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Help me be good at my job

Started by billyandthecloneasaurus, November 26, 2021, 03:15:47 PM

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billyandthecloneasaurus

Hi guys, I received the following email in one of the customer service/enquiries inboxes I manage at work, and I thought you nerds would be able to help:

"Many years ago, I'd say about 50 years, the BBC broadcast a one-off drama-documentary over Saturday and Sunday night. It was about the effect of crop failure in Africa and the consequent migration north of millions of people and the problems and prejudices that it brought out.

At the time, it was shocking and got a huge amount of publicity both before and after broadcast - but I have never heard it mentioned again."

Thanks.  I did try googling it but im too stupid.

dissolute ocelot

From "50 years ago" my first thought was the Biafran emergency, part of the Nigerian Civil War of 1967-70. A quick search of the Times archive shows there was also a famine in Southern Africa (British Bechuanaland) in 1965, Kenya in 1965, Ethiopia in 1973, West Africa/the Sahel in 1974, Somalia in 1975 and another in Uganda and the Horn of Africa in 1980. Also refugee problems from Uganda in 1972 (not just Asians) and Rhodesia in 1976. Nothing about TV though. (If it was a TV sensation it's unlikely to be pre-1960.)

If it was on the BBC it should be in Genome. But I couldn't see anything directly relevant; the nearest was Famine 1973 on BBC2 Sat 10th Nov 1973, 21:20, but it seemed to be a documentary. There was a 1975 Joan Bakewell series Time Running Out about famine, overpopulation, etc, but that seems less likely, and in 1969 Frank Fraser Darling gave the Reith Lectures about the "horrors of famine, pestilence, irreversible pollution of air and water, or war".

But based on people's recollections I wouldn't be surprised if it was on ITV 40 or 60 years ago, which would be harder to find. Hope someone else has more luck. (Checking other press archives might be a way forward, and I only did very cursory searches.)

Mister Six

Quote from: billyandthecloneasaurus on November 26, 2021, 03:15:47 PMHi guys, I received the following email in one of the customer service/enquiries inboxes I manage at work, and I thought you nerds would be able to help:

"Many years ago, I'd say about 50 years, the BBC broadcast a one-off drama-documentary over Saturday and Sunday night. It was about the effect of crop failure in Africa and the consequent migration north of millions of people and the problems and prejudices that it brought out.

At the time, it was shocking and got a huge amount of publicity both before and after broadcast - but I have never heard it mentioned again."

Thanks.  I did try googling it but im too stupid.

Our of interest, what's your job and where do you work?

billyandthecloneasaurus

Quote from: dissolute ocelot on November 26, 2021, 05:00:52 PMFrom "50 years ago" my first thought was the Biafran emergency, part of the Nigerian Civil War of 1967-70. A quick search of the Times archive shows there was also a famine in Southern Africa (British Bechuanaland) in 1965, Kenya in 1965, Ethiopia in 1973, West Africa/the Sahel in 1974, Somalia in 1975 and another in Uganda and the Horn of Africa in 1980. Also refugee problems from Uganda in 1972 (not just Asians) and Rhodesia in 1976. Nothing about TV though. (If it was a TV sensation it's unlikely to be pre-1960.)

If it was on the BBC it should be in Genome. But I couldn't see anything directly relevant; the nearest was Famine 1973 on BBC2 Sat 10th Nov 1973, 21:20, but it seemed to be a documentary. There was a 1975 Joan Bakewell series Time Running Out about famine, overpopulation, etc, but that seems less likely, and in 1969 Frank Fraser Darling gave the Reith Lectures about the "horrors of famine, pestilence, irreversible pollution of air and water, or war".

But based on people's recollections I wouldn't be surprised if it was on ITV 40 or 60 years ago, which would be harder to find. Hope someone else has more luck. (Checking other press archives might be a way forward, and I only did very cursory searches.)

thank you so much for this!  much appreciated.

billyandthecloneasaurus

Quote from: Mister Six on November 26, 2021, 08:35:44 PMOur of interest, what's your job and where do you work?
just admin/supporter care for a charity, which includes helping with all the random stuff people send to the help@ and queries@ etc email inboxes.  while being a bit of an esoteric request, it's actually more relevant and coherent than most of the stuff we get.  it's exactly the kind of email i'd send.

Mister Six

That sounds like a pretty interesting job!