24/06/2026
Bernard Bale was our speaker this month. He came with music but no son who usually controls the equipment. He tried to get it working but had to give up, instead we got story after story of his life as a journalist, editor, author, broadcaster, event host, and speaker since the age of 13. He was also involved in the world of sports and entertainment for many years. There was another string to his bow as he played drums with several known bands – including Screaming Lord Sutch therefore knew anybody that was anybody in the music industry of the Swinging Sixties
One story that made us giggle was the one about Harrison Ford during filming Indiana Jones of the Lost Ark. The scene shows a swordsman wanted a fight with him. The problem was each time he was supposed to carry out the sword fight Harrison had to stop filming because he had an upset tummy and had to run off scene. It happened so many times he suggested just shooting him. It was agreed to try. Problem was they forgot to tell the sword man so of course the look on his face was a picture when he got shoot. The crew laughed so much, they left it in.
One other little known story was when Gene Kelly suffered with the flu while filming the famous song ‘Singing in the Rain’ in the rain scene. He was so dosed up he looked drunk, but his singing was fab.
The competition was “dress up as a character from a film”. Members dressed up for the occasion – Sandy from Grease, Dorothy from Wizard of Oz, Remy from Ratatouille, Captain Jack from Pirates of the Caribbean and Sister Deloris from Sister Act amongst others paid us a visit.
