The Charles Guard Series
A fascinating series of radio programmes produced by Charles Guard MBE about a variety of Manx topics.
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Episodes
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Giles Job relives childhood memories of Derby Castle
Tuesday, 26 September 2023
Giles Job lived in the Derby Castle Hotel as a child in the late 1940s. At the time the building was divided into two apartments and he and his family lived in one of them. On a recent visit to the Isle of Man he took the opportunity to talk to Charles Guard about his memories of the living there, including anecdotes about the Derby Castle theatre, the dance hall and the underground maze of cellars and passages that he explored as a young boy.
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Why do we need a Governor?
Wednesday, 22 September 2021
A new Lieutenant Governor is sworn in to start his term of office on the Isle of Man. He can expect to be patron of over 100 Manx charities and societies, undertake receptions and host visits and fulfil some constitutional duties. But at a cost to the Manx taxpayer of two and a half million pounds for the five years, Charles Guard asks the question: Why do we need a Governor?
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The Millennium of Tynwald
Tuesday, 23 March 2021
More than 40 years on, Charles Guard and Robert Quayle recall some of the highlights of the 1979 Millennium of Tynwald.
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A Tynwald Concert
Thursday, 11 February 2021
A programme broadcast from the Tynwald Chamber during the Isle of Architecture. Charles Guard recalls amusing anecdotes and tells the story of the Tynwald buildings, with music from Caarjyn Cooidjagh.
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David Callister Tribute
Thursday, 4 February 2021
Another chance to hear the tribute to one of Manx Radio's most popular broadcasters, David Callister, who died last year. The programme is presented by his friend and colleague, Charles Guard.
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The Legend of St Maughold
Monday, 25 January 2021
This version of the Legend of St Maughold is written and performed by Charles Guard. It was originally staged with the Isle of Man Symphony Orchestra in the Villa Marina, but in this recording the orchestral sounds are recreated using the digital samples on Charles' computer. What would St Maughold have thought of that?
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The Ellan Vannin Story
Wednesday, 20 January 2021
On the night of 3rd December 1909, the Isle of Man Steam Packet's vessel Ellan Vannin sank in a terrible storm as she approached the entrance to the River Mersey. All 35 passengers and crew were drowned. In this programme, first broadcast in December 2019, Charles Guard examines the causes of the tragedy and some of the mysteries surrounding it.
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Recording the Manx
Wednesday, 13 January 2021
In July 1947 the Isle of Man received a surprise visit from the President of Ireland, Eamonn De Valera. His tour of the Island included a visit to Cregneash where he spoke to native speaker Ned Maddrell. The conversation led to De Valera offering to facilitate tape recordings of the Island's last surviving native speakers, tapes which are now a priceless record of spoken Manx. In this programme, which was first broadcast in July 2017, Charles Guard discovers how it all came about.
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King William's College sixty years on
Wednesday, 6 January 2021
Charles Guard picks up the courage to return to King William's College where, sixty years ago as a nine-year-old he started as a boarder. The canings, the food, the rugby - such awful memories. How has his Alma Mater changed over the past sixty years?