Trevor Hill | |
|---|---|
| Born | Norman Trevor Hill (1925-10-28)28 October 1925 Southampton, Hampshire, England |
| Died | 29 October 2023(2023-10-29) (aged 98) Stinchcombe, Gloucestershire |
| Alma mater | Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School |
| Occupation(s) | BBC radio and television producer |
| Years active | 1942–1998 |
| Known for |
|
| Notable work | Over the Airwaves (2005) |
Norman Trevor Hill (28 October 1925 – 29 October 2023) was a British writer, producer and director for theBBC, where his career began in 1942 when he was recruited as the sound effects assistant forIt's That Man Again. In 1944 he was responsible for broadcastingGeneral Eisenhower's D-Day announcement of thelanding of allied troops on Normandy's beaches. Later, he worked onChildren's Hour and theRound Britain Quiz, recruitedHarry Corbett and producedSooty.
Hill retired as assistant head of BBC radio in 1983 but continued working freelance until 1998. His memoir,Over the Airwaves, was published in 2005.
Norman Trevor Hill was born on 28 October 1925 inSouthampton, Hampshire.[1][2] His father worked for H.M. Customs and Excise.[3] The family moved to Highbury, London, and then settled inMill Hill, northwest London, where Hill became inspired by his neighbour, the actor and comedianSyd Walker.[3] He attendedHaberdashers' Aske's Boys' School.[3]
Hill's career with theBBC began in 1942 when he was recruited as the sound effects assistant forIt's That Man Again.[2] He was at the time 16 years old, and hired as youth-in-training.[4] On 6 June 1944, at the age of 18 years, Hill was responsible for broadcastingGeneral Eisenhower's D-Day announcement of thelanding of allied troops on Normandy's beaches, having received the recording the day before.[5]
Hill marriedSergeant Margaret Potter, whom he met in Hamburg when he was posted there with theBritish Forces Network.[6] It was there that he also recruitedRoger Moore in a minor role inThe Adventures of Robin Hood.[6][7] He later gave him a part in the theatre production ofThe Shop at Sly Corner.[8] Following the opening performance at the Garrison Theatre, Hill felt unimpressed with Moore's acting ability and advised that he would be better placed modelling sweaters.[7] Both Moore and Hill recalled in later years that during the filming of one of theJames Bond movies, Moore relayed a message to Hill stating to "Tell Trevor, I still can't act – but I'm not doing badly".[7][8]
At the BBC he wrote, produced and directed, and with his wife, producedChildren's Hour.[2] Other programmes he produced includedRound Britain Quiz,Transatlantic Quiz,[2] andJackanory.[9]
In 1952 Hill hiredHarry Corbett and later produced the showSooty for several years.[6][10] According to a letter written by Corbett in 1965, when he suggested introducing the female characterSoo, it was Hill, then producer, that dismissed the idea "on the grounds that sex would be creeping in".[11][12] Hill recalled in his memoirs that Corbett had proposed the idea two years earlier, but he dismissed it stating to Corbett that "Sooty's girlfriend?" "Over my dead body!"[10] According to Corbett's son, his father was eventually called to the BBC head office to be told that Sooty's female friend Soo "was to be allowed – but they must never touch".[13][14] The media attention received led Hill to document in his memoirs that "I wouldn't have missed a moment of this Sooty Saga – not for the world".[10]
Hill retired from BBC radio in 1983, by which time he was assistant head, and continued working freelance until 1998.[2] In 1998 and 2001, he produced two Second World War feature series for a British and German audience, broadcast by the British Forces Broadcasting Service.[2] In 2014, when residing inDursley, Gloucestershire, he recounted some of his memories of the BBC.[5] His memoir,Over the Airwaves, was published byBook Guild Publishing in 2005.[2]
Hill died on 29 October 2023, the day after his 98th birthday.[1][15]