British Universities Film & Video Council

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R.E. Jeffrey

Profile

Dates
1930-1943
Role
Commentator
Newsreels / Cinemagazines
Universal News
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Career

R. E. Jeffrey started as an announcer with the British Broadcasting Company, where he was ‘Uncle Jeff’ on the BBC Children’s Hour. Jeffrey appears to have taken over from John Thorne [qv] as the Universal Talking News commentator in March 1931, when he greeted audiences with ‘Hullo everybody! This is R E Jeffrey Screen-casting as the Universal Talking News reporter.' Jeffrey wrote his own scripts and set the fashion for single, named commentators in British newsreels. His name appeared on the main title, and he had a great deal of influence over the newsreel, as for several years all sound on the Universal Talking News was added in the studio. In October 1934 Jeffrey claimed to have recorded commentaries to 5,000 newsreel stories, which would have been the majority of stories to date. Jeffrey’s style of commentary was described as ‘deliberate, solid British,' and the World Film News noted that when the Universal Talking News came on, ‘thousands of newsreel fans, who worry less about the news, sit back to enjoy homely chit-chat in Jeffrey’s slow, heavily emphasised, fireside manner.'

In December 1934 Jeffrey featured in a comic Christmas item entitled ‘THE PRESENT PROBLEM,' in Universal Talking News No.461. He also featured as an interviewer, with ‘MISS GREAT BRITAIN’ for No.546 in October 1935, and with Sir John Simon for No.814 in April 1938. In January 1938 Jeffrey covered the Spanish Civil War for the Universal Talking News, bringing the first reports from the Nationalist side and spending a fortnight in Spain with cameraman George Oswald [qv]. In February 1938 Jeffrey was featured in ‘R. E. JEFFREY RETURNS FROM SPAIN’ in Universal News No.793, and ‘R. E. JEFFREY ON THE SPANISH FRONT’ in No.794 - the latter including an interview with General Franco. When asked why he had gone on such a trip Jeffrey replied that ‘for a long time I have been dissatisfied with just adding a commentary to what is sent in’: ‘After this visit I am able to speak with authority of what I have seen.' However, his interview with Franco caused controversy and led to claims of political bias in the newsreel. Jeffrey countered by explaining that he had approached both sides for permission to film, and that only the Nationalists had responded.

Jeffrey was subsequently given a higher profile, featuring in stories such as ‘R.E. JEFFREY CROWNS RHYL MAY QUEEN’ in Universal News No.817 from May 1938, and ‘R.E. JEFFREY VISITS SUSSEX’ in No.827 from June 1938. In wartime Jeffrey was apparently the first commentator to receive accreditation as a War Correspondent, and in March 1942 he was featured in ‘UNIVERSAL EXCLUSIVE - THE ARMY ON THE MOVE!' in Universal News No.1219. He was also used as a special correspondent for ‘THE STORY OF HULL’ in Universal News No.1271 from September 1942, and ‘OUR WAR COMMENTATOR R.E. JEFFREY HAVING A CHAT WITH THE WOUNDED BACK FROM NORTH AFRICA’ in No.1323 from March 1943.

Sources

Universal Talking News commentary script issue 71 (16/3/1931); R. E. Jeffrey ‘My job as a commentator,' Kinematograph Weekly, 25 October 1934, Supplement p.12: World Film News, August 1936, p.41, ‘Personality - the Problem of Commentary,'; December 1937, p.39, ‘Newsreel Rushes’: To-day’s Cinema, 12/2/1938, pp.1, 4, ‘R. E. Jeffrey back from Spain’; 2/3/1938, p.50, ‘Franco Interview Echo’.

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