Bedford Talking Newspaper (BDAN) Registered UK charity no. 802814

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About B.D.A.N. Revised: May 2008 Bedford and District Audio News (BDAN) is a registered UK charity with no charge for membership. It records and distributes free weekly and quarterly audio cassettes of local press stories and features in English, for those who cannot see or hold a newspaper. The service is run by unpaid volunteers and covers the Bedford and district area (roughly a 10 mile radius around the town) in eastern England, United Kingdom. Bedford is about 60 miles north of London. Click here to see a map of the area This web link to Multimap.co.uk will open in a new window for your convenience. BDAN is not responsible for the content of other websites. Preparing to record the week's local newspapers onto audio tape - readers Ann and Dennis Craddock, with Cecil Parry and technician / recordist Robin Grewer (right) Whilst most of the circa 260 listeners live locally, others reside further afield - keen to catch up with Bedford's news if they have moved away. As such, there is no geographical boundary to the service within the UK. Generously, Royal Mail does not charge for conveying the tapes, under the Articles For The Blind postal concession. The small charity is run by a committee which meets roughly every two months and is elected at the spring Annual General Meeting (AGM) - to which listeners, volunteers and members of the public are welcome. Mrs. Delia Partridge has been Chairman since May 2004. The 2008 AGM was held on Saturday 10th May at the Sight Concern offices on Bromham Road, Bedford. Right: Committee members at AGM 2006 History of the service The first Talking Newspaper service for the Bedford area is thought to have begun in the early 1970s when four reporters from the then Bedfordshire Times (now Times and Citizen) recorded articles onto a tape, which was taken to local residential homes for the elderly. Bedford and District Audio News was established in early 1978 by the late Cyril Humphreys and his wife Phyllis. Inspired by a television programme about Talking Newspaper groups, Cyril decided to volunteer. However, he found that no such service existed in the Bedford area. Undeterred, he and his wife vowed to establish a group themselves. A letter from Cyril Humphreys to the then Bedford on Sunday newspaper on 14 May 1978, announcing the first weekly BDAN tape, and appealing for volunteers and listeners Image courtesy Bedfordshire on Sunday After visiting an existing service in nearby Luton, Cyril advertised a meeting at Bedford Central Library in February 1978. This was attended by well over 100 people. 'We were amazed by the response,' Cyril later recalled. 'One or two people who came to the meeting had recording equipment. The only snag was that we had nobody to do the fast copying of the master tapes - with 20 or more cassettes it took long to do them all individually.' Fortunately, Audrey Artus of Renhold joined the group and she had a fast copying machine that could be used. Other founding members included Janet Cook - Treasurer since BDAN's inception - and the late Noel L'Angellier, who as well as being a regular reader was also involved with Hospital Radio Bedford (HRB). A committee for the new service was formed and a 'Statement of Intent' drafted to formally set out the new service's objectives. The First Edition On Thursday 18th May 1978, the first edition of BDAN was recorded with 12 listeners taking the cassettes. This figure grew rapidly, helped in no small way by Bedfordshire County Council supplying a list of people with sight difficulties. Within six months, over 100 people were receiving the tapes. Kempston Library was by now the recording location, the first of many studio spaces used since, including a local school, religious building and above a local taxi office! Bedfordshire Country Life magazine summed up the problems with the latter venue in a 2001 article: 'The taxi radios constantly interfered with the recordings'(!) Recording a tape in September 1985. Left to right: Technician Garry Greenwood, and readers Kathleen Richies, Ann Craddock, Henry Furrer and founding Chairman, Cyril Humphreys Image courtesy Times and Citizen - photographer: Roy Braybrooks Fundraising and generous donations (notably money from the Harpur Trust) allowed for new equipment to be purchased and maintained, as well as covering some of the costs of moving studios. Magazine In 1983 a quarterly magazine tape was begun with Brenda Mayoh as Editor. The cassette features longer items of general interest, poems, short stories and also humorous pieces. Readers are recorded separately and the material is currently edited on minidisc. At the May 1986 AGM, Chairman Cyril Humphreys revealed that the original 1978 target for listeners had been 50. Eight years on, the figure had reached 205. 12 months later, in his final AGM address, Cyril spoke again about listener numbers as well as the advances in recording quality and fundraising accomplished, describing: 'Another great year for Audio News' "Another great year for Audio News" Cyril Humphreys, founder and Chairman 1978-1987 He also mentioned the great joy he had derived from BDAN work and his personal satisfaction: 'I must say how delighted I am at the way Bedford and District Audio News has developed ...we have certainly come a long way since Phyllis and I decided that Sunday evening nine and a half years ago to attempt to start the Talking Newspaper in Bedford.' The mid-late 1980s saw a great deal of fundraising activities - strawberry cream teas, an al fresco lunch, autumn fair, Christmas meals, barn dances, street collections, a very successful sponsored swim, quotation calendar and card sales, quiz games, and for a while, a 100 Club. A 35-page BDAN recipe book was also specially produced, and this was sold in aid of the charity. Cyril was succeeded by Vice Chairman the late Alan Charge, and in 1988 by the late Roy Purser who served in the post until 1997. New and long-standing committee members alike continued to make sure the service prospered, dealing then, as today, with a variety of issues, making sure the service was well publicised, and seeking donations, listeners and volunteers alike. Longer-serving members included Jack Stevens, David Mitchell, Joan Stuart and the late Geoff Guy. In 1988, BDAN's 10th anniversary was reached, and in the 1987-88 year, fundraising activities included a barn dance, street collection, a stall in Bedford Park (during its centenary celebrations), a sponsored walk and Christmas card and calendar sales. Decorated in local newspaper cuttings, young and older BDAN volunteers, ready to raise money at the Bedford River Festival. Were the brollies to protect against splashing, rain or the sun though? Charity Status 1990 saw BDAN attain UK charity status - a key requirement for this being the new Constitution approved at the 1988 AGM. Listener numbers continued to increase - 223 by 1988, rising to 240 in 1992, 280 in 1993, and 316 in 1995. And there were new volunteer readers, sorters and helpers replacing those who had retired or moved from the area. Ian and Sue Birch, Judy Knudsen, Ray Alston, Elsie Slack, Jeanette Hanling and Eira Grewer (Chairman 1997-2004) were among newer members involved during and / or from the 1990s. Due to circumstances beyond its control, the charity had to move studio location three times during the period 1991-2000. A costly operation each time and the committee had to seek and furnish alternative accommodation, whilst maintaining the weekly and magazine tapes and of course raising funds. 'My mother has enjoyed your tapes... This has been especially beneficial as her progressive loss of sight and increasing ill health reduced her mobility ...I thank you for the excellent service you have provided' Comment received from the son of a former BDAN listener, 2007 As well as flag days and collections, talks have also been given to local groups and societies. These have included, amongst many others, school and church organisations and the Womens' Institute. In addition, volunteers have promoted the charity at local events. BDAN was also proud to host a 1997 regional Talking Newspaper conference - a very successful event. That same year, the weekly Bedford and District Audio News cassette celebrated its one thousandth edition, and just a few months later in 1998, its twentieth year of operation. Annual Fundraising Lunch and Raffle In June 2004 BDAN held a fundraising lunch and raffle. It proved very popular and successful and is now an annual event. It is an excellent way for supporters, volunteers and listeners to meet together in a relaxed settting. Other friends and members of the public are also welcome to attend. In 2005 the date changed to September, and 2007 saw October as the chosen month. However, the venue has remained the same - Biddenham village hall. The price covers a two course meal with tea and coffee to follow. Donated prizes are then raffled, with each winner drawing the next ticket. A fully licensed wine and fruit juice bar is available as well. After costs, all profits from the event go directly to help fund BDAN's work. Clockwise from above: Tasty home-cooked food is served to waiting guests at the 2006 lunch. Eira Grewer draws a ticket in the 2007 fundraising raffle with Richard Partridge holding the bowl of potential winners. Below: Volunteers, listeners and their families enjoy fine food and good company in 2007 New Century A new decade and century had dawned, and with the growth in Internet use, BDAN felt it was time to consider dedicated webpages, to increase awareness about the service and as ever, to continue to seek new volunteers, donors and listeners. In December 2004 - following committee approval - this site was launched, giving the Bedford Talking Newspaper for the Blind an official place on the World Wide Web for the very first time. The pages were developed (and are maintained) at no cost to the charity. In addition, hosting is also kindly provided for free by Web-Hosting.uk.com BDAN makes the news - the Bedford edition of the Times and Citizen reports the charity's new Internet website. Chairman Delia Partridge was pictured and told the paper: 'It is an exciting development for us, and we hope it will prove popular' Image courtesy Times and Citizen Postal Strike Hits BDAN On 4th October 2007, a Royal Mail postal strike meant that for one week, BDAN was unable to produce a news tape. The news attracted press interest - Chairman, Delia Partridge was interviewed again by the Times and Citizen, and also for The Royal National Institute for the Blind's Insight Radio service. BDAN has indeed been featured across the range of local media during the first decade of the 2000s, including: local arts forum journal Art'icle, north Bedfordshire's Ouse Valley Living, the Biddenham Bulletin parish news, and Phonebox Magazine in Olney. In February 2008, Bedford News, the Borough Council newspaper, profiled BDAN for the charity's 30th anniversary. Members of the Commitee meet after AGM 2008. Current Committee Officer positions are: Chairman (and Social Secretary), Vice Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Publicity, Website & IT, Magazine [Tape] Technician, two Listener Representatives and a General Member Newspaper titles may have changed, and there are many new volunteers and listeners, but three decades since BDAN's first edition, audio tapes are still recorded and dispatched weekly and quarterly, providing a news and information service to blind, partially sighted and physically disabled people across north Bedfordshire and beyond. How is a weekly tape put together? Find out more by looking at the Behind The Scenes page!

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