User talk:Retrowow
Dear Retrowow, Thank you for reading my posts on 'GPO Telephones. I will answer your two queries in order. At the time the 700 series telephone equipment was released I had been involved with the last gasps of the 200 and 300 series. I even decomissioned, personally, several Tele 150 (candlestick) telephones, one of which I polished up and converted into a table lamp. The reason the old phones are now so rare is that they were supposed to all be handed in to the central supply depots, for destruction by incineration, and most of them were. During this time, fitters and maintenance engineers, like myself, were constantly being asked the dual questions i) 'Why can't we have smart, lightweight phones, like they have in America and we see on TV?' and ii) 'Why do our phones have to be wired to the wall, when in America they just plug them in wherever they want?' The GPO's stop-gap response was to begin issuing, really naff, curly handset cords, as replacements for 300 series phones. These curled up and tangled really badly. We were instructed to answer the second question by telling customers that with the English system, having plug-in telephones was impossible, which was not true. The real reason was that a significant problem already existed with subscribers obtaining non GPO equipment and using it illegally. Providing a socket system, at that time, was seen as only exasserbating this problem. Whenever we came upon an illegal install, we were supposed to rip it out and fine the subscriber. Most of these illegal installs were of the American pattern phones already being supplied by private companies like Telephone Rentals. When the 706 became available these illegal installs stopped.
Regarding the 'Trimphone', I was introduced to this instrument during an installation course at the GPO's Northern Training School, in Didsbury. They were produced out of their boxes like rabbits out of hats and we were treated to the full 'Luxury Bedside Extension' marketing campaign. The virtual lack of interest from the public was exactly as described, until the stop-gap installation in kiosks. I became personally involved in CCB (coin collecting box) maintenance around that time, initially changing and rebuilding the Button A & B mechs. I didn't personally install any Trimphones on kiosk shelves but several of my collegues did and I did see them in situ, and observed them having been completely stolen. Previously we were generally only having to replace destroyed or stolen handsets to the 232s. UKmender (talk) 21:03, 3 June 2012 (UTC)
Hi,
Thanks for your reply. These are great anecdotes. However, for Wikipedia, I think we should be looking for documented evidence. Do you have access to any minutes where these subjects were discussed, or any journal or newspaper reports from the time?