'Henry's Gigs'

18 October 2009
The Story of Southend Rock: 20 Golden Milestones
Director Julien Temple has just made a brilliant film about the original key players in the Southend (Canvey Island) band Dr Feelgood. Oil City Confidential opens at The London Film Festival on 16 October and then moves to London’s ICA on 20 October.

From 1963 until the late 1980s Southend-on-Sea (aka ‘The Essex Delta’) spawned some of the most dynamic rocking R'n'B that Britain has ever seen, starting with The Paramounts, Legend, Procol Harum, Robin Trower, Dr Feelgood, The Kursaal Flyers, Eddie & The Hot Rods, Mickey Jupp, and Wilko Johnson. Tonight’s programme features 20 key songs from this first 25 years of Southend Rock, helping to provide us with a soundtrack to a dynamic era.
Many of these artists continue perform to this very day, but rarely. So catch them if you can. And go and see Oil City Confidential!
Producer: Henry Scott-Irvine

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/the-dr-feelgood-factor-1607929.html
www.henrysgigs.com
E-mail Henry Scott-Irvine: sharkevader@hotmail.com

25 October 2009
The Beatles by Ray Connolly and Alan Benson
Screenplay Writer, Music Journalist, Novelist, and Playwright Ray Connolly wrote his own music column for the London Evening Standard from 1967 until 1973. During this time he struck up a unique and warm friendship with the Beatles, and John Lennon in particular. In 1980 Ray was invited to interview John by Yoko just two days before he was shot dead. Many years later Ray wrote a play about this for BBC Radio 4.  (This section runs for 45 mins.)

Film maker Alan Benson made a fine Beatles documentary back in 1992 called The 25th Anniversary of The Making Of Sgt Pepper's, that led to the series Classic Albums, which started in 1994. Alan also made In My Life in 2002 with George Martin. (This section follows on from Ray Connolly.)

A two-part special with Ray will air later this year in the same time slot, followed by a two-part special on the documentary maker Alan Benson, also.

http://www.rayconnolly.co.uk (cont)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0705862/
http://www.henrysgigs.com/home/upcoming

E-mail Henry Scott-Irvine: sharkevader@hotmail.com

1 November 2009
Tony Garnett: Groundbreaking TV/Film Producer
 
Tony Garnett started his career in TV working as an actor. By the mid 1960s he was producing radical contemporary film drama for BBC TV, working firstly for ‘The Wednesday Play’ series, producing films such as ‘Cathy Come Home’ and ‘The Big Flame’ (both directed Ken Loach). In 1969 he set up ‘Kestral Films’ and produced the feature films ‘Kes’, and ‘Family Life’ (both directed  by Loach).  By the early 1970’s he was producing films for BBC TV’s ‘Play For Today’ series, where he worked with directors such as Ken Loach, Mike Leigh, Les Blair, Jack Gold, Roy Battersby, and Roland Joffe, and with the writers Jim Allen, G F Newman, and Barry Hines; alongside a host of other s. By the 1980’s he had moved to the USA, and was producing feature films. He was back in the UK in the early 1990’s to set up ‘World Productions’, and it was there that he oversaw  pioneering  TV series such as ‘This Life’, ‘Between The Lines’, and ‘The Cops’.  (Programme duration: 45 minutes.)
 
Tony Garnett will be in discussion at London’s BFI Southbank in NFT 2 on 04.11.09 and 19.11.09.
 
http://www.world-productions.com
http://www.henryssgig.com/home/upcoming 
E-mail Henry Scott-Irvine: sharkevader@hotmail.com

8 November 2009

Dreams of Galactic Flight by Will Whitehorn (President  of ‘Virgin Galactic’.)
Henry Scott-Irvine is in discussion with Will Whitehorn who tells the story of ‘Space Flight’. Whitehorn places it’s ‘value’ into an historical and contemporary context, providing a unique insight into the successes of space endeavour, as well as outlining where the British government and Nasa both went wrong. Whitehorn also provides a vision into the future of space by detailing the actual planned beginnings of commercial space flight in 2011, as well as outlining the scientific benefits that it will bring to us all. This radio programme is both controversial and illuminating. (Programme duration: 41.05.)
http://www.virgingalactic.com
http://www.henrysgigs.com/home/upcoming
E-mail Henry Scott-Irvine: sharkevader@hotmail.com

15 November 2009

Ray Connolly: ’Rock ‘N’ Roll Changed My Life!’ (Part 1) Over two exclusive programmes Ray charts his life in music, and the songs that inspired him.

Ray Connolly grew up in Ormskirk, near Liverpool, amidst the heady days of Rock ‘N’ Roll. During the halcyon days of the summer of 1967, Ray began writing his own music column for The London Evening Standard. He interviewed almost all of the luminaries in the world of contemporary ‘Pop’, ‘Rock’, and ‘Soul’. This experience shaped his life. He went on to write screenplays (for David Puttnam) that reflected the ‘Golden Age Of Rock ‘N’ Roll’ - to quote a famous ‘Mott The Hoople’ song. ‘That’ll Be The Day’, ‘Stardust’, ‘James Dean The First American Teenager’, and ‘Forever Young’ were all made between 1973 and 1983. Ray went on to write for TV, Radio, The Sunday Times, and The Mail On Sunday. He also wrote novels. Ray recently had a front page exclusive in The Sunday Times re: ‘The Beatles Unseen and Unheard’ (06.09.09).

Ray Connolly continues to write for every aspect of media. Check out his website.

http://www.rayconnolly.co.uk
http://www.henrysgigs.com/home/upcoming
E-mail Henry Scott-Irvine: sharkevader@hotmail.com

22 November 2009

Ray Connolly: ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Changed My Life!’ (Part2)
Over two exclusive programmes Ray charts his life in music, and the songs that inspired him.
 
Ray Connolly grew up in Ormskirk, near Liverpool, amidst the heady days of Rock ‘N’ Roll. During the halcyon days of the summer of 1967, Ray began writing his own music column for  The London Evening Standard. He interviewed almost all of the luminaries in the world of contemporary ‘Pop’, ‘Rock’, and ‘Soul’. This experience shaped his life. He went on to write screenplays (for David Puttnam) that reflected the ‘Golden Age Of Rock ‘N’ Roll’ - to quote a famous ‘Mott The Hoople’ song. ‘That’ll Be The Day’, ‘Stardust’, ‘James Dean The First American Teenager’, and ‘Forever Young’ were all made between 1973 and 1983. Ray went on to write for TV, Radio, The Sunday Times, and The Mail On Sunday. He also wrote novels. Ray recently had a front page exclusive in The Sunday Times re: ‘The Beatles Unseen and Unheard’ (06.09.09).

Ray Connolly continues to write for every aspect of media.
Check out his website.
 
http://www.rayconnolly.co.uk
http://www.henrysgigs.com/home/upcoming
E-mail Henry Scott-Irvine: sharkevader@hotmail.com

29 November 2009

Alan Benson: A ‘Southbank Show’ Retrospective (Part 1)
Musician and Film Maker Alan Benson has written, produced, and directed ‘music and arts’ based documentaries for BBC TV, ITV’s ‘The Southbank Show’ (which is soon to end), Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘Really Useful Picture Company’, Buena Vista-Disney, and Celador Productions. His best known work featured within ITV’s ‘The Southbank Show’, and it is the cream of these ‘Southbank Show’ documentaries that we celebrate here tonight.

Part 1 begins by looking at the heady days of the British ‘Beat Boom’. We proceed to discuss the work of the film makers Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, and Ken Russell. We also take a look at the work of Hollywood actor Gene Hackman, the work of songwriter-producers Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller, and the Jazz pianist Oscar Peterson.
 
 

06 December 2009

Alan Benson: A Southbank Show Retrospective (Part 2)
Musician and Film Maker Alan Benson has written, produced, and directed ‘music and arts’ based documentaries for BBC TV, ITV’s ‘The Southbank Show’ (which is soon to end), Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘Really Useful Picture Company’, Buena Vista-Disney, and Celador Productions. His best known work featured within ITV’s ‘The Southbank Show’, and it is the cream of these ‘Southbank Show’ documentaries that we celebrate here tonight.

Part 2 begins by discussing ‘Rhythm ‘N’ Blues’ in the shape of Southend ‘Rockers’ Dr Feelgood (currently featured in Julien Temple’s latest movie ‘Oil City Confidential’). We also discuss ITV’s ‘Spitting Image’ series, alongside the work of violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman, the Broadway Musicals of Steven Sondheim, and George & Ira Gershwin; and the work of Beatles producer George Martin, alongside The Beatles’ ‘Sgt Peppers’ album.

http://www.henrysgigs.com/home/upcoming

 

13 December 2009
 A Whiter Shade of Pale:
 A Tale Of Psychedelia, Toilet Paper, Marriage, Death, and Litigation.
 
The story behind the biggest and fastest selling British hit single of the 1960’s. The song has continued to re-define itself, and the clues to this fact lie in our title! Key members of Procol Harum discuss the song’s early inception alongside those involved in the initial promotion of the song. We re-transmit Pirate Ship ‘Radio London’s’ original debut transmission of ‘Pale’ in its entirety (unedited) and as hosted by ‘Big L’ DJ Mark Roman, way back in April 1967.
 
Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page, Journalist Ray Connolly, Film Director Alan Parker, former ‘Leader of The Conservative Party’ Michael Howard, and many others pay tribute to this surreal, timeless, Bach-inspired song. We also play a few obscure covers at the close, too!

http://www.procolharum.com
http://www.henrysgigs.com

20 December 2009
Songs About Drinking
Running for 60 minutes, this programme crosses many genres of music. Spanning over seventy years of recorded music, Songs About Drinking features Blues, Bluegrass, Country, Diva Soul, Folk, Funk, Hillbilly, Psychedelia, Rock, R & B, and more.

Producer: Henry Scott-Irvine
http://www.henrysgigs.com

E-mail Henry Scott-Irvine: sharkevader@hotmail.com