Radio Sutch & City - Part 15

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Thames Sailing Barge's with Red Sands Forts on the horizon

Aside from heavy generators which came down river from Gravesend, where the Forts had been built at Red Lion Wharf. Virtually everything else, including crew changes came out of Whitstable

Supplies normally sourced from Pines General Stores on Island Wall, butchery, fresh vegetables & tobacco from other local traders. Records of course came from the Record Centre. Technically it was a dry ship (Fort) but a few bottles were secreted away in the summer cooled, in buckets over the side from the landing stage

* Both Shivering & Red Sands Forts were supplied from Whitstable by Fred Downs, Harvester II (F122) & Vic Davies, the 'Mullard' (F19) - Ed

Radio City's London Office was in 'Tin-Pan Alley' where Reg & Terry King ran the Kings Agency, listening back to some of the programmes they were littered with promotional records here's one that survived

From our audio archive - A Radio City Plug Disc ...

Pye Records Demo acetate

Release in October 1965 Peter London - 'Bless You' Produced by Terry King (Kings Agency) 7 Denmark Street, London, WC2, notation for 6 x daily 'plug plays' week commencing October 4th

The Record Centre supplied Radio City with the hits of the day, but had competition from High Street, Pirie & Cavender Book & Record Shop a few yards along the road

Pirie & Cavender Bookshop

Photographed on 15th July 2006 shortly before it closed: Pirie & Cavender had also sold records in direct competition with the Record Centre

EMI steal the window

By the late 1970's Pirie & Cavender ceased selling records, but two glass EMI Record Promotion panels remained on the windows until pilfered in 2011 during refurbishment

Close up of panel 1

Close up of panel 2

Late 1960's Pirie & Cavender record bag

With grateful thanks to Jerry Pitcher (Dormouse Designs Unlimited) for his valuable contribution to this feature & additional information from Susan & Candy Calvert

The story will continue in Sutch & City Part 16

For all the Radio Sutch & City features navigate from ScrapBook Index

For a brief history of all the Thames Estuary Forts see Fort Fax