#mygpofamily
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My GPO Family of books, exploring communications history... about the General Post Office (GPO), Post Office Telecommunications, British Telecom, and BT. |
My GPO Family of books
My GPO Family: Supplied for the Public Service
The full 2017 edition.
My GPO Family: Trilogy Edition
The abridged (2018) version forming the first part of the new series.
My GPO in London: Trilogy Edition * Out now! *
The second part in the series (2019) with over 100 black and white photos.
GPO in London, looks at key buildings and how the organisation evolved. It's got studies of the Speaking Clock; Rugby Radio; the little-known Chronopher which disseminated GMT across the UK; the short-lived Blackfriars Power Station; the Roman Wall under the King Edward Building; How Mail Rail turned into the new Postal Museum; the construction of the PO Tower revolving platform... and lots more besides!
London's Trunks Tolls and Telex
Continuing part two (2020)
My GPO Legacy:Trilogy Edition
The third part in the series (2021)
Buy a Copy (via PayPal or your Card) UK
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| £13.95 inc UK Postage | £11.99 inc UK Postage | £11.99 inc UK Postage | |||
| Full version |
Abridged version | Full version | |||
| A5 428 pages | A5 370 pages | A5 368 pages | Due 2020 | Due Later | |
| MGPOF0 | MGPOF1 | MGPOLdn0 | |||
| In stock | In stock | In stock | |||
| These two books are the same story in different versions. | |||||
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Choose which book (from above) you want and click Buy Now. |
To pay by cheque/BACS, please contact me for details. Alternatively, request the to send a PayPal Invoice. (Turn on Javascript to see this option)
Buy a Copy Overseas
For a copy outside the UK, purchase via http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/mygpofamily
Synopsis 1: My GPO Family [Full and abridged versions]
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A retrospective snapshot of living in the Public Service of the GPO and BT... |
Visits and verbatim reports of the emerging heritage scene capture the essence of bygone days in a comprehensive, but easy to understand format. Although written primarily for those who worked in the telecommunication and clerical side of the business, during the 20th century, any GPO family will be able to relate to the ethos of the era. With more than 30 (black and white) illustrations/photographs, this book will take you on a journey back to a time when people proudly worked in Public Service.
Feedback about My GPO Family (2017)
Simon C: "Thought I would let you know that I have finished reading your book. Took a few evenings and greatly enjoyed it."
Karen H: "I have been dipping in and out of your book; goodness you have popped a lot of thought into it!"
Andy E: "Even more impressed with your book now that I have read it through!"
Chris H: "I must say that I'm very impressed with your ability to recollect details from the start of your career."
Adam: "Well done for taking the time to help relive the awesome past."
Post Office Vehicle Club: "This book is recommended for anybody with a wider interest in telephone operations."
Dave F: "Just wanted to say what a delight it has been to read your book. So many memories revived; even your descriptions of the standard civil service office furniture and the Advice Note procedure were so evocative."
Barrie S: "Having read your book cover-to-cover, it is now with my Radio Amateur friend who worked in the Ministry of Works and PSA. It will then go to my neighbour, whose father was in BT all his life."
Colour Photos [Books have black and white photos, and may vary from those shown here)
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| Post Office Telephones | The author at BT Tower | The author at Southend AMC | An Openreach van |
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| Seven Ages of Man | At first the infant... | Mobile Exchanges | Travelling Post Office |
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| Keybridge House | BT Archives | MOH computers | Faraday Building plaque |
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| Dorothy Annan murals | BT Manchester | ERNIE |
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| BT Tower | Vernon mans the Board | Bletchley Park Mansion |
Synopsis 2: My GPO in London
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My GPO in London looks at key GPO buildings in the St. Paul’s area, which was once known as the ‘Post Office District.’ Tracing the origins of the London HQ of the Post Office, the new book has over 100 black and white photos (many from BT Archives) depicting the activities of the GPO in the City. |
As well as the more familiar buildings, it's got studies of the Speaking Clock; Rugby Radio; the little-known Chronopher which disseminated GMT across the UK; the short-lived Blackfriars Power Station; the Roman Wall under the King Edward Building; How Mail Rail turned into the new Postal Museum; the construction of the PO Tower revolving platform... and lots more besides! This book will evoke memories of anyone who worked for the company, or who has an interest in telecoms history.
Photobooks
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Quality printed photobooks with images of equipment and architecture taken between 1999 and 2017. Example of brown cover booklets. |
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1: London |
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2: Faraday Building |
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3: Keybridge House |
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4: Mondial House |
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5: International Trunks |
September 2018 new A5 photobooks:
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MGPOLnd1: Mail Rail at Mount Pleasant |
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MGPOLnd2: Roman Wall at Merrill Lynch |
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MGPOLnd3: Dorothy Annan Murals |
Poetry in the Post Office: Available now! (June 2019)
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Poetry in the Post Office: |
"The gradual roll-out of Subscriber Trunk Dialling (STD) over 20 years (1959 to 1979) saw the most ambitious building plan across London as Trunk Units, and Sector Switching Centres (SSCs) needed vast new spaces in which to house the (mostly analogue) automatic switching equipment. This was a time-period when major switching centres still required a large operator presence for manually-connected calls too! Simultaneously, explosive growth of International Subscriber Dialling (ISD) also demanded innovative ways of handling increasing call traffic to interface with overseas networks.
None of this was simple, because new exchange buildings (generally) had to be close to the cable networks and originating/terminating traffic which they served. Even then, the crowded, densely-packed sites in London proved a challenge to the architects and town planners alike. Network, Routing, and Transmission plans of the 1930s had to be updated to serve a modern telephone service, fit for the hip, happening new-age world of the 1960s and beyond!"
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