Francis George Gillard (1 December 1908 – 20 October 1998) was a BBC executive, reporter and radio innovator.

Early years

Gillard was born in Tiverton in

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

and attended Wellington School, Somerset. He gained a bachelor's degree from St Luke's College, Exeter (now part of the

University of Exeter , mottoeng = "We Follow the Light" , established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter) , type = Public , ...

). He then taught in a private school.

Broadcaster

In 1936 he became a part-time broadcaster and in 1941 joined the BBC full-time. He became a war correspondent attached to Southern Command and witnessed the

Dieppe Raid Operation Jubilee or the Dieppe Raid (19 August 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied amphibious attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe in northern France, during the Second World War. Over 6,050 infantry, predominantly Canadian, s ...

. In 1942 he went to North Africa to report on the campaign of the Eighth Army under Montgomery. He then reported on the Sicilian and Italian campaigns before returning to the UK ready for the

D-day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

landings. He made memorable reports, often under fire, throughout this period, including eyewitness accounts of the

Battle for Caen The Battle for Caen (June to August 1944) is the name given to fighting between the British Second Army and the German in the Second World War for control of the city of Caen and its vicinity during the larger Battle of Normandy. The battles ...

. When Howard Marshall, the Director of the War Reporting Unit, was recalled Gillard took his place. He followed the campaign to the end reporting on the meeting of US and Soviet troops in 1945.

Radio administrator

From 1945 to 1963 Gillard worked in the BBC's western region, becoming its director in 1955. In 1964 he was made Director of Radio with a seat on the BBC's Board of Management. He saw the need to fill the gap left by the demise of

pirate radio Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially ...

for 'pop' music. To do this he reorganised the BBC's radio into four stations, Radios 1, 2, 3 & 4. He also discontinued ''

Children's Hour ''Children's Hour'', initially ''The Children's Hour'', was the BBC's principal recreational service for children (as distinct from "Broadcasts to Schools") which began during the period when radio was the only medium of broadcasting. ''Childr ...

'' and shut the BBC's Features Department. In 1967 he also created the first local radio stations. Gillard retired in 1969.

Retirement and honours

Gillard remained active throughout his retirement helping both Australian and American public service broadcasters. He was one of several people whose input led to the creation of '' Masterpiece Theatre''. He also initiated a living history project to capture a record of the earliest days of the BBC. The BBC named their local radio awards the Frank Gillard Awards. He was awarded an OBE in 1946. and a CBE in 1961.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillard, Frank 1908 births 1998 deaths Alumni of the University of Exeter Commanders of the Order of the British Empire BBC people British radio journalists People from Tiverton, Devon British war correspondents War correspondents of World War II People educated at Wellington School, Somerset Articles containing video clips Mass media people from Devon