Popular TV presenter is trapped on stage at city carnival

It was held at the Sandy Lane field at Blackbird Leys on a hot, sunny afternoon in June 1976 and attracted more than 1,000 people.

The star attraction was TV personality Simon Dee, who was so popular at that time that the large crowd trapped him on the stage.

The Oxford Mail reported: “He mounted the stage to crown 21-year-old Wendy Hardman as Miss Oxford when the crowd surrounding the arena broke through and surged forward.

“Carnival officials managed to get Miss Oxford and her attendants off the stage, but after that it was deadlock.

TV presenter Simon Dee is surrounded by fans (Image: Oxford Mail)

“Simon Dee and a girl who was with him were stuck on the stage as fans surged round, trying to get his autograph.

“A policeman tried to get the crowd away from the edge of the stage, but Simon refused to get down to go to a special table to sign autographs.

“Instead, he signed them on the stage, until six of the largest men in the crowd were recruited to get him bodily through the cheering fans.

“A plan for Simon to ‘mingle furtively’ through the sideshows, as he put it, had to be abandoned.”

The carnival had opened with a parade of floats, led by a lorry carrying 21-year-old Wendy, Miss Oxford, and her attendants, from the Oxpens in Oxford to Blackbird Leys.

The funfair did a roaring trade, and the heat drove people in their hundreds to ice cream stalls and the beer tent.

There were also demonstrations by gymnasts, judo enthusiasts and young dancers.

The winning float in the procession, chosen by the Lord Mayor, Peter Spokes, was a lorry full of pensioners called ‘Full House at Northbrooke House’ – a bingo game on wheels.

Among the other floats was the one at the top of the page, staged by the Blackbird Leys St John Ambulance Brigade and the Combined Cadet Division.

Miss M E Doughty, vice-chairman of the carnival committee, told the Oxford Mail: “I am thrilled with the success of the carnival. It is a triumph for Blackbird Leys.”

The carnival day ended in Oxford with a dance at the Town Hall, with Simon Dee leading Miss Oxford on the floor to the music of an American Air Force band.

Simon Dee hosted a twice-weekly BBC TV chat show, Dee Time, in the late 1960s.

Before his broadcasting career, he worked as a bouncer in a coffee bar, photographic assistant, builders’ labourer, leaf-sweeper in Hyde Park and vacuum cleaner salesman.

In 1964, he joined Radio Caroline, the pirate radio station broadcasting pop music off the Essex coast, and his was the first live voice to be heard by listeners.

A year later, he joined the BBC Light Programme, anchoring a late-night Saturday show, before switching to TV. His Dee Time show attracted up to 18 million viewers.