Thomas Brownrigg

Captain Thomas Marcus Brownrigg CBE DSO RN (Retired) (8 July 1902 – 9 October 1967) was a British Royal Navy officer before and during World War II who later became the first General Manager of Bracknell New Town Development Corporation before becoming the first General Manager of Europe's first commercial television station, Associated-Rediffusion.

Naval career

Brownrigg began his naval career as a midshipman in 1919. He progressed through the ranks, becoming a lieutenant in 1923 and a captain in 1942. He saw service on numerous ships, including pre-war stints on the flotilla leader HMS ''Montrose'', the aircraft carrier , and the light cruiser HMS ''Cairo''.Houterman, Hans and Koppes, Jeroe
Unithistories.com
Netherlands (undated), Retrieved 27 November 2008.

World War II

During the Second World War, Brownrigg served on the battleship HMS ''Warspite'' as Navigating Officer before taking a staff position under Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham in the planning department of the Naval Expeditionary Force, preparing for D-Day.

He then became commanding officer of HMS ''Scylla'' for D-Day itself, whilst also serving as Flag Captain for the Eastern Task Force during the landings. He finished the war in command of the Royal Navy Air Station at Rattray.

Post-war

After the war, Brownrigg served briefly on HMS ''Theseus'' before taking a series of land-based naval positions. He served as Director of Plans for the Admiralty, Chief of Staff to the Commander-in-Chief for the Mediterranean and finally, in 1952, being briefly Naval Aide de Camp to the Queen.

Nevertheless, he had made enemies within the Admiralty due to his idiosyncratic nature and failed to progress beyond the rank of captain. He was placed on the retired list in July 1952.

Bracknell New Town

Following his retirement from the navy, Brownrigg became General Manager of the Bracknell New Town Development Corporation.Henry, Brian (Ed.) ''British Television Advertising: The First Thirty Years'' London: Century Benham 1986 With his experience in planning for Operation Overlord, he was considered the ideal choice for implementing the development of a New Town as envisaged by Patrick Abercrombie and Lord Reith in their eponymous reports.

Associated-Rediffusion

The experience of managing Bracknell was put to use in Brownrigg's next post, the one where he would, his war service notwithstanding, gain the most fame. The Television Act 1954 had created the framework for commercial broadcasting in the United Kingdom.Graham, Russ
Vital vulgarity
, The Authority from Transdiffusion 1 April 2005, Retrieved 27 November 2008 British Electric Traction's Broadcast Relay Services subsidiary and Associated Newspapers formed a joint company, Associated-Rediffusion (A-R), to bid for a commercial television contract.Graham, Russ
A Short History
, Television House from Transdiffusion 1 January 2004, Retrieved 27 November 2008

Because of the extensive planning and construction involved, they approached Brownrigg to become their General Manager. He accepted and put his imprint across the entire structure and output of the company.

Contemporaries reported that he commanded A-R as though it were a battleship. His "Official Office Memoranda", giving instructions and setting rules for everything down to the frequency of filing and the decoration on the walls,Copy of OOM
, Transdiffusion archives became a legend throughout ITV.Thomas, Howard ''With An Independent Air'' London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson 1977 Under his leadership, the company went from having one employee (himself) to becoming Europe's first and largest commercial television broadcaster in under a year.Graham, Russ
London Calling
, Television House from Transdiffusion 1 January 2004, Retrieved 27 November 2008 In that time, he supervised the conversion of the former headquarters of the Air Ministry, Adastral House, into Television House, A-R studios and administration headquarters, which also served as the headquarters for ITN, the TV Times and, at first, Associated TeleVision, A-R's main rival. At the same time, he was also actively involved in defining the station's identity, formulating the programme plans, creating an advertising market for television, chairing ITN and negotiating industrial relations with the film and broadcasting unions.

Many stories are told by old ITV hands about Brownrigg's idiosyncrasies, especially his dominant - or domineeringBromsgrove, Mar
Brian Masters MBE
, TV Heroes from Transdiffusion, Retrieved 27 November 2008 - manner, his name-dropping, his willingness to generalise outrageously on any subject and his requirement for very junior staff to salute him and his fellow directors. However, personal friends also point out that he had a great sense of humour and an ability to laugh at himself - many of the anecdotes about him may therefore have derived from him in the first place.

Retirement

Brownrigg's A-R pitched itself as a formal, rigid broadcaster. In order to avoid comparison between A-R and the American networks, Brownrigg ensured that A-R was more "British" and "Empire" in its attitudes and identity than even the BBC
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