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Elizabeth Cowell on the front of the Radio Times - front cover - first TV

Elizabeth Cowell (1912–1998) was a British broadcaster and television announcer.[1][2]

She was one of the first three BBC Television Service presenters, along with Jasmine Bligh and Leslie Mitchell.[3][4][5] She began announcing when the Television Service started in 1936 and made her debut on Monday 31 August that year at Alexandra Palace in London. This was a few months before the official launch of BBC Television on 2 November 1936.

She worked as a driver for the Air Ministry early during World War II before she returned to the BBC.[6]

She returned in 1946 after its nearly seven-year hiatus due to the Second World War. Cowell was the voice of 'the Woman' on the soundtrack of Paul Rotha's documentary Land of Promise (1946).

When BBC television started broadcasting again in 1946 Cowell was married to the laird of a Scottish estate and had left the BBC.[7]

References

  1. ^ "This Is the News and This Is". Sunday Sun. 16 February 1941. p. 4. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
  2. ^ Campbell, Patrick. "Centenary Supplement: From DIY Crystal Sets to Savoy Hill Studios and Pre-war Ally Pally". The Stage and Television Today. Jan 31, 1980. Pg. 130. Via Proquest.
  3. ^ "Forty years on". The Stage and Television Today. Nov 6, 1976; 4986. Entertainment Industry Magazine Archive. Pg. 15. Via Proquest.
  4. ^ Myers, Harold. "Television: BBC: Television With a Flair Myers". Variety. Nov 1, 1961. P. 27. Via Proquest.
  5. ^ "Kept in the dark as new era dawns". The Stage and Television Today. Oct 30, 1986. P. 19. Via Proquest.
  6. ^ "International Radio: London Calling - Elizabeth Cowell". Variety. Dec 13, 1939. Pg. 29.
  7. ^ "History of the BBC: Back From The Big Parade". Television Heaven. Retrieved 23 November 2016.

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