Rainbow Valley

Rainbow Valley - The Sixties Podcast. Telling the stories from the decade that shook the world.   The Apollo One Disaster     January 27th 1967, US astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee way made their way into a brand new spacecraft perched atop a large powerful Saturn Five rocket at Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. A routine dress rehearsal, and one of many, for their approaching launch into orbit less than a month away. All three astronauts were experienced pilots, all harbouring dreams of one day setting foot on the moon. But little did they know, nor did anyone else, that once they entered the spacecraft that chilly winters day, they would never leave it alive. The Apollo programme would be dangerously close to cancellation before it even got off the ground. The Apollo spacecraft was condemned from the start, comprising of miles of uninsulated wiring, tons of flammable materials confined in an atmosphere consisting of pure oxygen, and a hatch that wouldn’t open. Public opinion was

On August 1st 1960, an album on the Warner Brothers label reached number one in the Billboard Mono Action Albums Chart. It was the debut album for this particular artist and would remain at the top for fourteen weeks. The album would stay in the chart for two years selling over 600,000 copies near release and ranking as the 20th best selling album of all time on the Billboard charts. Its total running time was just short of thirty two minutes, it consisted of just six tracks, and was a recording of a live performance It won album of the year at the 1961 Grammy awards as well as best new artist for its performer. Yet this was no pop, folk or rock album. It was the first comedy album to win album of the year and the only time that a comedian had won best artist. That comedian was Bob Newhart and this particular album saved the struggling Warner Brothers Records label and changed the face of modern comedy and the way the world experienced stand up forever. Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to prese

The Aberfan Disaster   9:13am on October 21st 1966, Pantglas School in the small Welsh mining village of Aberfan Inside the school, more than 200 children and nine teachers were waiting for their first lesson of the day to begin when the air was filled with the sound of a distant rumble. A massive coal tip - a mountain of waste generated by the town's mines that employed 8000 people had collapsed and a landslide of mud and debris flooded into the classroom, burying the school and engufing everyone inside 116 children and 28 adults were killed It was one of the worst industrial disasters Britain has ever seen. An accident that could and should have been prevented and a tragic account of a mistake that cost a village an entire generation of its children.   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast  Join our Facebook group at Facebook/rainbowvalleypodcast    Or send us your thoughts and feedback to rainbowvalleypod@gmail.com   You can also listen to our weekly sixties chart rundown at: https:/

1966: The Year We Won...And Lost The World Cup   As we head rapidly towards the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar, you may be forgiven for thinking that this episode must surely recount the tale of how England won the world cup in the summer of 1966. You wouldn’t be far off though as this episode of Rainbow Valley is the story of not how we won the World Cup that summer, but how we lost it. Three months before the World Cup finals were due to take place, the much coveted solid gold Jules Rimet trophy sat proudly on display in central London only to be stolen in what could only be described as a daylight robbery. Fast forward a week or so and the thief is apprehended but no sign of the most famous sporting trophy in world….until an incredible canine steps in to save the day. Ladies and gentlemen Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of Pickles-the unlikely hero of the 1966 World Cup final You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast  Join our Facebook group at Facebook/rainbowvalleypodcast    Or sen

The Big Freeze Boxing Day evening 1962 The Christmas Number One at the top of the hit parade was Return to Sender by Elvis Presley All around the country, families were settling down after a busy two days of eating, drinking and making merry. Small screen entertainment on the tv that evening included a hilarious variety show from the London Palladium featuring Bruce Forsyth and Norman Wisdom and the BBCs big Boxing Day movie was Moulin Rouge starring Jose Ferrer and Zsa Zsa Gabor And then, it began to snow. A day late and tantalisingly close to giving the country a proper White Christmas, but snow nevertheless. The temperature dropped…..and it continued to snow. And it snowed and snowed, and it got colder. And it snowed and it snowed some more And that was how it would be for the next one hundred days or so as Britain was plunged into an icy wilderness that would last until the following March. Industry ground to halt as businesses and schools were forced to close. There was widespread panic as ambulances an

WE’RE BACK!! Our first episode in two years is finally with you – and it’s a cracker. Join Scott as he tells the story of the making of the movie Zulu. RAINBOW VALLEY – THE MAKING OF ZULU Rainbow Valley is a monthly podcast where your host, Scott takes a look at key events and personalities that shaped one the most influential, vibrant, tumultuous and swinging decades in history. Join us as we celebrate the 1960’s with the stories surrounding the music and news events of the decade that shook the world. 22nd January 1879, Rorkes Drift, Natal, South Africa. A remote mission station, the setting for one of the most famous, battles in British history. But until 1964 and the release of the movie Zulu, the story of the events of those ten hours were not particularly familiar to the British public. In reality, 100 British soldiers defended a series of attacks by approximately 4000 Zulu warriors. By the end of the battle, which lasted from late afternoon until dawn the following morning, 15 soldiers were dead, two

1964...and the world was still reeling from the assassination of John F Kennedy. Racial tensions continued in the southern states of the USA and tension was rising elsewhere as the conflict in Vietnam escalated. But it was also the year of the Tokyo Olympics, The Blue Streak, Donald Campbell and Radio Caroline. There was music from not only the Fab Four, but Dusty, Manfred Mann and the Beach Boys. And on TV, we saw a surge in the poularity of Steptoe and The Avengers and a phenomenon known as Dalekmania. Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of the Hits and Headlines of 1964.   You can find us on Player FM …and anywhere you download your podcasts   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast Join our Facebook group Or send us your thoughts and feedback to rainbowvalleypod@gmail.com   A Stinking Pause production. Thanks for listening Scott

The return of Rainbow Valley – the podcast that tells the stories about the swinging decade. Episode 023  The Theft Of The Duke Of Wellington Dr No, the first big screen outing for Ian Fleming’s James Bond. Its 1962, and the movie would start to lay out a successful formula for most of the other movies that would follow in the series. Of course when we speak about  Dr No, most of us will remember Bonds introduction at the casino, Ursula Andress as Honey Ryder emerging from the sea in ‘that’ bikini or the scene where the spider crawls up Sean Connery’s arm. But what about this scene….and in particular, one specific moment. James Bond and Honey Ryder have just met the evil Dr No in his underground lair. Before crushing an ornament with his metal hand and telling the pair of  SPECTRE’s dastardly plan to hold the world to ransom, they are led away. As they walk up a small set of steps, Bond stops, noticing an oil painting on an easel to his right …. The painting was a portrait of Arthur Wellesly the first Duke o

The return of Rainbow Valley – the podcast that tells the stories about the swinging decade. Episode 022 - Tammi Terrell Join us as we tell the story of one of Motown's greatest stars. The story of a life cut tragically short, but thankfully a life that brought us one of the greatest soul singers of all time.  Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of Tammi Terrell. You can find us on Player FM   …and anywhere you download your podcasts   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast   Join our Facebook group   Or send us your thoughts and feedback to rainbowvalleypod@gmail.com   #Podpals #podernfamily   This has been a Stinking Pause production.   Thanks for listening Scott

The return of Rainbow Valley – the podcast that tells the stories about the swinging decade. Episode 021 – The Zapruder Film.   Season three opens with the story of a sequence of film that runs for approximately 22 seconds.   A piece of 8mm film that is only 25 feet in length and yet is possibly the most watched piece of celluloid in history….and certainly the most famous home movie ever.   For within that 22 seconds, Dallas dress manufacturer, Abraham Zapruder managed to capture the death of the most powerful man on the planet on November 22nd 1963.     Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of The Zapruder Film     This and other episodes are available on our website  rainbowvalley.libsyn.com You can also find us on Player FM Sticher Spreaker I Heart Radio …and anywhere you download your podcasts   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast   Join our Facebook group   Or send us your thoughts and feedback to rainbowvalleypod@gmail.com   #Podpals #podernfamily   This has b

Episode 020 of the Rainbow Valley podcast – telling the stories that made the swinging decade. Emil Savundra, for a brief period in the late sixties, was probably the most reviled man in the UK. A Sri Lankan swindler, the collapse of his Fire, Auto and Marine Insurance Company left about 400,000 motorists in the United Kingdom without coverage. As a post-war black marketeer, Savundra committed bribery and fraud on an international scale before settling in the UK to sell low-cost insurance in the fast-growing automotive market. By defaulting on mandatory securities, he funded a lavish lifestyle and travelled in fashionable circles. This attracted the attention of the press, who uncovered evidence of major fraud. In a TV interview with David Frost, Savundra demonstrated contempt for his defrauded customers (some of whom were in the studio audience) and denied any moral responsibility. That particular tv show witnessed the birth of trial by television and is a fascinating piece of broadcasting history.   Ladies

Episode 019 of The Rainbow Valley podcast – telling the stories that made the swinging decade.   Join me as I tell the story of one of the finest singers Britain has ever produced.   A true icon in the world of popular music, and one of the defining voices of the 1960s.   Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of Dusty Springfield.       This and other episodes are available on our website  rainbowvalley.libsyn.com   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast Join our Facebook group Or send us your thoughts and feedback to rainbowvalleypod@gmail.com #Podpals #podernfamily   This has been a Stinking Pause production.   Thanks for listening Scott http://rainbowvalley.libsyn.com/podcast

Episode 018 of The Rainbow Valley podcast – telling the stories that made the swinging decade. Join me as I tell the story of the movie that nearly brought 20th Century Fox crashing to the ground. The longest and most expensive movie ever made at the time. The movie that nearly killed it’s leading lady, Elizabeth Taylor. The movie that sparked one of the greatest romances of the twentieth century. Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of the making of Cleopatra (1963)   This and other episodes are available on our website  rainbowvalley.libsyn.com   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast Join our Facebook group Or send us your thoughts and feedback to rainbowvalleypod@gmail.com #Podpals #podernfamily   This has been a Stinking Pause production.   Thanks for listening Scott http://rainbowvalley.libsyn.com/podcast

1963 - a massive year in terms of news events.    A year that would see an increase in tensions in America as the battle for racial equality raged on. It would be the year in which a scandal in the UK involving call girls, Russian spies and MPs , would eventually bring down the government.  The Beatles would begin their dominance of the UK chart signalling the beginning of the British invasion, the Russians would make history as the first woman blasts off into space and Martin Luther King would declare to the world that he had a dream.  Along with the Great Train Robbery, the beginning of what would become known as the Moors Murders, the death of the Pope, and the assassination of the US president it truly was one of the most remarkable twelve months in the swinging decade. Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of the hits and headlines from 1963.  

In London in the 1880s, the city was gripped by fear. A killer was prowling the cobbled, fog heavy streets of Whitechapel murdering prostitutes in a chilling reign of terror. Fast forward seventy years and a new killer was on the loose, this time, not in the impoverished Victorian East End, but towards the west. Again his victims of choice would be prostitutes. Believed to have claimed anything up to possibly seven lives, or even more, his identity, again like the infamous Jack, was never discovered….or was it? The newspapers dubbed him The Nude Killer or Jack the Stripper and his crimes are now pretty much forgotten. At the time, his crimes led to one of the largest manhunts in British history with some famous suspects along the way. There would be links to high ranking officials, world famous sportsmen and the Profumo affair.   Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of The Hammersmith Nude Murders.   This and other episodes are available on our website  rainbowvalley.lib

It can certainly be safe to say that the 1960s produced some of the most dramatic changes in the world of popular music. From the early days of rock and roll, through to the swinging beat scene, the British invasion, American surf music and right through to the San Francisco sound of the peace and love generation, there was a voice that was there from the beginning. That voice was still there at the end of the decade and beyond. Sadly that voice is largely unknown to today’s generation. Some of today’s kids would probably only be vaguely familiar with it if they are fans of some of the biggest and most popular movies to come out of that decade. Matt Monro was described as the UK’s answer to Frank Sinatra, a label he detested. For Matt Monro was not an answer to anything. Matt Monro was unique, he was his own entity, had his own marvellous style, and was possibly the finest male popular music singer the UK has ever produced.   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podcast Join our Facebook group Web

The story of James Bond on the big screen is a tale of highs and lows, ups and downs, twists and turns.  The story of the making of the movies themselves is worthy of an Ian Fleming novel in its own right.  It is the story has taken over sixty years to tell, and is still being told today. As important to this story as Connery, Lazenby, Moore, Dalton, Brosnan and Craig is the story of three other men.  The three men who between them managed to bring one of the most successful and well-loved movie franchises to the big screen. No journey into the world of cinematic Bond can begin without a look of the importance of Messrs’ Fleming, Broccoli and Saltzman.   To many people, James Bond is only an entity that can be found on the big screen. This, of course, is not the case. Bond was born long before 1962 when Sean Connery first introduced himself to Sylvia Trench at the casino in Dr No.   Many have said that Ian Fleming himself was the basis for the character of Bond, but as you will soon hear, the inspiration for

Rainbow Valley - Episode 013   1962 – A year of worldwide upheaval, the continuing space race and the death of Hollywood’s biggest sex symbol. The year would witness one of the most devastating air disasters as an Air France Boeing 707 would crash in Paris, John Glen would become the first American to orbit the earth and Albert Sabin would develop the first oral polio vaccine. Algeria Burundi and Jamaica would all gain their independence this year and the Telstar satellite would provide eth first live transatlantic television pictures. Along with an escape from Alcatraz, the A6 murders and Cuban Missile Crisis bringing the world closer than it’s ever been to all out nuclear war, the soundtrack of the  year was provided by Elvis Presley, Cliff Richard and The Tornadoes, oh and a certain group from Liverpool released their first major single this year as well.   Ladies and gentlemen, Rainbow Valley is proud to present the story of the hits and headlines of 1962.   You can follow the podcast on Twitter @rv_podc

As we discovered in series one, the 1960s signified, for many, a decade of revolution, a decade of hope, a decade of immense change worldwide. We must not forget however that it was also a time of conflict, the cold war and racial tension. Musically, the world moved from the rock and roll era and crooners into the British invasion, folk music and peace and love along with hippies, drugs and Woodstock. If the sixties had ended on August  17th 1969 instead of the 31st December, Woodstock would be considered  a fitting finale to a turbulent decade but instead, just a few months later the sixties dream became its nightmare at another free concert, this time headlined by the Rolling Stones. With support from Santana, Jefferson Airplane and a host of other acts, events would unfold that led to the ugliest scenes in the history of rock music culminating in the deaths of four people. The sixties would end, not so much swinging but reeling towards one of the darkest of days in the world of entertainment in 1969 l

The Great Train Robbery was the robbery of £2.6 million from a Royal Mail train heading from Glasgow to London on the West Coast Main Line in the early hours of 8 August 1963, at Bridego Railway Bridge, Ledburn, near Mentmore in Buckinghamshire, England.   A robbery that took less than 30 minutes from start to finish, spread over a distance of 28 miles, and would net the gang involved the equivalent of over £38 million in today’s money. The gang consisted of 15 members, four of which , still to this day, were never caught-their names not even known. The robbery was immediately dubbed the crime of the century, and is still spoken about today  for not only the planning and the preciseness of the raid, but also the mistakes and the bungling of the gang that led to their arrest…for some of them that is. For in addition to this there is the story of those that evaded capture for nearly fifty years becoming celebrities halfway around the globe. There is also the story of the police that were involved. The Flying Sq