encompassing television, radio, feature films and theatre.

There's more background, as well as images and links to further reading, viewing and listening, at this episode's webpage;

https://dec4podcast.com/2024/04/08/oliver-crocker-remembering-ian-lavender/

In this episode our leading contributor, Gary Wells (soulrideblog.com), joins us to take an in-depth look at the Winter Dance Party tour of early 1959, and explore what led up to a critical midtour decision to charter a light plane for a late night, 300 mile flight from Mason City, Iowa, to Fargo, North Dakota. Around five miles northwest of Mason City Airport the plane crashed on private farmland, killing the pilot, Roger Peterson, along with his three passengers, touring musicians Buddy Holly, Jiles Perry ‘The Big Bopper’ Richardson, and Ritchie Valens.

Drawing primarily from personal, first-hand accounts in a variety of credible sources, we examine how the hopelessly mismanaged tour came together, the inhuman travel conditions in ageing, inadequately maintained buses crisscrossing the frozen Midwest; a joyous night in Iowa during which around 1500 teenagers - and many parents - packed Clear Lake's Surf Ballroom, and the terrible chain of events that immediately followed.

We also look beyond mythology and cliché, and examine the longer term consequences of the tragedy with our focus on those most directly affected.

There's additional background, as well as detailed research notes and links to our sources, with some suggestions for further reference, at this episode's page at our podcast website.

https://dec4podcast.com/2024/02/23/gary-wells-the-winter-dance-party/

In this clip compiled from our 2022 Beach Boys Book Club episode, with our leading contributor, Gary Wells (www.soulrideblog.com), we focus on Timothy White's wide-ranging 1994 biography, The Nearest Faraway Place: Brian Wilson, The Beach Boys and the Southern California Experience. Gary explains what sets this apart as more than just a rock and roll bio, we discuss Timothy White's assessment of family patriarch Murry Wilson, and how, in the early 1960s, emerging artists in Southern California transformed the corporatised music scene.

In the original 62 minute episode, we expand a little on Timothy White's distinguished career as a music writer and industry advocate (he sadly passed away in 2002, aged just 50), and provide some additional context from other sources on the Wilson family dynamic, on both a personal and business level. We also go on to discuss Mike Love's autobiography co-written by James S Hirsch, Good Vibrations: My Life as a Beach Boy, and take some additional context from I am Brian Wilson, by Brian himself and Ben Greenman, both from 2016. We also try to get to grips with why Mike can be such a polarising figure within the fan universe and beyond.

Some more background on this episode here;

https://dec4podcast.com/2024/01/02/gary-wells-clip-beach-boys-biographer-timothy-white-murry-wilson-and-the-legacy-of-pain/

Find the original episode here;

https://dec4podcast.com/2023/01/29/gary-wells-the-beach-boys-book-club/