First Aid (lost early BBC medical show; 1937)

Listing of "Accidents in the Home" in Radio Times.

Status: Lost

First Aid is an early BBC television medical documentary series. Consisting of at least three parts, it guided viewers on what to do when one encounters a minor or serious accident within the home, on the road, or while playing sports.

Background

Working alongside St. John Ambulance Brigade, the show was conceptualized by World War 1 veteran and BBC Television Service producer and presenter, Cecil Lewis. The premise involved providing practical demonstrations on how to cope with various accidents. At least three episodes are confirmed to have been produced, with each lasting fifteen minutes and being repeated once on the same day as the initial broadcast.

"Accidents in the Home", broadcast on January 8th, 1937, guided viewers on coping with minor and serious accidents within their home. The initial broadcast was presented by Nigel Corbet Fletcher, a Surgeon-in-Chief at St. John Ambulance Brigade. The later broadcast was presented by W. C. Bentall, an Assistant Surgeon-in-Chief at St. John Ambulance Brigade. Whether or not the Bentall version repeated the demonstrations provided by Fletcher's, or guided viewers in resolving other home-orientated accidents, is unknown.

Each episode was broadcast on a fortnightly basis. Hence, episode 2, "Accidents on the Road" was broadcast on January 22nd, 1937. This episode detailed what to do in when involved in various road accident scenarios. Based on the fact that the second listed broadcast at 21:10 was simply titled "Details as at 3:10", it can be assumed similar demonstrations were conducted, this time hosted entirely by Bentall. Finally, episode 3, "Accidents in Sports", was broadcast on 5th February 1937. Both instances of the episode were hosted by Fletcher and concerned resolving sports-related accidents.

According to the synopsis for "Accidents in the Home", two other demonstrations were to be planned. Among these included resolving accidents within workshops and factories, and a finale focusing on precautions homeowners should take when air raids involving gas attacks commence. However, these episodes were not documented in any currently available Radio Times listing.

Availability

Like other early BBC television broadcasts, First Aid was broadcast live and was not recorded. Therefore, all episodes of the show are now permanently missing. No photos exist of the show, with the Radio Times listings providing the only remnants of the show's existence.

See Also

Early BBC Television

• Alexandra Palace's wartime television demonstrations (lost footage of private television transmissions; 1943, 1945)
• An Inspector Calls (lost television adaptation of play; 1948)
• Ann and Harold (lost early BBC drama television series; 1938)
• BBC Election Night (lost coverage of British general elections; 1950-1951)
• The Care of Your Car (lost early BBC motoring show; 1947)
• Cook's Night Out (lost early BBC cooking show; 1937)
• Craftsmen at Work (lost early BBC documentary show; 1938, 1946)
• Dish of the Month (lost early BBC cooking show; 1937)
• Foundations of Cookery (lost early BBC cooking show; 1939)
• Marcel Boulestin television shorts (lost early BBC programs; 1937-1939)
• Masks through the Ages (lost early BBC history talk show; 1937)
• Opening of the BBC Television Service (partially found coverage of inaugural day of high-definition television service; 1936)
• The Orchestra and its Instruments (lost early BBC music talk show; 1937)
• RCA recording of BBC Television Service (found footage of pre-Second World War BBC television broadcast; 1938)
• Sea Stories (lost early BBC talk show; 1936-1937)
• Spelling Bee (lost early BBC game show; 1938)
• Telecrime (lost early BBC crime drama; 1938-1939; 1946)
• The Wasp's Nest (lost early BBC television adaptation of Agatha Christie short story; 1937)
• Weaponless Self-Defence (lost early ju-jitsu television program; 1936-1937)
• The World of Women (lost early BBC talk show; 1937)

Early BBC Sports Television

• 1931 Epsom Derby (lost televised footage of horse racing event; 1931)
• 1937 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1937)
• 1937 International Imperial Trophy Race (lost footage of motor race; 1937)
• 1937 Wimbledon Championships (partially found footage of tennis tournament; 1937)
• 1938 Ashes Series (partially found footage of international test cricket match; 1938)
• 1938 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1938)
• 1939 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1939)
• 1947 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1947)
• 1953 British Grand Prix (partially found footage of Formula One race; 1953)
• 1955 Scottish Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1955)
• Archery (lost early televised toxophily; 1937-1938)
• Arsenal 7-1 Hibernian (lost footage of charity football match; 1952)
• Arsenal vs Arsenal Reserves (lost footage of early BBC televised football match; 1937)
• Barnet 3-2 Wealdstone (lost footage of Athenian League football match; 1946)
• The Boat Race 1938 (partially found footage of rowing race; 1938)
• Catch-As-Catch-Can Wrestling (lost early BBC televised professional wrestling matches; 1938-1939; 1946-1947)
• Charlton Athletic 1-0 Blackburn Rovers (lost footage of FA Cup match; 1947)
• Darts and Shove Ha'penny (lost early BBC televised darts matches; 1936-1939)
• England 0-1 Scotland (partially found international football match; 1938)
• England 1-1 Scotland (partially found footage of international football match; 1947)
• England 16-21 Scotland (partially found footage of rugby match; 1938)
• England 3-0 France (partially found footage of international football match; 1947)
• England 3-0 Rest of Europe (partially found footage of international football match; 1938)
• Falkirk 3-2 Newcastle United (lost footage of football match; 1953)
• Horace Lindrum vs Willie Smith (lost footage of televised snooker; 1937)
• Scottish Universities 1-1 English Universities (lost footage of international football match; 1952)
• Woods and Jack (lost early televised lawn bowls; 1937; 1946)

Gallery

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  Listing of "Accidents on the Road" in Radio Times.

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  Listing of "Accidents in Sports" in Radio Times.

External Link

• IMDB page for First Aid.