Geoffrey Wheeler, who was born on September 24, 1930, died on December 30, 2013, aged 83.
The broadcaster, who died in a care home in Prestbury, Cheshire, after a long illness, was a well-known face on children’s television as Top of the Form quizmaster from 1962 to 1975.
Why look back at his life now? Well, I hadn't seen the obituary at the time in 2013. Recently I was watching a line up of presenters for Songs of Praise in the run up to Christmas, and I suddenly remembered that when I was growing up, the presenter was Geoffrey Wheeler. So I did a little looking around and here are some of the stories I uncovered.
Let's backtrack a bit to the 1980s.
Sunday nights in the Winter months began around 5.40 with the Holiday Programme, presented by Cliff Mitchellmore, a collation of stories showing you what the holiday resorts were like - the ambience, the local food, the nightlife, the culture (although that was usually rather in short supply), and then giving the value for money aspect of it - how much it cost, the best way to go, the best places to stay on a budget or if you had more money.
As most of it was centred around beach resorts and hotels in sunny climes, I used to find it rather boring - one beach resort seems very much like another - flat expanses of sand, sunbeds, large beach umbrellas, palm trees, and sea. And the hotels, as I found when we went to Majorca, are all very much alike.
As most of it was centred around beach resorts and hotels in sunny climes, I used to find it rather boring - one beach resort seems very much like another - flat expanses of sand, sunbeds, large beach umbrellas, palm trees, and sea. And the hotels, as I found when we went to Majorca, are all very much alike.
After that was Songs of Praise, often presented by Geoffrey Wheeler, friendly, never talking down at the audience, and of course back in those days, it was very much presented at the start, and then mostly hymn after hymn, with the blessing at the end.
After Songs of Praise came Shoestring.. and then Bergerac, and then that extraordinary mix of consumer programme, funny newspaper clipping, and eccentric Britain at its best that was "That's Life". Now distinctions are absolute, and consumer programmes concentrate just on that - Watchdog, Cowboy Builders, etc etc, and there are no TV programmes that are that same mad mix that somehow worked perfectly, along with wonderful cartoons of all the stories at the end.
But times were changing, and it was clear that the public wanted something more interesting that just looking at people singing in Songs of Praise. The singing remained, but Geoffrey Wheeler was instrumental in shifting the focus to include stories of people in the community, along with the hymns. It became more of a magazine programme. It is still the formula used today and it works very well indeed.
Ernie Rhea commented:
“Geoffrey was a joy to work with. He was thoroughly professional. There was never any danger of him turning up late for a film shoot, or wanting to leave early. He threw himself heart and soul into making the programme the best possible representation of the community, which meant taking time to talk to contributors before recording their interview, so that he fully understood the essence of their story and how best to tell it.
Mid-week, however, and there was quite a fun game show presented by Jimmy Tarbuck, with Geoffrey Wheeler devising questions, and speaking the multiple choice options - decades before Who Wants to be a Millionare used the same trick. We watched that - there were only 2 channels, and this was a fun show, well presented by Tarbuck.
It was devised by Geoffrey himself, who didn't like the idea of a game show where contestants had to say they didn't know the answer, so they could guess if they didn't know. Later, he took over presenting role himself when it moved to daytime TV.
The Stage gave some background on his own life story:
"The son of a hotel manager, Wheeler spent most of his childhood travelling around the country to keep track with his father’s job. While studying law at Manchester University, he began writing scripts for the local BBC studios. By the time he left university, he had made about 200 programmes. In 1954, he became a junior BBC producer working on variety shows with, among others, Ken Dodd, Benny Hill and Morecambe and Wise."
Besides all this, Wheeler read children’s stories on Jackanory and was a team captain on Call My Bluff for two year
"Over the years, Wheeler was one of many presenters of Songs of Praise, overseeing no fewer than 250 editions, but he was adept enough to convert it from a televised church service into a programme enjoyed by viewers who had never set foot in a house of worship."
A devout Anglican, he became a Lay reader. The Church Times takes up the story of how he was too modest to put himself forward for such a role.
"WHEN the Vicar of St Peter's, Hale, in Chester diocese, came home from a Parish Stewardship of Time and Talents meeting, he burst out indignantly to his wife: 'Geoffrey Wheeler of Songs of Praise and Top of the Form has filled in a pledge form offering an hour a week to mow the churchyard grass. I can't let him do that: it's not a use of talents; it's a waste.' So began the process that led Geoffrey to 40 years' service to the Church of England as a Reader."
"Geoffrey brought the same high standards of professionalism to leading worship and preaching as he had developed in broadcasting. Meticulous preparation lay behind everything he did, even down to voice exercises just before a service. One incumbent was a little alarmed to hear honking noises coming from the small porch by the vestry, only to find Geoffrey, who sheepishly explained that these were the exercise that his voice coach had encouraged him to use before public speaking."
"His sermons bore all the marks of careful attention to the scriptures, and wise reflections on their meaning for us in the 20th century. A former churchwarden has quoted Geoffrey as saying, 'Unless butterflies are working in the tummy before a broadcast or service, I know I won't connect with the congregation.'"
"His children's addresses were memorable, particularly because he had a knack of making them accessible to children from five years of age to teenagers, this at a time when it was not unknown in that parish to have 150 or more Sunday-school children, Brownies, Cubs, Scouts, and Guides at a family service. One vicar's daughter observed: 'Doesn't God sound lovely when Mr Wheeler speaks about him!' Her older brother said: 'What I like is that it doesn't sound like the Bible when he reads it.'"
"Later, in his ministry as Reader, and as a result of seeking healing for his wife during her final illness, Geoffrey developed, with his incumbent, a ministry of healing. Together, they established a monthly Sunday-afternoon service of prayer for healing. Geoffrey usually gave the address. Together they visited the hospitals, and, in one notable instance, a young man, who had been very seriously injured, made an unexpected recovery, and eventually invited Geoffrey to take part in his marriage ceremony."
And there's this delightful story of how kind and nice a man he was on the obituary on the Diocese of Chester website:
David Ashworth earlier said: “Geoffrey’s charming TV presenter image was no front – he really was a kind and caring man. I remember once when he was taking a service in Yorkshire, a parishioner’s wife was very disappointed that she couldn’t be at the church to see and hear Geoffrey – because she was at home incapacitated. When he heard about that he said ‘well, I can easily go to visit her at her home’ and that’s exactly what he did. That’s the sort of man he was. Everyone is going to miss him.”
References
https://www.thestage.co.uk/features/obituaries/2014/geoffrey-wheeler/
https://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/obituary-geoffrey-wheeler-broadcaster-1-3253751
https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2014/17-january/gazette/obituaries/obituary-geoffrey-wheeler
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2531993/Top-Form-quizmaster-Geoffrey-Wheeler-dies-age-83.html
https://www.chester.anglican.org/news/geoffrey-wheeler-funeral-jan-2014.php
After Songs of Praise came Shoestring.. and then Bergerac, and then that extraordinary mix of consumer programme, funny newspaper clipping, and eccentric Britain at its best that was "That's Life". Now distinctions are absolute, and consumer programmes concentrate just on that - Watchdog, Cowboy Builders, etc etc, and there are no TV programmes that are that same mad mix that somehow worked perfectly, along with wonderful cartoons of all the stories at the end.
But times were changing, and it was clear that the public wanted something more interesting that just looking at people singing in Songs of Praise. The singing remained, but Geoffrey Wheeler was instrumental in shifting the focus to include stories of people in the community, along with the hymns. It became more of a magazine programme. It is still the formula used today and it works very well indeed.
Ernie Rhea commented:
“Geoffrey was a joy to work with. He was thoroughly professional. There was never any danger of him turning up late for a film shoot, or wanting to leave early. He threw himself heart and soul into making the programme the best possible representation of the community, which meant taking time to talk to contributors before recording their interview, so that he fully understood the essence of their story and how best to tell it.
Mid-week, however, and there was quite a fun game show presented by Jimmy Tarbuck, with Geoffrey Wheeler devising questions, and speaking the multiple choice options - decades before Who Wants to be a Millionare used the same trick. We watched that - there were only 2 channels, and this was a fun show, well presented by Tarbuck.
It was devised by Geoffrey himself, who didn't like the idea of a game show where contestants had to say they didn't know the answer, so they could guess if they didn't know. Later, he took over presenting role himself when it moved to daytime TV.
The Stage gave some background on his own life story:
"The son of a hotel manager, Wheeler spent most of his childhood travelling around the country to keep track with his father’s job. While studying law at Manchester University, he began writing scripts for the local BBC studios. By the time he left university, he had made about 200 programmes. In 1954, he became a junior BBC producer working on variety shows with, among others, Ken Dodd, Benny Hill and Morecambe and Wise."
Besides all this, Wheeler read children’s stories on Jackanory and was a team captain on Call My Bluff for two year
"Over the years, Wheeler was one of many presenters of Songs of Praise, overseeing no fewer than 250 editions, but he was adept enough to convert it from a televised church service into a programme enjoyed by viewers who had never set foot in a house of worship."
A devout Anglican, he became a Lay reader. The Church Times takes up the story of how he was too modest to put himself forward for such a role.
"WHEN the Vicar of St Peter's, Hale, in Chester diocese, came home from a Parish Stewardship of Time and Talents meeting, he burst out indignantly to his wife: 'Geoffrey Wheeler of Songs of Praise and Top of the Form has filled in a pledge form offering an hour a week to mow the churchyard grass. I can't let him do that: it's not a use of talents; it's a waste.' So began the process that led Geoffrey to 40 years' service to the Church of England as a Reader."
"Geoffrey brought the same high standards of professionalism to leading worship and preaching as he had developed in broadcasting. Meticulous preparation lay behind everything he did, even down to voice exercises just before a service. One incumbent was a little alarmed to hear honking noises coming from the small porch by the vestry, only to find Geoffrey, who sheepishly explained that these were the exercise that his voice coach had encouraged him to use before public speaking."
"His sermons bore all the marks of careful attention to the scriptures, and wise reflections on their meaning for us in the 20th century. A former churchwarden has quoted Geoffrey as saying, 'Unless butterflies are working in the tummy before a broadcast or service, I know I won't connect with the congregation.'"
"His children's addresses were memorable, particularly because he had a knack of making them accessible to children from five years of age to teenagers, this at a time when it was not unknown in that parish to have 150 or more Sunday-school children, Brownies, Cubs, Scouts, and Guides at a family service. One vicar's daughter observed: 'Doesn't God sound lovely when Mr Wheeler speaks about him!' Her older brother said: 'What I like is that it doesn't sound like the Bible when he reads it.'"
"Later, in his ministry as Reader, and as a result of seeking healing for his wife during her final illness, Geoffrey developed, with his incumbent, a ministry of healing. Together, they established a monthly Sunday-afternoon service of prayer for healing. Geoffrey usually gave the address. Together they visited the hospitals, and, in one notable instance, a young man, who had been very seriously injured, made an unexpected recovery, and eventually invited Geoffrey to take part in his marriage ceremony."
And there's this delightful story of how kind and nice a man he was on the obituary on the Diocese of Chester website:
David Ashworth earlier said: “Geoffrey’s charming TV presenter image was no front – he really was a kind and caring man. I remember once when he was taking a service in Yorkshire, a parishioner’s wife was very disappointed that she couldn’t be at the church to see and hear Geoffrey – because she was at home incapacitated. When he heard about that he said ‘well, I can easily go to visit her at her home’ and that’s exactly what he did. That’s the sort of man he was. Everyone is going to miss him.”
References
https://www.thestage.co.uk/features/obituaries/2014/geoffrey-wheeler/
https://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/obituary-geoffrey-wheeler-broadcaster-1-3253751
https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2014/17-january/gazette/obituaries/obituary-geoffrey-wheeler
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2531993/Top-Form-quizmaster-Geoffrey-Wheeler-dies-age-83.html
https://www.chester.anglican.org/news/geoffrey-wheeler-funeral-jan-2014.php
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