Chessington Zoo, Surrey, 31st May 1982 GuildfordGhost 2026-09-28 | Chessington Zoo, Surrey, 31st May 1982
LAUREL & HARDY INTERVIEW (Jack Mangan, Ships Reporter, 1953) - BEST QUALITY GuildfordGhost 2023-10-03 | This rare (and thought lost) interview with Stan and Babe appeared without fanfare in 2021. There are several uploads on YouTube but this copy has been stabilised, AI enhanced and upscaled, and the sound boosted and cleaned. These interviews were never long but it's likely there may have been ten to thirty seconds at the start of this which is still missing.The stuff is still out there, folks!
ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN - The Royal Albert Hall, London (18th September 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-09-20 | The most expensive ticket I think I've ever bought for a concert (about £85) and the view wasn't even that great although I was near to the front. Smashing evening, though. Brownie points for anyone who was there who could make out anything Mac said between songs. More Brownie points if you spot yourself in the audience.
NAPALM DEATH, CAMP BESTIVAL, WESTON PARK, SHROPSHIRE (19th August 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-09-02 | This was so much fun. I was on the edge of the mosh pit, and there's probably more footage of that than of the band. Such a weird experience to see so much violence yet everyone involved has laughing, having fun and very considerate to others if anything went wrong. It was dangerous being on the edge as, at any moment, someone might get launched onto you but - so long as you kept an eye out and side-stepped anyone flying in your direction - it was hilarious.
PUPPETAILS HAVING FUN WATCHING THE HUMAN LEAGUE, CAMP BESTIVAL, SHROPSHIRE (18th August 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-09-02 | If you've clicked on this to watch footage of The Human League, you're going to have some distractions. The most fun I've had for years without any alcohol being involved, with my mates, having a riot watching/dancing to/singing along to/heckling The Human League.
DJGGS CAMP BESTIVAL, WESTON PARK, SHROPSHIRE (17th - 20th August 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-09-02 | I had a great time with friends at Camp Bestival in Shropshire this time. Largely focused on our own stage, The Pig's Big Ballroom, there are some other clips as well.
MATTHEW ONE-MAN, CAMP BESTIVAL, WESTON PARK, SHROPSHIRE (19th August 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-09-02 | Matt's an astoundingly good guitarist who plays in a unique manner. His set ended up being about 80 minutes long in the middle of the day, which is a mammoth duration for one person to hold an audience.
GRACE JONES, CAMP BESTIVAL, LULWORTH CASTLE, DORSET (29th July 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-09-02 | Her set saved the weekend for me. The best Festival headliner I've ever seen. Astounding, and a lot of fun.
DJGGS CAMP BESTIVAL, LULWORTH CASTLE, DORSET (27th - 30th July 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-09-02 | What I got up to this time at Camp Bestival in Dorset, which was a pretty poor event if I'm honest. Mostly focused around our own stage, The Pig's Big Ballroom.
ITS NOT UNUSUAL: A LESBIAN AND GAY HISTORY (Episode 3) (BBC2, 1997) GuildfordGhost 2023-08-30 | I barely remembered I'd recorded this series. Looking at it today, it's surprising how far things have come. From the late 1990s being a time of 'tolerance', we finally find ourselves in a time of 'acceptance'. This is probably one of the best documentaries on the subject of LGBTQ+ you'll find, and still holds up over a quarter of a century after it was made.Annoyingly, I forgot this episode was on and I missed the first six minutes.Oh, and Hate Posts will get you blocked.
ITS NOT UNUSUAL: A LESBIAN AND GAY HISTORY (Episode 2) (BBC2, 1997) GuildfordGhost 2023-08-30 | I barely remembered I'd recorded this series. Looking at it today, it's surprising how far things have come. From the late 1990s being a time of 'tolerance', we finally find ourselves in a time of 'acceptance'. This is probably one of the best documentaries on the subject of LGBTQ+ you'll find, and still holds up over a quarter of a century after it was made.This is not here for Hate Posters. Such comments will get removed or blocked.
ITS NOT UNUSUAL: A LESBIAN AND GAY HISTORY (Episode 1) (BBC2, 1997) GuildfordGhost 2023-08-30 | I had to put this episode on age restriction due to the (albeit tasteful) nudity in archive clips. I barely remembered I'd recorded this series. Looking at it today, it's surprising how far things have come. From the late 1990s being a time of 'tolerance', we finally find ourselves in a time of 'acceptance'. This is probably one of the best documentaries on the subject of LGBTQ+ you'll find, and still holds up over a quarter of a century after it was made.Make any bigoted posts, you can wave goodbye to my channel.
WAKEY, WAKEY, RISE AND SHANE! (Meridian TV, 1996) GuildfordGhost 2023-08-29 | I've had to cut out three brief sections showing footage from the original TV pilot of HI-DE-HI as they are copyright blocked. This one-off documentary concerns the staff at UK holiday camps through history. I ended up being a Bluecoat myself for a while. It was a horrible job. I was also staying at the very camp where Shane Ritchie was a Blue in 1982 and I remember him well from there. This piece shows some attitudes that wouldn't get shown on TV today and, inexplicably, ends with a thoroughly cringeworthy recreation of SUMMER NIGHTS from GREASE. No blame on the Redcoats. Total blame on Shane Ritchie!
BILLY BRAGG - How Skiffle Changed The Whole Bleedin World (Camp Bestival, Dorset, 30th July 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-08-29 | I missed a couple of minutes here and there due to the SD card reaching a 1GB limit for each file. Nevertheless, Billy Bragg came to give a talk about the history of skiffle music (with occasional songs) in The Pig's Big Ballroom - the tent I work in - at Camp Bestival in Dorset. The only act to get on the main CB poster that only played one of the small stages. I can confirm, having met him backstage, he's a decent bloke.
BARNARDOS CHILDREN (Episode 1) (BBC1, 1995) GuildfordGhost 2023-08-29 | I did tape the entire series when it was originally shown but this is the only episode I have left. Undoubtedly all of these people are long gone now. This is from a Golden Age of documentaries and just tells the stories of those children who were saved by (or had no choice but to go to) Barnardo's. Sound restored in Audacity.
BREAN SANDS FUNFAIR (2004) GuildfordGhost 2023-07-22 | Not my footage, but a holiday film I converted for a customer. I cut out all the bits showing the family.
WOOKEY HOLE CAVES (2004) GuildfordGhost 2023-07-22 | At least, I THINK it's Wookey Hole. Nothing special. Just a couple of minutes of footage from a holiday video I converted for a customer.
GUILDFORDGHOST GOES TO JERSEY (26th - 29th June 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-07-06 | Travelling around the island of Jersey for the first time in 44 years. The usual mix of what I do - ruins, history, war and true crime. Expect a mix of facts and total bull. Well done if you make it to the end. I think this is probably the longest video I've ever uploaded to YouTube.
SIGUR RÓS - WASING, BERKSHIRE (2nd July 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-07-05 | Only a few tracks. A pretty average gig, I thought. Just the four of them, billed as 120 minutes and they played for only 90, tickets cost over £60 and then were dropped to 1/3 off in the last few weeks, without any refund for those of us who'd paid full price. Lovely setting, though.
Family beach holiday & home at Christmas (16mm, 1960s) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-19 | From the large job lot of films I bought on eBay of a Scottish family, there was one 16mm reel in there. I don't have the equipment to scan this one so I sent it off. Nothing really special, but lovely quality. It's mostly of their redheaded daughter on holiday and back at home (clearly Christmas, although the weather doesn't look that cold).Antarctica by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Artist: http://audionautix.com
THE EXOTIC EAST [Singapore & Thailand] (8mm, 1960s - with sound!) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-16 | I had uploaded this work by Frank Jessop before, but it was from a scan I had made of the reel without sound. Well, I sent the reel off to have the sound strip extracted and now it's all synched up with the original film. I love the footage of Haw Par Villa in Singapore, but otherwise it looks nothing like this nowadays!
Documentary feature on the new Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford (ITN, 1st June 1965) [NO SOUNDTRACK] GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I have spent DAYS working on this for some pretty average results. The soundtrack to this reel has been lost at source. It used to be on the ITN website. It was a small preview pane with two watermarks. Very flushed out, and the picture itself was unsteady, constantly rising and falling a little.So - many hours of processing. Upscaled, enhanced and stabilised in sections with Topaz Video AI, watermarks mostly removed (not entirely) with Wondershare and then combined with enhanced contrast in Wondershare again. The files kept crashing when being stabilised and having the watermarks removed - probably over about two days of abandoned processing - so I had to cut the video up into smaller pieces. And does anyone care? Nope!
DISCOVERING ELECTRONIC MUSIC REVISED (1982) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I have had a copy of this on my PC for years, almost certainly taken from someone else's upload. It was, however, in several clips so I've here combined them and sorted out the sound quality as much as possible with Audacity. This features a fairly early use of the famed Fairlight - to the 80s what the Moog was to the 60s.
LEONARD NIMOY - IN SEARCH OF JACK THE RIPPER (1978) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I have had a copy of this on my PC for years. It was probably downloaded from someone else's upload but, given my job and how many JTR uploads I have, I thought I should share it here as well. I've boosted the quality as much as I can, particularly the audio with Audacity. Not a great piece, but an old one - and how much can you really cover in 20 minutes?
THE OPEN UNIVERSITY - CINEMA FOR THE EARS [Electronic Music] (BBC2, 1998) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | A real oddity here. From one of my old VHS tapes. How computers were used in creating avant-garde sound pieces in the 1990s and showing just how slow the process was. To think this was the midway point between today (at the time of uploading) and the creation of the Dr Who theme. I think there's only going to be a certain audience for this one. Sound cleaned and enhanced in Audacity.
JOE MEEK - LIONEL HOWARDS CINÉ FILMS (1960-1961) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I was given these on a VHS tape secretly over 30 years ago. I met Lionel a few times. As he's now undoubtedly been dead for some years, I think it's probably OK to share this major rarity.The clips are all over the place, as is witnessed by there being several short sections of The Outlaws publicity stunt at HMV in London in 1960 throughout, rather than together. There's also holiday footage. Andy Cavell is clearly seen in one section. I could have speed corrected the clips and put them in order but it was easier to just upload it all as it is. I don't think the original transfer was very professional - it might just be a video from a projector screen. You're unlikely to see this anywhere else, though.I didn't want to cheapen this with library music. Put on a CD from 304 Holloway Road and create your own backing.
SCREAMING LORD SUTCH & THE MOONTREKKERS - THE HOLLOWAY PUB, LONDON (5th April 1991) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | A clip left on an old video. The quality is poor in both video and Dave's performance. In fact, it's bloody awful. However, I don't think this footage is commonly available and, given Dave's sad death many years ago, it's got a certain poignancy. I met him twice in my life. Once at a big public event, and he was a total prat. A couple of years later we both turned up early for a film showing and he and I sat together in a café and chatted for an hour. The actual man behind the character was a real sweetheart. He was friendly, quiet, gentle and modest. I liked him.
SPIKE MILLIGAN - THE LAST LAUGH BEFORE TVAM (Channel 4, 1985) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I've had this on a VHS copy for years. Long overdue I should put it on my channel with a lot of other Spike stuff. Third generation copy, but I've done what I can with it. Sound cleaned and enhanced with Audacity.I really don't consider this the best of Spike's work at all. A lot of it is almost embarrassing with only the occasional line of brilliance. *Trigger warning: the 'N' word is used twice in the middle of the show.*
THE CRANBERRIES - SALVATION [TFI FRIDAY] (Channel 4, 12th April 1996) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I had a lot of live music clips on one of my old VHS tapes. I decided I wouldn't upload them because of the copyright issues, but it seems the rules are getting a little less strict at the moment - most copyright stuff is allowed without any penalty unless a claim is made. Anyhow, I've enhanced this with Wondershare, filled the frame with Serif X5 and boosted and cleaned the sound with Audacity.RiP, Dolores.
PULP - THE WHITE ROOM (Channel 4, 8th April 1995) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I had a lot of live music clips on one of my old VHS tapes. I decided I wouldn't upload them because of the copyright issues, but it seems the rules are getting a little less strict at the moment - most copyright stuff is allowed without any penalty unless a claim is made. Anyhow, I've enhanced this with Wondershare, filled the frame with Serif X5 and boosted and cleaned the sound with Audacity.
SPARKS - THE WHITE ROOM (Channel 4, 8th April 1995) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I had a lot of live music clips on one of my old VHS tapes. I decided I wouldn't upload them because of the copyright issues, but it seems the rules are getting a little less strict at the moment - most copyright stuff is allowed without any penalty unless a claim is made. Anyhow, I've enhanced this with Wondershare, filled the frame with Serif X5 and boosted and cleaned the sound with Audacity.
THE OLIVIER AWARDS - SONDHEIM FINALE (BBC1, 2nd April 1995) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | This was on the end of one of my VHS tapes. Not a fan of Sondheim or musicals, but a friend of mine at the time was one of the singers in this finale, hence why I taped it but didn't get the start. Sound cleaned and boosted in Audacity.
ELASTICA - THE WHITE ROOM (Channel 4, 1st April 1995) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | I had a lot of live music clips on one of my old VHS tapes. I decided I wouldn't upload them because of the copyright issues, but it seems the rules are getting a little less strict at the moment - most copyright stuff is allowed without any penalty unless a claim is made. Anyhow, I've enhanced this with Wondershare, filled the frame with Serif X5 and boosted and cleaned the sound with Audacity.
BLACKGANG LANDSLIP, ISLE OF WIGHT (ITV News, 13th & 15th January 1994) GuildfordGhost 2023-06-04 | A couple of clips I got from the old ITN website. Small preview pane with two watermarks. Upscaled and enhanced with Topaz AI, sound boosted, cleaned and centred with Audacity, and watermarks removed with Wondershare. A couple of really fascinating clips. Pretty sure there will be no traces of any of these buildings thirty years later.
MADAME TUSSAUDS CHAMBER OF HORRORS GUILLOTINE (24th June 1969) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-28 | A clip from the old ITN news site upscaled and enhanced with Topaz AI, watermarks removed with Wondershare, and stabilised with Serif X5. Showing a happy looking chap volunteering to have his head protected from guillotining by a steel block. Silent footage.Dopplerette by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100659Artist: http://incompetech.com
GUILDFORD HIGH STREET ROAD SERVICE (30th July 1960) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-28 | From the ITN news site. Upscaled and enhanced with Topaz AI and watermark removed with Wondershare. I don't actually know what the event was - looks like a church blessing for vehicles, or even a protest against them. Anyone know for sure?Piano March by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0Artist: http://audionautix.com
Fire at The Royal Grammar School, Guildford (2nd December 1962) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-28 | Taken from a small preview pane on the ITV news website. Watermarks removed with Wondershare and upscaled, enhanced and stabilised with Topaz AI.
THE GUILDFORD THEATRE PROJECT LAUNCH (6th November 1961) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-28 | Before the Guildford Theatre Royal burned down, there were already plans afoot to create a new theatre in Guildford - now the Yvonne Arnaud, which I see outside as I type away at home. This is some ITN news footage from a reception given to unveil the plans. It was only a small preview pane so I've upscaled and enhanced it with Topaz AI and removed the watermarks with Wondershare. It may sound odd to say it, but I don't think I would have enjoyed the event - they all seem very stuffy and aloof to me!
Demolition of the Friary Meux Brewery tower, Guildford (February 1974) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-28 | This is a clip taken from the old ITN news site. It was date stamped at the top and watermarked at the bottom, which I've removed with Wondershare. I upscaled the original small preview pane with Topaz AI and added on lots of sound effects from various sources, stabilised the footage and corrected the poor brightness issues with Serif X5.
GUILDFORD FARMERS TAKE DEMO TO THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE (23rd January 1970) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-26 | A silent clip from ITN news footage. Taken as a small preview pane, enhanced and upscaled with Topaz, watermarks removed with Wondershare and footage stabilised with Serif X5. I've added on some suitable sound effects as the original clip is silent. The footage at the start is of Guildford High Street.
Newsreel footage of the fire at Madame Tussauds, London (March 1925) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-26 | I've even added some sound - Jack Hylton's band with Edward O'Henry playing the Madame Tussaud's organ. I thought it fitting.The footage is available elsewhere, but it runs at double speed, with a watermark, and the information cards only occupy one or two frames so I've enhanced and upscaled with Topaz AI, removed the watermarks with Wondershare, slowed the speed, made the cards readable and stabilised the shots with Serif X5 and cleaned and boosted the audio with Audacity.So you better appreciate it, peasants! ;o)
BBC MICRO BONES (upscale of 1980s 8-bit computer program) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-26 | Just when you think there's nothing more you can do with it - I actually did an upscale of this old BBC Micro program from the 1980s, which is still as pointless now as it was then. Nearly forty years on, I am still left wondering 'why?'I've enhanced the 8-bit animation with Topaz, and improved the contrast and cropping in Serif X5. I've even removed the cable buzz from the audio with Audacity.
HARRY PRICE INTERVIEW (Movietone News, 1936) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-26 | This has been on my PC for years and I've no idea where I obtained it now. A fantastic direct to camera feature on Harry Price shot at his lab in London. I've boosted the picture with Topaz and reduced the noise with Audacity.
JACK THE RIPPER (ITN News, 31st August 1988) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-26 | I found this clip as a small preview pane with a timestamp on it on the ITN website some years ago. I've upscaled it here with Topaz, removed the timestamp with Wondershare and boosted the audio in Audacity.This is a news strand from the centenary of the murder of Polly Nichols. Not only do they swap her photo with Annie Chapman, but the focus and information is woefully of the period. Bit of a rarity, nonetheless.
GLOUCESTERS MEDIEVAL RUINS (Greyfriars, St Oswalds Priory, Infirmary Arches) (16th January 2023) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-24 | Day trip to Gloucester. I couldn't waste the opportunity of going to see the few ruins (free to view) it has scattered about. No narration or anything here, I'm afraid. Just video views.
SITE OF THE MURDER OF POLLY NICHOLS (Durward Street / Whitechapel Station) (18th July 2022) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-24 | A meander down to the Ripper murder spot for the first time since rebuilding work had finished on Whitechapel station. Filmed with my GoPro and unfortunately the sound quality keeps changing - I assume I had my finger over the tiny condenser mic.
BARKING ABBEY (18th July 2022) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-24 | I just went for a walk with my GoPro around the foundations of Barking Abbey in Essex. No narration. Nothing special!
Tower Bridge being raised, London (18th July 2022) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-24 | First time I'd ever seen it happen, and video doesn't really do it justice.
BLUE PETER - Chicken Shed Theatre Company: Creation Song (BBC1, 1990) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-24 | Still, on very rare occasions, I find things stuck at the end of videos and I'm not even aware I have them. Granted, we're getting to the end of everything now. Here's a presumably rare clip of Chicken Shed Theatre Company on Blue Peter over 30 years ago.
ESPALMADOR, SPAIN (8mm, 1974) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-24 | The final reel from the large job lot of films I bought on eBay of the family from Kirkcaldy, Scotland.
IBIZA (8mm, 1974) GuildfordGhost 2023-05-24 | Interesting to see footage of Ibiza as it looked before it was entirely overdeveloped (not that I've ever been). A reel from the Scottish family from Kirkcaldy.
