Sir Charles Douglas Carpendale | |
---|---|
Charles Douglas Carpendale (1923) | |
Born | 18 October 1874 |
Died | 21 March 1968 | (aged 93)
Allegiance | ![]() |
Service/ | ![]() |
Rank | Vice-Admiral |
Commands held | HMS Good Hope HMS Shannon HMS Donegal HMS Benbow [1] |
Battles/wars | First World War Greco-Turkish War (1919–22) |
Awards | Commander of the Order of the Bath |
Other work | Controller of the BBC President of the International Broadcasting Union |
Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Douglas Carpendale, CB (18 October 1874 – 21 March 1968) was a Royal Navy officer who saw active service in the First World War and later served as Controller of the British Broadcasting Corporation.
In June 1923, John Reith, the first General Manager of the BBC, was under pressure and looking for a Deputy, and F. J. Brown (Assistant Secretary of the General Post Office) suggested Carpendale for the job. Reith interviewed him at length on 14 June, with Carpendale not at first understanding that Reith was looking for a second-in-command.[6] Reith liked Carpendale, they met again on 5 July, the post was offered and accepted, and Carpendale started work on 13 July with the title of Assistant General Manager.[7] He was later given the title of Controller of the British Broadcasting Corporation.[8] He retired in 1938.[1]
On 3 April 1925, at Geneva, Carpendale became President of the First General Assembly of the International Broadcasting Union (Union Internationale de Radio-Diffusion), remaining in office until 1932.[1]
Lionel Fielden has described Carpendale as "a handsome blue-eyed man with a barking manner".[9] An obituary in The Times referred to his "famous quarter-deck manner... belied as often as not by an ultimate twinkle in his eye" while he was at the BBC. During the General Strike of 1926, he made himself useful in the studios.[1] Maurice Gorham has told the anecdote of Carpendale interviewing the musician Harry S. Pepper for a job at the BBC. He asked Pepper "How old are you?" and got the reply "Forty-four, how old are you?"[10]
In 1907 Carpendale married Christina Henrietta Strange, at Winchester,[1] the daughter of J. S. Strange, lord of the manor of Epsom.[11] They had one son, Richard Douglas Strange Carpendale (1908—1975).[12]
From 1946 to 1948, Carpendale worked as a volunteer in the library of the Royal College of Surgeons, organising and re-binding books.[13]