| Description: | Mark Westwood and Jennifer d'Alton discuss the British Balloon Museum and Library's lottery-funded website project, which includes oral histories from ballooning heroes enthusiasts like Don Cameron and Kevin Meehan. Mark recounts his early ballooning experiences, including the formation of the original hot air group in 1966 and the construction of the Bristol Belle balloon. He details the challenges and successes of building and flying balloons, including a notable cross-channel flight. Mark also shares his transition from ballooning to book collecting and his current battle with stage four bowel cancer. Outline - Mark Westwood recalls seeing the Red Dragon balloon in 1966, which inspired him to build a hot air balloon.
- The original Hot Air Group formed, including Mark, Don Cameron, Tom Sage, Bill Malpas, Charles Meisl, Giles Bulmer, and Malcolm Brighton.
- They built and tested small balloons, and Mark found a photograph of one of those early balloons.
- In August 1967, they inflated their first balloon, Bristol Belle, but it split at the top, revealing a lack of knowledge in balloon construction.
First Flights and Challenges - Mark and Don Cameron had their checkout flights in November 1967, qualifying them for a licence.
- Mark did his solo flight in February 1968, landing on the Hogs Back.
- The group continued to fly Bristol Belle, which was in use almost every day, and they started to get invitations to appear with the balloon.
- Mark lists the original members of the hot air group and mentions Terry Adams joining after Malcolm Brighton's death.
Formation of Omega Aerostatics - Mark and Jerry Turnbull formed Omega Aerostatics to manufacture balloons.
- They built the first Nimble balloon, which was used in a successful advertising campaign.
- Mark recalls a filming experience in Segovia, Spain, with Jerry Turnbull and David Archer.
- Omega Aerostatics built balloons for various clients, including one sold to a Frenchman for a large sum of money.
Transition to Western Balloons - Don Cameron started building and selling balloons without informing Mark and Gerry, leading to a split.
- Mark and Gerry formed Western Balloons with Giles Bulmer, manufacturing about 20 to 25 balloons.
- The largest balloon they built was 84,000 cubic feet, and they tended to build balloons around 56,000 cubic feet.
- Mark discusses the challenges of building balloons and the various parts made by different manufacturers.
Mark's Personal Life and Career Changes - Mark moved to Hay on Wye, bought a disused water mill, and spent seven years rebuilding it.
- He transitioned from academic life to running a bookshop, specializing in the history of science, technology, medicine, and history of ideas.
- Mark and his wife, Evelyn, ran a large bookshop in Sedburgh for 15 years before moving back to Hay on Wye.
- Mark's daughter, Rosanna, is involved in sorting out his and his late partners collections for the museum.
Mark's Current Activities - Mark continues to run a book business online, selling books through AB
Books.
|
|---|
