Christopher Wenner - R.I.P

 This week we return to my favourite show.

It was announced  Thursday October 28 the 14th September 1978 - 23rd June 1980 Blue Peter presenter known to us as Christopher Wenner but who know now goes under the name Max Stahl  and as such had a career in film making had died from cancer aged 66 years.

Christopher was the son of a former British ambassador to El Salvador and something of that rather rigid upbringing showed in his presenting style however his derring-do commended him to viewers and the production team.

It is fair to say he was one many of us didn't really relate to probably coming in after  the likes of John Noakes and Peter Purves who with Val Singleton and Lesley Judd set a very high bar it might in hindsight seemed almost impossible for him to had made the connection the others had.

This is Blue Peter book 17 published in 1980 that shoes him with Tina Heath and Simon Groom which has write ups of some of shows, stories and quizzes.

I might just add he also appeared with Lesley Judd when he joined initially and Sarah Greene

This is photo from a feature on Television Centre, the BBC and the programs headquarters in this era in London to which we wrote into for competitions, gaining badges and sharing ideas.

His biggest moment was Abseiling down the East Tower BBC Television Centre.

Christopher returned to celebrate Blue Peter birthdays in 1983 and 1998 when he also took a cameo part in that year's Blue Peter pantomime, Back in Time For Christmas.

In his filming career he was able to get covering of the East Timor uprising and massacre out in 1991 and make a new career for himself serving as a ITN as a journalist for Channel 4

In addition he also had a walk-on part in the Doctor Who story The Awakening (1984).

While he was not one the most memorable presenters, I am sorry to hear of his passing. Rest in peace. 

Questions and answers

The latter half of this week hasn't really been a great one for being out, just grabbing the odd opportunity as it presented itself between the dark clouds and rain so I've been rather more busy with reading comics and working on a new project.

This week we'll have a question and answer session.

Has Christopher got a music collection?

Yes. He has  a good number of Compact Discs and long playing records plus his singles from boyhood.

Has Christopher got a toy?

Yes. He has a few Action Men who are his favourite closely followed by his lego sets.

Does Christopher have a car?

No. Due to his disabilities he cannot drive a car, he can only drive you round the bend!

Is Christopher disabled?

Yes. It is part of what him who he is.

What does Christopher wear?

Christopher wears traditional boys clothing such as grey short short trousers, long turn over socks and dress shirts. 

He wears T shirts for playwear together old school pe shorts and ankle socks and owns a football kit.

What was Christopher's boyhood dream?

To be taken out in the Pink Panther's stretch limo.

What stamp did Christopher most look forward to in 1977?

The Twenty-fifth anniversary issues for Queen Elizabeth II. 

What is Christopher's biggest influence on how to live?

The teachings of Baden Powell, Scouting and his Christian Science faith.

Observations

This week I had reason to review on of the blogs simply because it is the time of year I'd look at what really what it was about and the importance to me personally, a whole batch of posts that covered what it was I'd gained over a period.

It also has been a week where on a failed Tumblr replacement service I saw for the first time in a good while some of those landmark early deeply personal posts as I began the emotionally painful process of taking stock of who I was and where boyhood was within it that were lost in last Aprils battle on Tumblr.

That was the start point of my recovery, finding and reconnecting with where that was last parked, picking up that sense of adventure, the love of discovery and the outdoors seeing it as my playground growing as that boy.

It was so appropriate then it was also the week my brand new white lined grey school shorts arrived having been commissioned back in May as David Luke no longer as a matter of course supply them with white linings, only black.

Being sat here on the floor crossed legged in my grey shorts just feels right because the thing we learned in that time from the original ASB and that first Tumblr account the only thing I was were just him.

A little boy who wears shorts all year round of the brevity when I was in Junior School who is happy with that status, playing, scouting and having fun. 

Actually being smol together

 

As I lie here typing this out, I'm thinking over a few things I read at the Reddit I mentioned on the other blog and what could be described as role playing within a thread.

What this thread was about were chat rooms often used by gaming people and also age regressors  amongst others for in real time conversation around various things between people who do know at least of each other.

I must say on the outset I generally don't do them as most of people involved are in the Americas and the time zone difference for something that doesn't get going until at least mid afternoon over there is such I'd be in bed or heading there in UK time having been up from around seven PM UK time which is a good while.

The essence of this persons comment was because there's not a good popular age dysphoric one they'd used a an age regression one only to find much of the conversation to be around school and work with little about and involving play which it was they were looking for.

I kind of get that, actually it's a pet peeve of mine from experiences that while you understand that to do things like get a meal organized and that if you're physically staying together matters, all too often play doesn't seem to break out even afterwards.

People might be offloading their frustrations but really they're not letting out the little boy or girl in them and they felt they could not "play" with others or talk about their special interests .

They had tried to find one which did but that one didn't have anyone interested in things like colouring or watching cartoons such as Paw Patrol seeing to deal with more older boy/girl regression.

I get that frustration as when I'm not out say walking or visiting places I too like to play things more aimed at younger children not least as role playing games are too taxing given my memory and related learning disabilities.

Is it beyond of the remit of people to fix this?

The restored tumblr going forward

It's a new month starting from today and it is clear as I type this we are in Autumn as it felt damp and a bit cooler when I went out this morning , actually light drizzle at times, requiring a jacket and woolly hat on for a stroll out.

I mentioned a couple of  months back the work I was doing in transferring the one blog that remained after the events of late May which while going back to October of 2020 itself was a mixture of the more past childhood and related posts of other 'lost' accounts and some of the commentary the original tumblrs had.

Well that task was completed very much on time as laborious and painfully slow as it was between bouts of ill health and now does appear to be picking some new following as some of the issues were to do with their interests.

One of things that kept me going was seeing some of the kinds of Tumblrs that I loved come on such as BoyWithDragon and especially 12thbirthday because they are more the kind of Tumblr I always wanted.

Tumblrs that are very much boys own tumblrs that mix in age regression and being age dysphoric to about how we present and live as boys playing on the floor in short trousers, following our special interests more as eternal boys.

Blogs that do feature a small number of pictures about and from traditional boyhood but not going down a more "adult content" take on being that boy where pictures are indicative of the boyhoods we knew and are recreating in the here and now and are not fetish or in any way kink related.

Blogs that honour our eternal boy selves in other words.

That going forward is where this recreated one is headed for now.