John McLeod introduces the first item, a film report about Merton Cleaning Services Ltd, a Leicester firm that make very large jumbo toilet rolls for commercial contracts. Interview with Philip Tipton from the firm and views of the production process. We then see Oscar the newshound (a dog then familiar to viewers of Central News) being used to parody a then popular television toilet roll commercial. We then see salesman Norman Turner fitting one of the firm’s large toilet rolls and explaining its operation. Next we see people arriving at the Haymarket Theatre in Leicester and there is an interview with Scott Foster, house manager about jumbo toilet rolls.
Keith Wootton introduces the next film report which looks at the Bilston based construction firm Tarmac which has recently joined forces with an American firm to form Tarmac Schal. The new business aims to bring American techniques of 'Construction Management' in which construction sites employ contractors to Britain. We see construction work in Birmingham city centre and there is an interview with Len Arnold of Tarmac Schal. We then see Arnold jogging from the Bilston office of his firm, a scene which cuts to shots of him jogging in Chicago and entering the Schal Associates offices where he views computer generated images of tall buildings. There is a discussion of American building techniques and we see skyscrapers in Chicago being built. Interviews with Richard Halpern of Schal Associates and American foreman Tom Loftus. Finally Keith visits a new Tarmac building under construction in Chiswick.
Next Isobel Rowley introduces a spoof report about a new aircraft. We see a board meeting of people associated with the airline industry (Hugh Coriat of RAF Cottesmore; John Gallier of Orion Airways; Bob Taylor of Birmingham Airport; Jurgen Roesch of the German Navy; Peter Latham of the Oxford Training School; Trefor Jones and Linda Swinford of Birmingham Executive Airways; and stock broker Carl Blackshaw). The punch-line turns out to be a new book about paper aeroplanes. Finally we see clips of a recent awards ceremony where both John McLeod and Keith Wootton were honoured for their consumer reporting.
Reporters: John McLeod; Isobel Rowley; Keith Wootton
Film Cameramen: Bob Bolt; Peter Salkeld
Film Sound: Murray Clarke; John Marshall; Philip Middleham
Film Editors: Paul Brown; Chris Rickard
Title Music: Vangelis
Chicago computer film by courtesy of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Production Assistants: Pat Harris; Patsy Wood
Directors: Mike Finlason; John Pluck
Producer: Graham Mole
Production number 3434/83.