| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| HTA ID | HTA-0386 |
| Title | London Poem and London Transportation |
| Date | ~1980–1981 |
| Date Confidence | Moderate (PM Magazine era; London trip episode) |
| Program | PM Magazine |
| Station | WDVM-TV, Washington DC |
| Duration | ~5:21 (main London content; tape continues with PM promos) |
| Format | Travel feature / light verse |
A PM Magazine travel segment from Henry's London trip. Opens with Henry's original comic poem about British English vs. American English ("A lift goes up and down / and second floor means first floor / while first floor is called the ground"). The poem covers linguistic differences: "engaged" means busy signal, "to knock up" means paying a visit, "a nappy's a diaper," etc.
The piece transitions to a visit to Madame Tussauds wax museum, then a survey of London transportation: taxis (diesel, 18-month training, memorize every street), the Tube ("good bomb shelters — during World War II people used to sleep down here"), driving on the left ("one of our producers made that very same mistake, and she came within inches of becoming a foot ornament on a London taxi"), double-decker buses, and finally Trafalgar Square pigeons.
The tape continues with PM Magazine opening montages and promos for other episodes (Russian embassy reception, hurricane storm chasers, cheerleading camp, Green Berets), confirming this is a compound tape.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| People | "Richard" (cameraman, hands Henry grain at Trafalgar Square = Rick Armstrong) |
| Organizations | WDVM-TV, PM Magazine |
| Locations | London (Madame Tussauds, Trafalgar Square, the Tube, streets), Georgetown |
| Subjects | Travel, British culture, language differences, London landmarks |
| Themes | Cultural humor, fish-out-of-water comedy, travel journalism |
| Story Type | Travel feature with original verse |
"You'll rarely find an elevator / The lifts go up and down / And second floor means first floor / While first floor is called the ground."
"When you give one a ring, that's a telephone call / Now that's not confusing, is it? / The term engaged is a busy signal / To knock up means paying a visit."
"One of our producers made that very same mistake, and she came within inches of becoming a foot ornament on a London taxi."
"According to local legend... it's actually a tribute to the first woman driver. You'll notice that she's signaling left while the chariot turns right."
This piece demonstrates Henry's skill as a light verse writer — the London poem is genuinely witty and well-constructed. The travel segment combines education with humor in the classic PM Magazine style. The compound tape also preserves PM Magazine opening montages that document the show's format and upcoming episodes.
The reference to "Richard" handing Henry grain at Trafalgar Square confirms Rick Armstrong as cameraman on the London trip, adding to the crew documentation.
| Type | Reference |
|---|---|
| Crew | Rick Armstrong (cameraman) — also identified in HTA-0344, HTA-0345 |
| Program | PM Magazine travel episodes — London trip |
| Compound | Tape continues with PM promos referencing Green Berets (HTA-0380), cheerleading, storm chasers |
| Style | Original verse — compare to "Air Pollution" tribute (HTA-0365) |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Source File | London Poem.txt |
| Alternate Files | None identified |
| Source Location | /transcript macwhisper/ (root folder) |
| Transcription Quality | Good |
| Repository Status | Preserved in Source Repository |
The compound tape structure (London content + PM promos) suggests this was a personal compilation or demo reel tape. The PM opening montages at the end reference multiple episodes (Russian embassy, storm chasers, cheerleading, Green Berets) — these may help date other pieces in the archive by establishing which episodes aired in proximity.
The poem's final line — "I'm happy with nappy, and Lou, and Q, but what is the word gazom?" — suggests a visual punchline that the transcript cannot capture. "Gazom" is likely a MacWhisper garble of a British slang term.