A global campaign has been launched to bring the untold story of Angus-born radar pioneer Sir Robert Watson-Watt to life through a remarkable collection of memorabilia which had been lost for decades.
Canadian research experts have unveiled their $70,000 target to complete the massive task of researching and writing the life history of the one-time Brechin High School dux, with hopes the complex character’s fascinating story might also hit the small screen.
Sir Robert’s place in history is well known through his role in developing the home radar system Prime Minister Winston Churchill hailed as saving Britain from the German Luftwaffe and a likely 1940 military invasion during the Second World War.
He is celebrated in his home town with a life-sized statue erected unveiled by the Princess Royal in 2014 but a recently-discovered treasure trove of more than 5,000 pages of previously unknown personal correspondence, photographs, unpublished radar research, books and medals has sparked the latest project by Toronto-based United Front Entertainment (UFE).
UFE founder Bryan Davies, who saw the Watson-Watt statue in St Ninian’s Square, Brechin for the first time last year and is due to return within weeks, said: “We are multi-media storytellers based in the Greater Toronto area.
Their Under the Radar: Sir Robert Watson-Watt crowdfunding campaign has now gone live, with a £40,000 target to chronicle the untold life story of Sir Robert and his Canadian wife, Lady Jean Watson-Watt.
The project started after UFE member Blake Parnham inherited the fascinating collection of artefacts from his grandfather, who was Sir Robert’s stepson from his marriage to his second wife.
Award-winning author Mr Davies has also brought Angus-based Watson-Watt expert Steve Nicoll on board the research team.
The aim is to publish a multi-volume biography series over the next two years, before the entire Parnham/Watson-Watt memorabilia collection – valued at around $200,000 – is donated to appropriate historical institutions in Scotland and England.
A television mini-series is one of the research team’s ambitions to keep alive the legacy of Sir Robert, who mixed with the world’s most powerful politicians to the movie stars of the era on both sides of the Atlantic.
He latterly lived in London and had a summer home in Pitlochry, where he was buried following his death in 1973 at the age of 81.
Mr Davies added: “Our story is international in scope. It will resonate strongly in England, Scotland, and Canada.
“There are hundreds of items in the memorabilia collection that include letters, speeches, articles, medals, and many other documents.”
