Mary Malcolm
Mary Malcolm | |
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Born | Helen Mary Malcolm 15 March 1918 Jeanne Langtry |
Helen Mary Malcolm[1] (15 March 1918 – 13 October 2010) was one of the first two regular female announcers on BBC Television after the Second World War and was a household name in the United Kingdom during the 1950s.[2]
Biography
The daughter of
As more and more men were called up to fight, women became increasingly in demand to fill posts at the BBC. Mary Malcolm was taken on and worked for the Home Service as a continuity announcer from March 1942. With the relaunch of the BBC's television service after the war, she worked alongside Sylvia Peters and McDonald Hobley, with the trio averaging ten days' work a month each.[5]
At this time, all television programmes were introduced by an in-vision host or hostess and broadcasts were normally live. Malcolm received no training and became known for her
Personal life
Malcolm was first married to Sir Basil Bartlett, a baronet and actor. They had three daughters, Lucy, Jemima, and Annabel, before the marriage ended in divorce in 1960. She married secondly Colin McFadyean, a solicitor, gaining two step-daughters.[4]
Selected filmography
- Design for Loving (1962)
References
- ^ The Peerage: Helen Mary Malcolm Retrieved 2012-11-08
- ^ a b "Obituary: Mary Malcolm". The Daily Telegraph, UK. 19 October 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
- ^ Anthony Camp, Royal Mistresses and Bastards: Fact and Fiction 1714–1936 (London, 2007) p. 365
- ^ a b c "Mary Malcolm obituary". The Guardian, UK. 14 October 2010. Retrieved 18 October 2010.
- ^ "Mary Malcolm: Announcer". Birth of Television Archive. Retrieved 18 October 2010.
- ^ Ross, Robert The Complete Goodies, (London 2000), B T Batsford.